Students express their opinions on whether math should be graded or just commented on.

Recently, at the Olympia High School Theater ( Hanoi ), the final round of the English contest "Philosophy for children - Junior Philosophy Olympiad (JPO)" 2023, with the theme "Plato & NextGen" (philosopher Plato and the next generation) took place with the participation of a large number of contestants and audiences.

As a result, two teams, The Guardian Owls of the Griffin division (for students in grades 4-6) and Apex Predator (for students in grades 7-9) won first place in the competition.

Apex Predator team consists of 3 contestants: Pham Tran Khanh Linh and Le Hong Ha Anh (both 9th grade students at Olympia High School), contestant Duong Hoang Quynh Anh (Vinschools Times City School), attracted attention when expressing their opinions on how to evaluate students, whether to give points or just evaluate them by passing or failing comments for math.

Specifically, the question for you poses a situation where teachers are debating whether to evaluate students by scores or by "pass - fail" comments in math.

Apex Predator Team gives their opinion on whether students should be assessed using grades or just pass/fail comments for math

Among them, the group of teachers who support assessment by comments believe that this method of assessment helps students focus more on the purpose of learning, rather than just chasing after scores.

The group of teachers who oppose the "pass - fail" assessment argue that math is an important subject in exams. Assessment by comments instead of scores does not help students accurately assess their own abilities so that they can make more efforts to improve their learning outcomes to conquer exams.

From this situation, the discussion question posed to students is: "Should teachers prioritize developing students' intrinsic motivation, even if it means trading off the traditional assessment system and potentially creating disparities among students?".

The Apex Predator team supports the traditional grading system because they believe it is beneficial for students in determining their position and ability.

Meanwhile, evaluating with comments "pass - fail" is too general and subjective, scoring will be more objective and accurate.

The group of students from grades 7 to 9 also said that scores create higher motivation in studying for students, helping them know clearly their position and level of improvement.

According to the students, the scores also help teachers more easily evaluate and care for their students. This method of grading also helps students feel happy, because students have progressed from looking back at their scores to try harder, and are less confused about their level when the assessment has been quantified quite clearly...

The second team to win the competition was The Guardian Owls.   The team consists of 3 contestants: Do Minh Chau (Nguyen Thuong Hien Primary School, Hai Phong City ), Nguyen Nhat Duong (Dang Hai Primary School, Hai Phong City) and Nguyen Ha Linh (Vinschool Imperia, Hai Phong City). This team presents their views on the responsibility of schools in teaching and encouraging healthy eating habits for students...

The organizers awarded prizes to the winning teams.

Philosophy is not esoteric for children

Mr. Nguyen Chi Hieu, PhD in Economics (Stanford University), Academic Director of Olympia High School, Head of the Jury, shared: "When hearing the term philosophy, people often assume that it is something profound and profound that children cannot absorb. However, philosophy is a way of looking at the world that touches on fundamental issues. For example: What is beauty? What is knowledge? Why do we have to study?

At different ages, experiences, and circumstances, people will have deeper perspectives. However, that doesn't mean we shouldn't instill those thoughts in them from a young age."

JPO English Competition is for students from grades 4 to 9 studying at Vietnamese and international schools.

This playground is organized by Olympia High School in collaboration with National Geographic Learning Vietnam, Oxford University Press and the British Council in Vietnam.

As planned, in each JPO season, students will explore the theories and views of a famous philosopher in human history.

The contest uses English to speak, write, and debate about philosophy to encourage young people to cultivate philosophical thinking and nurture research capacity...

Source link: https://thanhnien.vn/hoc-sinh-neu-quan-diem-nen-cham-diem-hay-chi-nhan-xet-voi-mon-toan-185230522170228737.htm