Letter to the Editor: A Perspective from inside Benito Juárez Community Academy
In response to recent reports, we would like to provide another perspective. We have not seen any evidence of tampering of our grades or of our attendance. Additionally, no one has produced any evidence—or offered to produce any evidence—to show us that this is being done.
Contrary to what has been implied, teachers are not “pressured” to alter grades. Teachers are, however, regularly engaged in conversation about how to individualize instruction, how to strategically use standards-based instruction, and how to better engage students in their learning. These are the essential conversations educators should regularly have in order to continue to improve instruction, and we believe we have them here at Benito Juárez Community Academy.
Our current standards-based grading system refocuses learning from content to skills and allows our students the opportunity for the continuous improvement of skills. Students are held accountable for mastering skills, not assignments. As a result, students reach mastery of skills at different times. Thus, our system allows us as teachers to differentiate for our students and “meet them where they’re at” rather than push ahead before a student understands the skill. The flexibility of the system reflects an understanding of our students and what it is they need to succeed in school.
Per Chicago Public Schools policy, students can recover lost minutes if the instructional minutes are made up at another time. Through our Benchmark Recovery Center (BAC), students are swiped in after school via electronic swipe and they meet with teachers to recover any benchmarks or cover content they may have missed.
While the instructional changes at our school are a topic for conversation, another benefit of these changes has been the school’s improved culture. This has not happened without a willingness to address difficult issues and attempt to reach understanding. Additionally, teachers feel a greater sense of autonomy to make the best decisions possible for those students who are in front of them on a daily basis. It is our hope that, moving forward, we as a staff will continue to have the necessary conversations for continued improvement.
Ann Howard, Kimberly Yee, and Katherine Kampton, Benito Juárez Community Academy teachers
