Open access to student grades will create infinite headaches

Our View

Students are not oblivious to the changes in the grading system that the switch to Infinite Campus has brought.
Soon, these changes will be magnified beyond the grumbling of teachers and confusing grade printouts. Students’ grades, and eventually their standardized test scores, will become accessible online. The grades will not only be able to be viewed by the students themselves, but also by their parents.
Although parents will only be able to access the grades of their children, we believe any parental access to grades is cause for concern. As students, we are all aware, sometimes painfully, of the highs and lows that grades at times experience.
However, parents checking up on their children’s grades may not be so understanding. We are all stressed enough as students, and the thought of parents obsessively monitoring grades would only increase this stress.
Also, we believe that in a way allowing parents access to the grades of their children is undermining student’s responsibility. Students that are concerned about their grades will diligently work to correct any problems, not only to satisfy their parents with good grades but also themselves.
Infinite Campus may have the potential to make students more stressed, but it is already creating more stress for teachers. The new grading system has made grades more confusing and difficult to enter. Also, teachers will now have to continually update grades in addition to their other responsibilities, and they may receive criticism from parents and students who disagree with their children’s or their own grades.
Although we believe that the transparency Infinite Campus allows for students to view their own recently updated grades could be beneficial, the potential stress of parent access to grades and potential problems for teachers created by the new grading system is not enough to justify the switch.