DPS Failure: Whose System is at fault?

The Detroit Public Schools are facing yet another obstacle in the drive to prove themselves worthy of approval. There are allegations which have recently come out which assert that there has been grade fixing somewhere, somehow within the system.

Marjorie Pasqualle a science teacher at Durfee Elementary School, assigned over 90 D's and F's to students last year, only to find many of them changed to C's somewhere along the line. She retired because it was suggested to her that it was her teaching and not the behavior of the students nor their lack of overall structure which would lead so many to perform below standard. It was hinted that she would be terminated on that basis. At least one other teacher has asserted that her grades were altered after she had turned them in.

This is a fine kettle of fish, but first things first: in an area such as Detroit, it is often or even usually unfair to blame the instructors for the lack of decent student performance - as a rule. Contrary to the assertions of many education professionals, not everyone can or is willing to learn, and that fact must be faced when dealing with any realistic measure of teacher performance. That isn't to say that teacher proficiency cannot be somehow measured, but only that all mitigating factors must be weighed into the matter if we are to reach any just conclusion at all. For the either students or their instructors.

It is almost certain that the reason for the grade changes was to help keep schools eligible for funding, or within the standards expected through government regulation and oversight. This is not to condemn government's legitimate role in our schools, but to point out all the more that justice must be measured within the realm of all pertinent factors, and not based solely on student performance.

The DPS is investigating, and well it should. Those who have violated the law in the matter (altering student records is a misdemeanor) must be suitable disciplined. Yet in the meantime, we do need to revisit our demands on our teachers and our schools.