High School Halts Publication of Honor Roll

[CarolineM 0]

That might be our different perspective then - my college was REALLY hard to get into...(so was Jenn's btw).

BUT regardless, getting into college is NOT as easy as it used to be...Even since my 25 year old brother went through the process...it is reallly tough and competitive.

[Hilarious Clinton 452]

I think it's time everyone had a mandatory frontal lobotomy performed at birth. That way no one can be offended, discriminated against or upset by anything ever again. We will all be the lifeless zombies everybody seems to be pushing for. Yay, what fun that'll be!

Oh and while we're at it, let's make it enforcable by law that all kids get picked for the football/baseball team/cheerleading squad so kids will never have to learn how to deal with disappointment or learn that results are not a right but must be earned!

So true!!

I was on the honor roll quite a bit (high honors too) and I would laugh at the stupid kids when the list came out. PWNED

Nerd.

Exactly!! You have a sense of humor at least. Alex needs to work on one.

[one...two...tree 2,762]

Why judge them as losers though?? Not everyone thinks high-paying jobs are the definition of success.

Obviously, success is very relative - what is success to one person may not be to another.

However, most people would consider a high-paying job an indicator of success.

I think kids should find the motivation to be good students from themselves.

Motivation doesn't come from within. You're not going to work 10 hours a day if you can

work 5 hours a day, all other things being equal.

Good point!

[Karen_L 1]

NEEDHAM, Mass. -- Needham High School has abandoned its long-standing practice of publishing the names of students who make the honor roll in the local newspaper.

Principal Paul Richards said a key reason for stopping the practice is its contribution to students' stress level in "This high expectations-high-achievement culture."

The proposal to stop publishing the honor roll came from a parent. Richards took the issue before the school council, which approved it. Parents were notified of the decision last month. Richards said he received about 60 responses from both parents and students and the feedback has been evenly split for and against.

Richards said one parent with three children attending Needham High told him publishing the honor roll is a constant cause of stress in her family. According to that parent, one of the three students routinely made the honor roll while the other two did not.

Another parent who didn't want his name used said his two youngsters, a senior and a junior at Needham High, both consistently received honors and high honors. He said he, "took special pride in opening the newspaper and seeing his kids names." He said he could also see how the publishing of names could put stress on other kids who did not make it.

Richards said publishing of the honor roll represented "an unhealthy focus on grades." He pointed out that there are lots of other ways that students achieve, such as in clubs, musicals, concerts, athletics and community service.

He said the ranking of students solely based on grades goes against the school's overall mission which is to "promote learning."

The decision to drop publishing the honor roll comes at a time when the Needham High community is dealing with heartache. Last month, two seniors were killed in a car crash. Last spring, a Needham High student committed suicide.

The Needham Times has traditionally published the school's honor roll. Editor-in-Chief Greg Reibman said the paper has "always been interested in recognizing the achievements of all Needham students -- not just in academics but in sports, the arts, community service, and in any other way."

"We understand that the school is trying hard to deal with some enormous challenges. I don't think anyone believes this alone is going to solve some of these very tough issues, but we respect the decision of the experts who certainly have the students' best interests in mind," Reibman said.

Needham High's principal said the decision to no longer publish the honor roll is not nailed in cement. Richards said it is "subject to review." He said, "We'll go through this year without it and assess the impact on the school culture."

http://www.thebostonchannel.com/education/...779/detail.html

I think this is the stupidest thing I've ever heard. How about you?

This is another example of how American parents and educators overly coddle children, to their detriment. I remember that when I was in grammar school/high school, I would frequently make the Honor Roll (just about every report card). The two or three times I didn't make it, I knew why: I had slacked off for the semester and I wasn't taking certain classes seriously enough (usually math and science). It was an insentive for me to improve, knowing that if I did, I would be back on The Roll. Personal responsibility.

The Honor Roll isn't the be-all, end-all but it's a nice way to acknowledge students who do well; why do we always have to pander to the slower/less dedicated/less able these days? Why should gifted students NOT be able to feel good about being strong academically? By extension, why shouldn't gifted atheletes be allowed to excel at sports without having to pretend that some kid who can't run 5 feet is just as good? I was always terrible at sports, and I can say from experience that it didn't kill me to know that I wasn't good at something.

I'm only 22 years old, and I can definitely say that the way kids were raised 10 years ago is VASTLY different from how they're raised today -- it's only a matter of a few years, but a lot has changed in that small window of time.

[mawilson 2,133]

This is another example of how American parents and educators overly coddle children, to their detriment. I remember that when I was in grammar school/high school, I would frequently make the Honor Roll (just about every report card). The two or three times I didn't make it, I knew why: I had slacked off for the semester and I wasn't taking certain classes seriously enough (usually math and science). It was an insentive for me to improve, knowing that if I did, I would be back on The Roll. Personal responsibility.

The Honor Roll isn't the be-all, end-all but it's a nice way to acknowledge students who do well; why do we always have to pander to the slower/less dedicated/less able these days? Why should gifted students NOT be able to feel good about being strong academically? By extension, why shouldn't gifted atheletes be allowed to excel at sports without having to pretend that some kid who can't run 5 feet is just as good? I was always terrible at sports, and I can say from experience that it didn't kill me to know that I wasn't good at something.

