By Sarah Jacques
Round Table editor-in-chief 

For decades, students have seen letter grades printed across the top of class work and exams, causing the kids to either leap for joy over an A or dread the conversation that awaits them at home about their failing mark. But, more recently, West Potomac High School has banned the dreaded F.

The school has decided to replace Fs with the “less-intimidating” letter I, meaning incomplete. The changing of the letters, really, is all about being less intimidating; the school says students that receive an incomplete don’t feel the shame of a failing mark and also gain another chance to redeem themselves by completing the work and bettering their grade.

This change may seem like a dream come true for students, teachers, and parents alike; students won’t fail and be left in the dust, struggling to catch up with the rest of their classmates. However, the change certainly has faults.

First off, many of the students at West Potomac have already thwarted the system. The personalities on the “Elliot in the Morning” show on DC 101 were recently discussing the issue when an anonymous West Potomac High School student called in to state her view.

She surprised both the cast on the radio show and other callers by stating clearly that it is now simple to cheat with the new system. Students will receive a test and leave it blank, receiving an incomplete mark. However, they will study the test, many copying down the questions, and memorize the answers. When given a chance to complete the test, the students will simply record the answers they had memorized, completing the exam without having to effectively learn the material.

Of course, not all of the West Potomac students will resort to this method to pass their classes. But the reality is that many more callers confirmed the first caller’s statement. Though the “I” change may help many struggling students to have another chance to improve their marks, many others are using it as an excuse to pass their classes without effort.

The change has also been unfair to teachers. Mary Mathewson, an English teacher at West Potomac, feels that Fs were motivators for the students – hard-working students would see an F and become motivated to improve their grade. But this policy allows students to feel that “they can [fail] whenever they want to, and it’s not that big of a deal.” The new policy also wastes teachers’ time by having to give students twice the testing time in order for them to complete their assignments.

The change is simply unnecessary. Yes, there are definitely students throughout the world that are in need of more chances to improve their grades. However, this policy is not the proper way grades should be improved.

Tutoring must be instituted more rigorously by both the students and the teachers if students are not meeting their standards. Many teachers are already passionate about tutoring in order to communicate ideas more clearly, but several students simply choose not to attend tutoring.

The key here is individualism. School-wide policies that don’t look at students like individuals will fail in the long run if students aren’t consulted person-to-person.

It’s a great idea to try to make a change to improve the educations that students receive. However, when that change negatively impacts the lives of both students and teachers, the school system must find another, more individualistic way to aid pupils in developing knowledge and skills.