My Lost Battle for Academic Integrity

Life for an American public high school teacher is not easy. Perhaps this is an understatement; it’s more akin to a daily battleground of competing interests. Students want easy grades; parents expect nothing less than an A grade; administrators want to please the parents, and the teachers’ integrity is often compromised. Trying to provide a well-rounded education while meeting the demands of standardized testing, college preparedness, and curriculum guidelines is exhausting. Balancing these conflicting interests has affected my mental, emotional, and spiritual well-being. I’m toast. Why? Grading is a chaotic power struggle orchestrated by the Wizard of Oz, with some bumbling administrative lurking behind the curtain. There’s no point in trying to understand the absurdity and the wizardry of a world where A grades are supposed to materialize from thin air — conjured by parental pressures and contributions. I speak from experience. I never was a very good wizard at this, which is probably why I was considered the toughest AP English teacher on campus. Grades were earned in my classes, much to the dismay of the celebrity parental powers that be. Grading periods always made me sick to my stomach. Sure, I’d like to give everyone an A. As one student said, “I tried so hard.” This is why there are two separate parts of the report card. One for assessing behavior and work ethic, and one for academic performance. <a href="https://medium.com/middle-pause/my-lost-battle-for-academic-integrity-ae559c8d1c1f">Learn More</a>