January 24, 2011

Dear TEACHER_NAME,

It has come to my attention that you are planning to change school policy that states that students may not participate in sports or activities unless they have a grade B average. I think that's really good idea, it'll motivate students to try harder. However I don't think this policy should go into affect because what if a student is trying their best in a class, but can't seem to earn a decent grade. What then? Or perhaps the student doesn't have a rather good home life, making it difficult for them to concentrate.

Some students find certain classes difficult. For example, Algebra. A student could try really hard to learn the material, but somehow they just don't understand it, causing them to get less than a grade B average. Or maybe it's not just one class the student is passing with a C. Maybe it's 5 out of 6 classes, maybe its all of them. I do not believe this should be held against a student if they are trying their best.

In addition, a student may have a horrid home life. This can affect their behavior in school by many ways. Namely, the student cannot focus in class, causing them to miss important information that will soon be very valuable. Or possibly, the student doesn't have time to complete their work or to study when they return home, because they are trying to support their family. There are so many reasons out there to explain someone's grade.

I am against this new policy, because a persons grade should not be held against them. A persons grade should be used to make out whether they are trying their best. And if you take away their activities or sports, you are causing them to lean in a total opposite direction -- mainly the wrong one, and that can damage the community -- making them to want to drop out of school or to just not care anymore.