Also, grading is a bitch. [...] Students will nickel and dime you for every point while comparing with their peers.
This is what comes from an over-reliance on GPA, which can be just as misleading as an over-reliance on standardized testing. We have the latter where I come from (Ireland): university placement was determined entirely on the basis of nationwide exit exam scores when I left school and my understanding is that little has changed. Your school grades are utterly irrelevant and have no other purpose than to help students, parents and teachers estimate the national examination outcomes. you could turn in no homework for 5 years, get Fs in everything, and be on permanent detention; it will have no effect whatsoever on your university admission prospects.
This is good in some respects, flawed in others. Kids that don't fit in at high school but are smart and determined to do well academically can't be held back by discriminatory attitudes among their teachers, for example; on the other hand, those with a highly developed aptitude in a single area (eg math) or who are heavily involved in relevant extracurricular activities are at a disadvantage because such things carry no weight in the admissions process. Of course, kids that don't like high-pressure test situations are really screwed even if they consistently perform well in other contexts.
> > Also, grading is a bitch. [...] Students will nickel and dime you for every point while comparing with their peers.
> This is what comes from an over-reliance on GPA,
Certainly true.
Also, it's necessary for when a teacher has to defend themselves for failing a student. If you need to fail a student, there is high pressure against doing so. Fail a student and parents and administration both complain loudly. You've got to have all parent contacts (throughout the year) documented (time, who you talked to, what was discussed), as well as all test and exams available for combing through by interested parties.
This is what comes from an over-reliance on GPA, which can be just as misleading as an over-reliance on standardized testing. We have the latter where I come from (Ireland): university placement was determined entirely on the basis of nationwide exit exam scores when I left school and my understanding is that little has changed. Your school grades are utterly irrelevant and have no other purpose than to help students, parents and teachers estimate the national examination outcomes. you could turn in no homework for 5 years, get Fs in everything, and be on permanent detention; it will have no effect whatsoever on your university admission prospects.
This is good in some respects, flawed in others. Kids that don't fit in at high school but are smart and determined to do well academically can't be held back by discriminatory attitudes among their teachers, for example; on the other hand, those with a highly developed aptitude in a single area (eg math) or who are heavily involved in relevant extracurricular activities are at a disadvantage because such things carry no weight in the admissions process. Of course, kids that don't like high-pressure test situations are really screwed even if they consistently perform well in other contexts.