Yesterday I posted on how much I'm loving using Google Classroom with my older band classes. It hasn't been all sunshine and rainbows though. The marking period ended on Thursday and as it stands right now, there is a much larger handful of students with C's and D's than I've ever encountered. (note: this is not a post on the validity of letter grades. Maybe that'll be a topic for another day) Almost all of these low grades are not because of poor performance, but the failure to even turn the assignment in or do the test.
Thanks to Twitter's philosophy changing influence, I've changed how I do grades. One of the biggest changes I've made is accepting late work. Students could turn in assignments all the way up through the last day of the marking period for full credit. If my true goal is that students have the opportunity to learn the material and participate in the activity, then better late than never.
I did everything I could to make sure it wasn't an issue of internet access. Every time I gave an assignment that involved writing, I checked out the Chromebooks and provided time in class. iPads were available in the practice rooms a few days a week for the last month to allow students to do playing tests. I reminded, I emailed, I cajoled, I pulled kids aside, I tweeted and posted to Facebook, I sent emails to parents asking them to remind their students and check on grades. After all of that, there are still a handful of students in each group that did not complete the work.
So now what? I know I'm not the first teacher to encounter this problem. How do you handle this issue?
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