#38: Cram Sesh - Two Types of Greys

There IS a way to address unfair grading —- practical advice from two educators.

Shout outs!

Many thanks to Jason and Candice of Completely Off The Rails Podcast and their other show, Fiendish Fairy Tales. They've given our show a whole lot of love this week and we appreciate you!

Jenny wants to give some extra thanks to her high-school pal KZ -- we're honored that you're a listener!

Lastly, sending lots of love to our newest patrons Karly and Raina. We love you girls and Mrs. K really misses your faces. 💚

Go Sports!

• Jenny:

  • The Boston Marathon adds non-binary division -- a great step towards inclusivity in the running community!

• Caitlin:
  

  • Another tennis great retires – Roger Federer – 20 Gram Slam titles!

  • FINA now approves SoulCap’s swimming cap for Black hair! Big win for people with more voluminous hair and takes away a barrier for many people to now be able to compete! Check out the linked article from Because Of Them We Can.

Current Obsessions

• Jenny:

  • Vaccine life -- the booster has Jenny feeling yucky but she's happy to have gotten it!

  • Purple shampoo - toner/neutralizes brassy blonde or silver hair - also good for gray/white or red

    • Some great ones to try from your local drugstore, here!

• Caitlin:

  • @nathanbrownactor on TikTok – watching him listen to songs he’s never heard before! ‘Sweet Home Alabama,’ ‘You Shook Me All Night Long,’

  • Beyoncé’s “Break My Soul” and “Cuff It”

💎 Gem of the Week

• Jenny:

  • 20-Year HS Reunion - low turn out, but I did my part, with a snafu in the party store order (oops)

    • Abigail rated it a 10/10 and I thought it was fabulous!

    • HS building tour (culinary wing, no gym, no auditorium)

    • The football game had no fans for visiting team, but it DID have even more fabulous reunions and an "only in Texas" rendition of "Deep in the Heart of Texas" that felt straight out of an episode of King of the Hill

• Caitlin:
  

  • My husband confused the two types of greys -- let's just say that Grey's Anatomy and 50 Shades are NOT the same things!

  • Want to know why there are two spellings of the word "gray/grey"?

Real Talk: Listener Question -- How do I address 'unfair grading' with my child's teacher?

We got a listener question and had to answer this one!

Hi Brian! Thanks for sending this in! The content of your email is spot on! 😉🤣

This is a common concern and we definitely have thoughts. (If you'd like to skip ahead and grab the email we've drafted on your behalf, click here!)

To us, it sounds like there are two issues here:

1. Unfair grading/bad teaching

2. Your student losing academic confidence and their love for school

Issue 1: Unfair grading

• Address with the teacher directly – do not call or send any emails CC-ing anyone else in your first contact

• Avoid anything that sounds accusatory – you’ll immediately put the teacher on the defensive and you want to preserve the relationship, especially this early in the school year

• Start with an email asking to clarify the grading policy – the key word here is asking

For example...

• By speaking to the teacher first, you’re respecting their authority.

• By asking to see the grading rubric, you’re validating the teacher’s process.

  • You can also ask to see the specific rubric used to grade your daughter’s work to see how she received that grade

Issue 2: Your student’s feelings

• Be honest about your daughter’s feelings and make them “I-statements” so you aren’t being accusatory

• Again – validate the teacher’s expertise in how they relate to children

• Add something to the email about your daughter’s feelings about her assignment and school

For example...

If the answer that you get isn’t satisfactory for whatever reason, it’s okay to ask for a follow-up meeting/Zoom call with some additional support from a school counselor or assistant principal.

Our bet? This essay may have been graded without a rubric. Your email will likely alert the teacher that (a) they should start using rubrics to grade -- it's more equitable that way -- and (b) the relationship that they have with your daughter and with you is in danger. We're optimistic that this email will help!

Please keep us posted, Brian! We'd love to know how things change (or not) and are happy to help with the next steps, as needed!

💚, Caitlin & Jenny

Email:

Subject Line: [name of student] -- [name of assignment], grade question

Body:

Hi there, [Name of Teacher -- either First Name or Mr./Ms. Last Name]. I hope this email finds you well.

I am emailing about the [name of assignment] that [name of student] completed. She worked really hard on this assignment and I helped with it, but she feels like the grade that she earned didn’t reflect the final product that she submitted.

Can you clarify how you graded this assignment so that we can ensure that she meets all of the requirements for next time? I would love to see the rubric that you used and [name of student] and I can talk through it for future [assignments/projects/essays, etc].

Additionally, after this assignment, I’ve noticed that [name of student] seems to be feeling really down on [himself/herself/themselves] and school. Do you have any advice about how we can address this together?

Thank you so much,

[Your Name]