Students Need to Learn Failure

Summary

The article argues that students need to learn the value of failure and the consequences of not completing assignments, as exemplified by the "Power of Zero" policy, which contrasts with educational approaches that protect students from the impact of failing to submit work on time.

Abstract

The author, citing personal experience and observations from teaching, critiques the practice of allowing students to submit work long past due dates and recording failing grades as a minimum score to avoid demotivating them. The article emphasizes that such policies do not prepare students for real-world consequences, where deadlines are strict and failure has tangible repercussions. It suggests that early exposure to the concept of failure, symbolized by a zero score, is crucial for students to learn accountability, time management, and the importance of consistent effort. The author advocates for a return to a system where students face the immediate effects of procrastination and non-compliance, fostering resilience and a strong work ethic.

Opinions

The author believes that accepting late work until the end of the term undermines the learning process and does not teach students the importance of deadlines.
The practice of recording a minimum score of 50 for non-submitted work is seen as counterproductive, as it fails to motivate students and does not reflect the reality of their performance.
The author has personal experience with students who delay completing assignments until the end of the term, often resulting in their failure to pass the class despite opportunities for partial credit.
A zero grade is viewed

The Power of Zero can be a motivator

My friend, a high school teacher, was telling me her latest frustrations of the changing tide of education. She was told that she needed to accept late work until the end of the term, which meant grading papers, projects, or homework up to three months late.

For students who did no work at all, she was supposed to record their grade as a 50 rather than a zero. Why? Because a zero would make the student “lose motivation.”

In three or four years, I’ll see these students in my class. Although I don’t accept work later than five days past the due date, these students will come to me at the end of the term asking to make up the work they didn’t do.

In fact, I have made this concession with many students before. Students don’t turn in work then realize at the end of the term that they are failing, even though they can see their grades every single day. Two weeks before final exams, they send me a pleading email, asking if there’s “any way” for them to turn in their work for partial credit or do extra credit.

Most wind up not doing any of the work and failing the class, anyway.

It’s not like students have had a valid excuse, such as having a baby or tending to a dying parent. I’m sympathetic towards students who are juggling various roles. Those students still got their work in because they communicated with me early that they were struggling with something.

I’ve put the onus on the student. If a student has six assignments missing at the end of the term, I’ll offer them to do three for partial credit. I give them a two-week deadline, even though there are only three weeks left in the semester, including exam week. Most wind up not doing any of the work and failing the class, anyway. Then I see them the next term where we start all over.

In my 20 years of teaching, only one student met that challenge. Two days before he was set to graduate, he arrived at my office an hour before my set deadline. I wound up passing him, and he’s doing very well in sales. He visited me in my office five years later and credited me with the learning experience.

Why does this learning experience have to wait until the last semester of college? I learned in the third grade that if I didn’t do my homework, I wouldn’t pass the class. The Power of Zero motivated me.

A zero signals that something isn’t going well. It signals a need for change. If I have zero in my bank account, I can’t continue to withdraw cash. Zero food in the refrigerator means I need to go to the store. Zero gas in my tank tells me I can’t go anywhere.

My students who are less privileged understand the Power of Zero. I had one student who duct-taped his shoes together to attend class. He wouldn’t get paid until Thursday, so he lived on quinoa and soup for three days. He still got all of his work done while working three jobs.

As I recall the students who didn’t do their work, most of them came from privileged homes. For them to fail another class wasn’t a big deal. It was another thousand or two added to their student loan. They don’t understand the Power of Zero.

A zero signals that something isn’t going well.

Perhaps these students will graduate with their degrees. Many have. They didn’t learn the power of zero in K-12. They didn’t learn the power of zero in college. What happens when they enter the workforce?

Will their employer accept late work? Will their employer sugarcoat their annual evaluation so that they don’t “feel bad?” Will it have to be written in black ink because red ink might upset them?

Indeed, educators need to maintain a positive attitude in giving feedback to students. However, if students don’t learn what failure feels like early, they don’t learn how to adapt their behavior. They have to learn early that waiting until the last minute — or until the end of the semester — to complete their work doesn’t help them learn the material. It teaches them how to barely get by. Learning can’t occur with that mindset.

The projects, assignments, and tests aren’t just busywork. These projects are measures of their learning throughout the term. They’re spread periodically throughout the semester to reinforce their learning. If it’s jammed into the last week of class and done hastily, learning is under stress and is not retained. Then, when the student moves into more complex material, the student continues to struggle because the foundation is weak.

Duke University offers a course in learning how to fail, but perhaps we need to start earlier than college. Students need to learn the power of zero in K-12 so that their education provides a solid foundation not only for learning subsequent material but also for living productive lives. If our students don’t learn the power of zero until college — or beyond — it’s just too late.