Zero to Hero: Giving Zeros in the Classroom

For this post I thought I'd move away from curriculum, and take a closer look at the assessment side of education. Specifically I will examine the somewhat controversial subject of giving students zeros on assignments and tests. Now, I have had some experiences with being given zeros on assignments and tests and it was unpleasant. Anyone who has been given a zero will be able to tell you that it sucks. However, if students aren't given zeros what consequences are left to students that don't do the work?

Some setting a Sakai sight to give all students who did not submit zero (Source)

Now in my experience the most common reason for a student to receive a zero is because the assignment was not submitted. When work is not submitted it seems reasonable to some that students be given a zero. According to wikibooks, "These teachers say that even though a zero will dramatically affect a student’s average in class, that the zero is what they earned by not performing the work which was expected of them on time," and often comment that in the real world if something is not completed well and on time people face serious consequences. They further argue that by failing provide consequences for late or incomplete work teachers give students unreasonable expectations for their lives after school.

A teacher who was suspended for violating his schools no zero policy 

being interviewed by CBC on why he insists on giving zeros. (Source)

However, in spite of this justification many schools and teachers have instituted and maintain no zero policies. According to Canadian Family "The theory behind the no-zero policy is that students should be given every opportunity to complete work in order to allow them the best chance to succeed and move on to the next level of their education." This policy means that either students be given the opportunity to submit assignments late, or that the minimum grade is changed to a higher mark, often a passing grade. Wikibooks comments that 'getting a zero for “failing to do homework does not reflect a student’s lack of knowledge. Such issues are behavior responses not academic. Zeros promote failure rather than the student gaining more knowledge."'

In my own experience with assessment I have encountered both teachers who would give out zeros for an incomplete or late assignment and those who allowed students to submit work after the initial due date. In the English department at Brock University any assignment not submitted by the deadline is supposed to receive a mark of zero unless previous arrangements have been made, and I have received zeros on minor assignments because I did not do the work. While it was unpleasant to receive a zero, I felt that they were deserved. In one other case I was in position to be given a zero on an assignment, because of confusion about the due date, and was given the opportunity to submit the assignment late. Similarly my high school had the policy that assignments could be submitted late at a penalty of a 10% loss of marks per day between the due date and the day the assignment was submitted.

Cartoon depicting the process of  giving students adjusted grades for late assignments (Source)

I believe that the best policy is one that combines the best of both zero and no zero policies. Students should not automatically be given zeros for assignments that are not completed  on time, but should instead be given the chance to submit assignments late with an adjusted grade based on the length of time that passed between the assignment's due date and the date that it is submitted. However, if sufficient time has passed the student could be given a zero. This strategy allows for students to be given every opportunity to succeed and prevents situations where students find themselves in the position to fail because they were too busy, or confused about the deadline, but also provides students with consequences for not completing work, or not submitting work before the deadline. Ultimately it is important that students understand that there are consequences for failing to meet deadlines, but these consequences don't necessarily need to be zero if the appropriate actions are taken to attempt to correct for having missed the deadline.

Works Cited

"Foundations of Education and Instructional Assessment/Grading/Zeroes." Wikibooks.ca.                 

            jroer001, 31 October 2014. Web. 2015-11-02.

"Why Schools Need to Scrap the No-Zero Policy." canadianfamily.ca. Cara Smusiak. n.d. Web. 

            2015-11-02.