In one way or another, the online school has affected our education. We’ve made it through half the semester, and now that quarter grades are here, there's one question left: What do GZAAT students think about the grading system during online school? Thus, I decided to conduct a survey asking students different questions about this topic, including the latter one.
Opinions vary. Most students agree that school being online has a huge effect on their grades. Some believe that getting better grades has been easier due to many different reasons, such as having more resources and time for homework. Others disagree, saying that it has been harder for them for many reasons, like not being able to concentrate during classes, especially because of slow internet connections, which make it more difficult to participate in discussions.
For example, ninth grade student Natalie Gordadze had this to say about the online school:
"It's both good and bad. Of course, it would be good if we were at school; it's definitely better for the quality of our education, but there are also some advantages to online school: like more time for homework, more free time, and I think overall online school positively affects our grades. But of course, concentrating is harder at home. For example, phones are huge factors of distraction because of the many notifications we receive. Also, home is usually associated with resting and is overall a chill place. Having school at home makes it almost impossible for us to feel as relaxed as we used to. Now, there's almost no difference between school and home."
Nitsa Saakashvili, also a freshman, stated: "It was definitely unexpected, but I think it's a good experience to have. It was very hard to get used to it at first. As freshmen, we haven’t been in touch with any of our teachers, so it was hard to communicate with them this way. It was huge stress in the beginning, but it's way better now. I have to say our school has done a great job at that. Online school has become more enjoyable as we're getting to know our teachers and getting used to it too. The grading system is certainly fair. Homework is pretty much the same, too. The only flaw I see is in our discussion processes because it's hard to speak up sometimes. Other than that, as I said, I think our school has made it as easy as possible for us."
Turns out GZAAT students have the same concerns on which most of the students agree on. Discussions are essential parts of every one of our classes, and now that tests and quizzes have become less frequent, class participation and homework are the main factors determining our grades. Thus, making it crucial to participate in lessons as much as possible, which is way harder now for several reasons. The aforementioned problem of poor internet connections is definitely one of the biggest. GZAAT is also known for the Harkness Lesson Plan, where students sit around an oval-shaped table discussing various topics. The reason this method is effective is that it teaches students to express their opinions and listen to each other's as well. This is a collaborative process that apparently most students were looking forward to. Obviously, this method can not be used in these circumstances, which the majority believe to also have a negative impact on not only their grades but their knowledge and understanding of materials.
All this left students not knowing what to expect from their quarter grades. But now that we’ve already received the reports, I decided to ask some students to say what they thought about their grades, and if they met their expectations. Opinions varied here too. For some, their grades exceeded their expectations, but for others, it was the opposite. Despite the differences, everyone agreed that what really helped was the comments made by teachers, in which they wrote lots of suggestions about how students could improve their work.
To conclude, everyone’s experience so far with the online school has been different, but we all appreciate what our teachers and the whole school have been doing to help us adapt to this environment, and we do and will continue to try to do the same.
Edited by Mariam Khaduri
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