Is This Common?

[momof1princess]

DD13 brought home a letter today from her school, letting parents know that the school's valentine's dance would be open to all students of the middle school who have ALL passing grades. is this a common thing now? this is DD's third year of middle school, and i've never seen such a rule. if this rule had been in effect when i was in school, the popular kids wouldn't have been nearly so popular, because none of them would've been allowed into the dances, lol.

it also includes a permission form for DD to bring a guest, in case her date doesn't go to her school, and i personally have to sign it and vouch that the guest is a middle school student. i sort of understand this part, but wow, the overall tone of the letter doesn't make it sound like much fun.

 

[Wall-E1]

Not sure about dances, but in my son's school you have to have all passing grades to go on field trips or join clubs and teams.

 

[momof1princess]

Not sure about dances, but in my son's school you have to have all passing grades to go on field trips or join clubs and teams.

we have the same rule for sports teams-academic requirements are pretty strict, but not for field trips. never seen an academic requirement for a dance though, lol.

this is our principal's first year on the job, and she's been flexing her muscle quite a bit, so this may just be another power trip on her part. however, i went to high school with her, and as i said, had this requirement been in place when she and i were in school, she'd have been staying home a lot, lol.

 

[Magic Mom]

I understand the thought behind a rule like that, but it might push those on the fence- at risk to drop out- kids further away. Not only can't they keep up academically, but they can't keep up socially either.

 

[momof1princess]

I understand the thought behind a rule like that, but it might push those on the fence- at risk to drop out- kids further away. Not only can't they keep up academically, but they can't keep up socially either.[/QUOTE]

i hadn't thought about it from that perspective, but you're right. things like this could just make a child who already feels inadequate, feel even worse.

 

[sparklynails23]

That's sad. It's bad enough to struggle in school everyday, but to have your social life taken away on top of it is just adding insult to injury. Some kids are lazy, I'm sure, but some kids just aren't academically inclined.

 

[funkychunkymonkey]

our school has the guest pass rule too, except our school demands that the guest bring his or her school ID. We dont have the grade rule, THANK GOODNESS. DC11 is having issues in math and failing. Shes also failing socially to make freinds. Banning a child like her from the chance to socilize would be bad! What a stupid rule!

 

[luvmy3]

I understand the thought behind a rule like that, but it might push those on the fence- at risk to drop out- kids further away. Not only can't they keep up academically, but they can't keep up socially either.[/QUOTE]

i hadn't thought about it from that perspective, but you're right. things like this could just make a child who already feels inadequate, feel even worse.

See, I don't have a problem with that. I don't believe its the job of teacher and administrators to make sure kids feel good, its their job to educate them. If they have failing grades, then there should be restrictions on what they can do when it comes to school functions. We (as a society) can't have it both ways, we can't complain that there are too many kids failing and at the same time not hold them accountable.

 

[MinnieMe87]

My high school had that rule. If we were going to go to the dance, we had to have a dance form signed by the administration (usually the principal or assistant principal) that proved our grades were passing grades. We had to have that form with us to be able to enter the dance. Somehow, the people who didn't have forms somehow ended up getting snuck into the dance through the back gym door... Not that I had any part of that...

 

[epcotprincess]

In the high school where I formerly taught, students had to have passing grades to attend things like prom. They also could not get suspended during the same quarter as the event or they wouldn't be allowed to attend.

 

[almburr]

This is the rule here at our school. Its been that way for as long I remember. I graduated inn 1993,Dhgraduated in 1977. So its been in effect for a long time.

This rule goes for sports also. no passing grades=No practice or games.

 

[momof1princess]

okay, so this is not something our principal just made up, thank goodness, lol. as i said earlier, she's new to the job this year and has really been flexing her muscle, so i wasn't sure if it was a power play on her part, or something other schools did to encourage better grades.

 

[SookieStackhouse]

I do not find it surprising at all, I have seen schools doing things like this lately.

 

[ClarabelleCowFan]

That's the rule at DD12's middle school as well. All passing grades to participate in everything - field trips, sports, school dances, etc...

Same rule about no suspensions (in or out of school).

 

[shortbun]

At our high schools the rule is all passing grades OR in 'credit recovery' successfully. Credit Recovery is an online tutoring program for kids who are struggling. It takes a huge time commitment.

 

[Hannathy]

IMO I don't think dances should have this rule. Sports, theater, Newspaper etc OK but Dances are purely social and I don't think they should be tied into GPA.
I feel for the pretty good student who just happens to have a lousy grading period in say maybe Algebra or some other tricky subject, it may be the only time in their life they have a bad grade and now they can't go to the dance? that is a bit to much social embarrassment for my taste.

 

[aprilgail2]

Not sure about dances, but in my son's school you have to have all passing grades to go on field trips or join clubs and teams.

Ours is the same- the kids can't go on any field trips (including the overnight trips) if they are failing any classes or if they have had any type of disipline problem during the entire year.

 

[arminnie]

I've been out of high school more than 40 years. That rule has been around longer than me. I think it may have been on average grade pt. though not per class. It sure inspired some girls who wanted to be cheerleaders.

 

[krcit]

If I had heard of this rule a few years ago, I would probably have thought it was a good idea. Now however, I have a ds with a learning disability and I fear for how difficult middle school will be for him. I would be extremely p o'd if he was banned from a social event because he struggles in school. behavior issues are another story but a failing grade? I don't like it. If I wanted to keep my kids from a dance or a party because of their grades, that's one thing but I don't think the school should.

 

[momof1princess]

ok, thank goodness this isn't something our principal made up-it'll be interesting to talk to some of the other parents thursday night at the PTSO meeting and find out what they think about it. the funny thing about it is, there were two previous dances this school year, including a semi-formal Christmas dance, and this rule wasn't mentioned for those, just for this one, so i guess that's what made it seem so odd, like something the principal just up and decided to do out of the blue. personally, i don't think rules should change in the middle of the school year. IMHO, if she wanted to make this a rule, she should've waited and added it to next year's student handbook. my DD has straight A's, so she can still go if she wants to (but i don't think she does, lol). however, i do know some kids who may be affected, including the boy who escorted her to last year's valentine's dance; he's been struggling in math this year.