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Some Oregon parents and students are upset over state's pass/incomplete grading system

A group has started a petition to ask that students have the option to be assessed a letter grade, while keeping the pass/incomplete system for students who want it.

PORTLAND, Ore. — Oregon high schoolers will be graded with a pass or incomplete for the rest of the school year.

A big group of parents and students from around the state don't support that plan and started a petition a few days ago. As of Sunday evening, it has more than 2,400 signatures. 

They want a choice in how high schoolers are graded this semester; they want the option of either a letter grade or a pass or incomplete assessment.

Jenni Tan is one of those parents who opposes the plan. Her daughter is a sophomore at West Linn High School.

"For my daughter, when she learned that, she felt the work that she had done was somewhat lost. She also worried about applying for colleges in the future as well as for merit-based scholarships," Tan said. "There's currently other states offering the choice for grades as well as private schools offering grades. So she's just wondering how she would compare."

West Linn High School freshman Audrey Lippert said she was disappointed when she learned of the Oregon Department of Education's spring 2020 Distance Learning For All guidance on pass/incomplete grades. She said she worked hard all quarter to keep her grades in the A range.

"My grade is now equivalent to a D and I worked hard to get everything to an A and now it's kind of for nothing. And it's worse especially when you find out people in other states are getting grades and I'm like, why can't we do that in Oregon?" Lippert said.

RELATED: Coronavirus closures mean Oregon high school students won’t receive letter grades this year

ODE said it has to safeguard against unintended consequences as freshmen through juniors work toward graduation and pursue higher education.

"We must consider the severe impact of the pandemic on students and families across the state and take steps that prioritize ongoing learning while safeguarding against unintended consequences as students pursue post-secondary opportunities," ODE said.

Many colleges – including Oregon public universities – said students won't be at a disadvantage for having pass/incomplete transcripts this semester because of the coronavirus outbreak.

Still, students and parents we spoke with worry whether admissions offices will take that into account when comparing Oregon kids' to other applicants who have letter grades.

"I would just feel nervous competing with kids from other states when it has to do with college because I would think a college would take a student who has all letter grades, maybe all A's or B's, over a student who just has all 'passes'. Because you can't tell what grade you have if you just have 'passes,'" said Addison Sobotta, a sophomore at West Linn High.

RELATED: Oregon seniors with passing grades and on track to graduate will receive diplomas amid school closure

The Oregon School Boards Association threw their support behind the state's plan, saying it ensures equity for all students of all backgrounds. 

In a statement to KGW, OSBA executive director Jim Green said:

“The Oregon Department of Education put a lot of effort in reaching out to partners and communities of color to adopt a fair grading system during these challenging times. Above all, they, and we, want to ensure that all students are treated equitably. Some students face economic and technology barriers to remote learning.

“We support this pass/incomplete approach as it is expected to have no effect on grade-point averages or college admissions. It is fair, and consistent with what many colleges and districts around the country are doing.”

Opponents disagree, and say they recognize equity issues are heightened through distance learning with a lot of kids lacking access to technology.

But for that very reason, they feel students should be able to choose.

"Not everyone has a lot of access to distance learning so if a pass/fail is what they need based on their situation, then that's good to have that option for them. But for students who like me, worried about possible opportunities in the future, I think an option to have a letter grade is extremely important so that students' hard work can get recognized ... and have opportunities available," Sobotta said.

"Unfortunately those equity issues will grow larger after the pandemic. So I think we definitely need to allocate resources to make sure inequities are addressed, but at the same time having grades or the ability to choose grades for disadvantaged students as well as all students can be beneficial. All students of all backgrounds are going to be applying for merit-based scholarships and that’s where grades really will matter," Tan added.

The group is writing to legislators, school board officials, superintendents and ODE asking them to reconsider. They feel there's still time to have their voices heard.

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