Poor grades not always lack of effort

If you are like most concerned parents, you want your child to do well in school, which usually includes good grades. Many parents have difficulty in responding appropriately to their child's report card which can lead to problems in the child's interest and approach to his or her education.

Questions such as the following often emerge:

• Should I give my child money for good grades?
• Should I punish my child if he or she does poorly in school?
• How can I help my child make better grades?
• Should I talk to my child's teacher about his or her grades?
• What are the possible reasons behind a child's poor grades?

First of all, I think it is important to step away from the issue of grades and look at the overall goals of a child's education.

Many educators, psychologists, and child development specialists feel that developing the desire to learn and learning how to learn are two of the most important reasons for seeking an education. Learning the ability to delay gratification and value long-term goals, learning good study skills, learning to work hard and stay on task, learning to view less than acceptable responses as opportunity for future improvement, and learning to be creative and seek alternatives are all important elements of the learning process.

Grades are certainly one of the measures of progress and a part of the standard by which we measure the process of successful learning. Focusing on grades alone is too narrow and detracts from the student's broader focus on the learning process. Instead of simply praising grades, parents need to focus on the process that went into the student's good performance, hard work, creativity, accomplishing goals, etc.

Parents often assume that their student's poor grades are simply indications of lack of effort on the student's part. "Our Bobby simply isn't trying or else he would be making better grades." At other times parents attribute poor grades to a lack of desire on the student's part. "If Mary really cared, she would be receiving higher marks."

The reason behind poor performance is often much more complex and may include such reasons as:

• The student's tendency to adopt self-defeating attitudes and beliefs. "I'm not a good student and will always be a failure, I can't make straight A's like my older brother did so why should I try at all?"

• Learning disabilities

• Role models who don't value education

• Poor home environment for learning

Next week I will continue my discussion of this topic.

Copyright c 1998 Harold H. LeCrone, Jr., Ph.D.