The negative effects of the letter grading system

For many teens in schools throughout America, grades are a huge part of their lives. Public schools teach teens that great grades equal great future. This relationship towards grades can leave some teens feeling hopeless if their grades aren’t considered to be high enough. Although it is true that having good grades looks great on any piece of paper, is it really worth all the stress thousands of teens suffer from every year? I don’t think so, and I’m not alone.
Many educators are calling for education reform in America. In fact, the grading system was used centuries ago is still in progress today. If we can reinvent the phone, there is no reason why we can’t rethink our education system.
A 2002 study at the University of Michigan discovered that 80% of its students base their self-worth on their grades and that their grades are a continuing source of overwhelming anxiety. This constant quest for good grades resulted in students being less creative, and little to no experience in risk-taking, both essential characteristics needed for success, no matter what your version of success may be.
One solution students resort to is cheating. In fact, “64 % of students admitted to cheating on at least one of their college entry tests” according to a nationwide study consisting of 24,000 high school students.
Overall it’s pretty clear that grades are having a tremendous effect on students nation wide. Some lengths have been taken to try and reduce the stresses of young adults and teens, most being better learning environments and later start times, but no significant changes have been made in the U.S, yet. But that’s not the case for all countries.
Finland is one of the leading nations in academic achievments, and are ranked top ten in the world for its education system. Students in Finland aren’t graded for most of their education but have the highest academic scores worldwide. Now how could that be? Well, Finland believes that children should discover their own version of what success means to them, leading their young students on a lifelong passion for learning and discovering the world around them. If that doesn’t sound like the modern day American dream, then I don’t know what would.

sources

The Case Against Grades:Micheal Thomsen, May 01, 2013.

Why Are Finlands schools so successful?: Lynnell Hancock, Smithsonian Magazine, September 2011