Mason does away with valedictorian, salutatorian distinctions to 'reduce competitive culture'

wlwt ^ | May, 9, 2019 | WLWT

[bgill]

MASON, Ohio — Mason High School students will no longer vie for valedictorian and salutatorian distinctions in an effort to "reduce the overall competitive culture" between students, school officials said.

Beginning with the Class of 2020, the high school will do away with both honors. School officials said it follows a yearlong study and focus group with students, staffers and families.

"It's about what it means to be happy and what it means to be successful and it's not just about the grade but it's about the whole child," Associate Principal Shanna Bumiller said.

Mason school officials made the announcement Thursday as part of an effort to improve students' mental wellness.

"I think in the long run it'll really going to change the atmosphere in the school in a positive way," Mason High School sophomore Ryan Griffith said.

[Mrs. Don-o]

All the children must be above average.

[oldtech]

Might mean no one got passing grades, or it might mean that everyone had a 4.0 GPA & the choice would be difficult(or embarrassing either way). It could also mean that from now on what will be the point of trying very hard.

[Whenifhow]

ping

[Magnatron]

Valedictorian’s have been discounted for quite some time now. My sons was valedictorian of his class in Philadelphia. He was accepted to University of Michigan, Princeton, Purdue, and wait listed at Cornell. None of those were due to his valedictorian status. It was based on his GPA and SAT scores. In fact, we were told by a counselor at Michigan that valedictorian did not matter. She actually said: “It’s nothing special. There’s 20,000 valedictorians every year in the US.”

I was stunned by her telling me that.

[Lowell1775]

OHIO PING

“Mason does away with valedictorian, salutatorian distinctions to ‘reduce competitive culture’”

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/3748653/posts

Please let me know if you want on or off the Ohio Ping list.

Sorry for inattention the last few weeks...been recovering from a bad bronchitis event in a dry climate and away from my files.

[Svartalfiar]

Odd, eh? The whole valedictorian and salutatorian thing was actually pressuring kids to make bad decisions.

Easy solution. Only core classes count towards GPA for Val/Salutatorian. Anything liberal arts or electives doesn't count. AP classes weight more, maybe 1.2x for AB, and 1.5x for a BC level course. But, final GPA is cut at 4.00.

Really, all classes need to be weighted based on level. Freshman grade is 1x, Soph 1.2x, Jr up to 1.5x, and Sr is a 2x multiplier. Core classes / ones everyone is required to take are regular; Advanced electives in STEM get a 1.2x multiplier, liberal arts or other electives get a .5x multiplier. GPA doesn't determine Val/Sal, total grade points does. Every extra class, no matter how difficult, helps you get out front. Two students take the exact same course load, except one takes an extra ceramics class and gets a 'C' in it, WINS. Who cares if that extra 'C' drops the GPA, it raises the GPs, giving that kid the higher spot.

[Svartalfiar]

Those two positions made sense in the old days, when every kid was taking essentially the same classes. But today, there are just too many different classes. So it’s crazy hard to fairly award valedictorian and salutatorian.

My post #86 gets into that. Knowledge can still be compared, and either the multiplier system similar to the one I suggested, Or possibly base it on even testing given to all students at the end of the year, covering every subject taught by the school's faculty. EASY to then compare each student's total school knowledge to any other student!

[muggs]

Mason goes down from being considered in the group of the elite, top rated public schools in the area. Now my property will rent higher so I will have all the Indians wanting to rent from my aps. because they are closer to work and cost less but the quality is as good or better in my area. Mixed on if this is good or bad.