A For Effort: How Students Succeed In Their Academics

Alexis Winter
Asif
ENG 105
8/26/2014

An A for Effort

In order for a student to succeed in their academics, one must be challenged, while also being motivated to actually complete their work. If a student has no motivation to do their work, they will just give up on their work and not participate whatsoever. Many people will argue that the only proper method for teaching is strict grading based on the student academic performance; I strongly believe that grades should be based on a mixture of participation, as well as tested performance. If a student is given a difficult assignment and their teacher stressed the heavy weight of grade attached to it, they may stress and feel as if they are unable to achieve the standard that has been set. In this case, the student could become fearful of not possessing the ability to do the assignment that they would not do the work at all. Being a student myself, I know there
have been uncountable times where I have felt overwhelmed by an assignment and the difficult challenge of it that I simply did not do it. I personally feel that teachers need a different approach to motivate their students into becoming involved in their work. I believe if a teacher were to instead challenge their students with work that gets them thinking creatively, without a consequence, students would be more willing to put more effort into their work. Then, once the student has put the effort into their work, they would be able to be successful when tested on the material. Not only would basing grades on valid and active participation on class assignments give the motivation for students to work, but it also would provide a sense of accomplishment for younger children in elementary school.
If students who naturally struggle academically are rated simply on the score, they will never feel as though they have achieved anything. It is not fair to grade a child just on their mastery level, because some children simply do not possess the ability to master a task at hand. When you teach children that their effort will actually achieve them something, then they will be more willing to apply the effort in all aspects of their life. A student who lacks recognition from school will keep that negativity and it will project into everything that they do. This negativity will stay with the student and they then have the potential to develop different types of behaviors. Students who learn the real value and importance of hard work from a young age will continue to learn and grow their whole life, which will lead to
success. The most effective recipe for a successful class of students is a combination of effort, as well testing for mastery achievement. In order to excel, one must be challenged, but the challenge cannot result in failure or it will demotivate the student. Challenges with hard consequences put children under too much stress to complete any work. If students are consistently pushed with academics and then they are not rewarded, then they will believe they do not possess the skills to try. A student who is taught in school from a young age to put all the effort in their actions will continue to live their lives in a similar manner. They will realize that hard work is a vital part of life that they most possess if they want to be successful in anything they set their mind to.