Well it does sound like you didn't give her any way out and
came across as a little hard nosed. My philosophy changed
from one of asking kids to be perfect to one of doing what I
can to help them pass. But it isn't easy.
I do not accept late work. Why? Because to a middle
schooler, accepting late work is simply an extension of the
deadline. You will hear them say, "Well hey I still have X
days to get it in." "Ummmm, yes you do," young man, "but you
know each late day is a letter grade off." "Yeah, no problem,
gettin a 50 is better than an 0!"
Like you, we give homework almost every night. I simply
cannot keep up with late work. I give one free homework pass
per six weeks and 2-1 day late passes each six weeks. That is
it. I want to help the good students who truly "forget" but I
don't have any sympathy for the chronic excuse makers. This
gives me ammo when mamma calls.
Here is what I will do. I allow my kids to correct the missed
questions on their exams. If they do the corrections, I will
give them half of their missed points back. Trust me, it
doesn't happen often. Why? Because it is a lot of work! And
why shouldn't it be? When was the last time you got to correct
a test? Here is what students must do:
1) They must take the test home and have a parent sign it.
2) They must correct every problem missed. No partial credit.
3) They must write a 2 or 3 sentence paragraph for each missed
problem telling me why they missed it. I do not accept, "I
guessed," "I didn't get it," "I don't know," et. el. I want
explanations like, "I missed problem 3 because when I added
the fractions I added the numerators and the denominators when
I should have just added the numerators and kept the
denominators the same.
4) They must show all of their work and the corrections must
be neat and legible and easy to follow. If I can't follow the
explanation I am not going to go hunting for details, no
credit for that problem.
5) It must be completed and returned to me within one week of
receiving the corrected exam. Sorry, the day before report
cards is too late!
6) If I believe the student did not do the work, I reserve the
right to give an oral quiz to determine one way or the other.
7) If students need help, they must come to tutorials. I will
not stop class to help a student work on corrections and I
will not allow them to work on corrections during class time.
Guess what? I have had six students take me up on this offer
this entire year. But I have also talked with 5 upset parents
and when I say, "Gee I am sorry, I just don't accept late work
because blah blah blah. But you know what? I do let students
correct their tests. Did you ever get to do that? Me either?
Look I am not here to fail anyone but my students must do the
work. That is fair right? And that is why I am a little
surprised Johnny is failing. I wonder why he didn't do his
test corrections?" Conversation over!
Don't put yourself into a position to make it a teacher issue
instead of a student issue. You need to demonstrate pro
actively or reactively that you are going to give Johnny every
opportunity to pass. He still won't do the work.
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