I'm only 22 years old, and I can definitely say that the way kids were raised 10 years ago is VASTLY different from how they're raised today -- it's only a matter of a few years, but a lot has changed in that small window of time.

Karen, please stop. It's too much. I'm adding you to 'my friends' NOW.

[Karen_L 1]

This is another example of how American parents and educators overly coddle children, to their detriment. I remember that when I was in grammar school/high school, I would frequently make the Honor Roll (just about every report card). The two or three times I didn't make it, I knew why: I had slacked off for the semester and I wasn't taking certain classes seriously enough (usually math and science). It was an insentive for me to improve, knowing that if I did, I would be back on The Roll. Personal responsibility.

The Honor Roll isn't the be-all, end-all but it's a nice way to acknowledge students who do well; why do we always have to pander to the slower/less dedicated/less able these days? Why should gifted students NOT be able to feel good about being strong academically? By extension, why shouldn't gifted atheletes be allowed to excel at sports without having to pretend that some kid who can't run 5 feet is just as good? I was always terrible at sports, and I can say from experience that it didn't kill me to know that I wasn't good at something.

I'm only 22 years old, and I can definitely say that the way kids were raised 10 years ago is VASTLY different from how they're raised today -- it's only a matter of a few years, but a lot has changed in that small window of time.

Karen, please stop. It's too much. I'm adding you to 'my friends' NOW.

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!

[choji 0]

Is the "honor roll" system about the kids or the parents?

I can not remember having seen a student once wearing a sticker announcing the fact that he/she made the Honor Roll of school xyz.

However, bumper sticker on parents cars... one can see plenty of those.

[Jenn! 918]

That might be our different perspective then - my college was REALLY hard to get into...(so was Jenn's btw).

BUT regardless, getting into college is NOT as easy as it used to be...Even since my 25 year old brother went through the process...it is reallly tough and competitive.

Thanks!

I think I understand what Alex is saying though - why must everything be a competition? That's fine. So don't compete. That doesn't mean you have to take away the game, just don't be a player.

[one...two...tree 2,762]

Is the "honor roll" system about the kids or the parents?

I can not remember having seen a student once wearing a sticker announcing the fact that he/she made the Honor Roll of school xyz.

However, bumper sticker on parents cars... one can see plenty of those.

Gawd those are annoying...might as well add, 'neener, neener' to it.

I think it's one thing to be proud of your kid's achievements, but it's another thing when a parent wears it like a badge of honor.

[*julez* 124]

stupid idiot chopf##k school

What he said

[Ban Hammer 13,345]

Thanks!

I think I understand what Alex is saying though - why must everything be a competition? That's fine. So don't compete. That doesn't mean you have to take away the game, just don't be a player.

don't hate the player, hate the game?

seriously, life is all about competition. competing for food. shelter. a mate. natural resources. etc. people need to grow up and accept reality.

[Alex+R 0]

That might be our different perspective then - my college was REALLY hard to get into...(so was Jenn's btw).

BUT regardless, getting into college is NOT as easy as it used to be...Even since my 25 year old brother went through the process...it is reallly tough and competitive.

Nah, I just studied out of the country for a semester (same can be completed at a community college) and then applied as a transfer. Things are much easier as a transfer. Also had near-perfect SAT score, for some inexplicable reason. Luck?

I think it's time everyone had a mandatory frontal lobotomy performed at birth. That way no one can be offended, discriminated against or upset by anything ever again. We will all be the lifeless zombies everybody seems to be pushing for. Yay, what fun that'll be!

Oh and while we're at it, let's make it enforcable by law that all kids get picked for the football/baseball team/cheerleading squad so kids will never have to learn how to deal with disappointment or learn that results are not a right but must be earned!

So true!!

I was on the honor roll quite a bit (high honors too) and I would laugh at the stupid kids when the list came out. PWNED

Nerd.

Exactly!! You have a sense of humor at least. Alex needs to work on one.

Eh, and you need to work on acquiring a soul, my friend.

[Alex+R 0]

PS, the reason I feel so strongly about this is that I don't think this kind of competition is good for kids. Not only because it robs them of a chance to just enjoy being kids (and childhood is full of other types of competition) but because in my experience, and in my younger brother's experience (he's a high school freshman) it seems that students who think the least creatively and with the most boring thought processes are rewarded with the highest grades, except in certain disciplines. I

t takes so little time for a smart kid to nail down exactly how to beat the system, but at the same time, they are learning that their conformity is the most valuable thing about them. I took almost all the AP classes my junior and senior years (since the school prided itself on having the most AP classes in the state) and learned nothing valuable in them, since they just taught to the tests. Because the focus was all on getting into college and making the school look good.

Students who didn't value getting into Harvard as their top priority in life received puzzled looks from teachers and guidance counselors alike. I'm sorry, but college is college, as long as you get into a school in, say, the top 50 or 100. It's grad school that matters. My brother says that his teachers already told him he has no chance of getting into my school and will have to go to the University of Minnesota. At 15! I tell him who cares, go to the U of M. Same deal.

[Trumplestiltskin 5,791]

In Britain, my dad used to tell me that in his generation your life was essentially defined by the 11 plus exam. That if you didn't get into a good secondary school (there were 2 grammar schools in our area) that essentially mean't the difference between being white collar and blue collar.

[Fandango 1,439]

I'm so sick of people embracing socialist-inspired mediocrity