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What classes do you use "Pass/Fail" for?


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I've only used pass/fail for PE.

 

My daughter did a semester of health in 9th grade, and has a letter grade assigned. We don't include SAT/ACT prep on the transcript.

 

The SAT Prep was an actual course I designed and it is also offered at the local high school as a class so I added it.

 

Thanks!

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I was thinking of using Pass/Fail on my transcript in a few of my classes.

 

Gym, SAT Prep, & Health.

 

Health could be graded, but it was also just a "check the box" subject.

 

What subjects do you use Pass/Fail for?

 

I have used it for PE, art history, music appreciation, and French. PE b/c I didn't want it to be included in their gpa and the others b/c they are really outside my ability to evaluate effectively. For example, I gave my oldest a C in Spanish 1 and when he took Spanish 2, he had the highest grade in the class. Obviously I am not good at evaluating appropriate foreign languages skills. :tongue_smilie:

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I was thinking of using Pass/Fail on my transcript in a few of my classes.

 

Gym, SAT Prep, & Health.

 

Health could be graded, but it was also just a "check the box" subject.

 

What subjects do you use Pass/Fail for?

We did not use Pass/Fail. I put a grade on everything on the transcript. (Not the "right" way -- just how we did it.) For gym, I labelled my ds's class: "Elective: Physical Education - Year Round Swim Team" so that schools could see a level of rig . . . uh, effort ;) that I felt "deserved" a grade. As long as you have enough other graded credits, I don't think it will matter whether you give gym/health/SAT prep a grade or treat them as pass/fail. :) Also Health and PE are sometimes combined into one credit.

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I didn't use Pass/Fail. On my daughter's transcript, I had the note: "P indicates participation in a class in which a letter grade was not provided."

 

The notation of P was given for the following courses: a musical theatre class, Fencing, Swing Dance, and a four week long Continuing Education class in Japanese.

 

Regards,

Kareni

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I guess that's because some of us, I included, won't give credit for Drivers Ed on the transcript at all - for me, that's a basic life skill.

 

That perspective makes sense.

 

otoh, so are math and reading basic life skills ! :) . . . High schools all over the place long have offered credit for basic life skills, under labels such as "consumer education" or "home ec". The homeschooling market joined in, with some curricula providers selling same.

 

Anyone who has brought a child successfully one of the parent-taught driver's ed courses has taught a bona fide course. In contrast to the commercial courses, the state-approved parent-taught course which we have used twice requires many hours of driving in all manner of conditions, as well as time for the videos.

 

Can build a case for either way, I would say.

Edited by Orthodox6
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From what I know, typically you would use it for classes which are not academic in nature and/or where the success is not so easily "quantified" to earn a grade, but which you still wish to list for credit - so, things such as PE or "appreciation" classes (as opposed to fully fledged Art / Music History classes).

 

Personally I would not count SAT prep, but I were to count it, definitely P/F, not a grade. I would also not count Driver's Ed, as in my country that is definitely an outside thing, not done via schools.

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Art, Music, PE

If I were going to include a music credit, I'd have my dc take exams either through the RMCT if I lived in Canada, or through the Carnegie Hall Achievement program here in the States because I know that you really have to earn the grades. However, you don't need to get over 90 on a performance exam to get an A because that is very, very rare, but I'd give an A for any grade that warranted an First Class Honours. I'd also have my dc take the corresponding written exams for the required levels in order to get that grade. I'd mention what they got (Honours First Class, Honours, etc). This definitely comes under academic in classical music if it's done correctly (eventually you have to take a theory exam & a music history exam to get credit for each performance exam, and I'd say that any level before that isn't high school level so shouldn't get a high school credit.)

 

If my child was just taking lessons, I'd say pass/fail if I didn't know enough about the instrument or if they weren't doing a good theory program, etc.

 

I like the idea of Pass/Fail for PE, and I'd base it on effort, since not all of us are equally good at sports and it's not an academic class.

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I never use pass/fail. The way I see it, they have to pass the classes and there is no fail in my homeschool. I put grades on transcripts and they are all good because of my mastery philosophy (basically, they work at the subject until they are doing A grade work). I didn't include drivers ed or several of our outside sports and arts in the transcript unless it could directly address a requirement.

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I do pass/fail grades only on elective courses that I do not have any quizzes/tests that I can use for grades.

 

Such as:

P.E.,

Dd's Applied Music (private lessons, group band practice),

Ds's Computer Application (Cyber Patriots, self learning and projects he just does).

 

All others, get a grade.

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Driver's education -- I'm surprised to be the first to list this.

 

I am not putting Drivers ed on my kids transcripts at all. We are not doing a formal D.E. course.

 

They will study for the permit test, take a Red Cross safety course, a teen car maintenance course (Dh as a teacher) and then Dh will teach them to drive.

 

Dh's lessons are way more in depth than what they would get in a typical D.E. course anyway. We require double or more on the road hours than the state requires and they will learn to drive in all weather conditions. So generally it will be 150 hours of driving and it will take nearly a year to get in all the weather situations that we want them to experience before getting their license. They will learn what it is like to have a tire blow out and skids.

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Dh's lessons are way more in depth than what they would get in a typical D.E. course anyway. We require double or more on the road hours than the state requires and they will learn to drive in all weather conditions. So generally it will be 150 hours of driving and it will take nearly a year to get in all the weather situations that we want them to experience before getting their license. They will learn what it is like to have a tire blow out and skids.

 

Can your DH teach my kids to drive? We weren't even successful in teaching bicycle riding. :lol:

 

Pegasus

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What you describe is what is required by the Driver's Ed in a Box course: driving in assorted inclement weather conditions, driving waaay more hours than the commercial courses do for state requirements, etc. We have humorous family memories, including when a hail storm started, and DH yelled to DS to grab the car keys because it was time to practice "that part of the course." !

 

I would not feel comfortable, however, deliberately blowing a tire. (can't afford the replacement costs entailed in doing so deliberately)

 

Our state (TX) would not allow a home-created course in driving. Law requires taking either a commercial course or one of the two state-approved parent-taught courses. I learned, to my surprise, that high schools no longer teach driver ed, as they did in my day.

 

 

Dh's lessons are way more in depth than what they would get in a typical D.E. course anyway. We require double or more on the road hours than the state requires and they will learn to drive in all weather conditions. So generally it will be 150 hours of driving and it will take nearly a year to get in all the weather situations that we want them to experience before getting their license. They will learn what it is like to have a tire blow out and skids.

Edited by Orthodox6
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