What do you do for your sixth graders at the end of the year? My school calls it a graduation and no matter what grades the students received, how many discipline referrals they received, etc. . .all students are honored. This really bothers me! Thoughts?
Our local elementary schools hold graduation and awards ceremonies. Thoughts: If the students are being promoted then they are "graduating" from elementary school and moving on to middle school. Personally I think these ceremonies are unnecessary. I never understood the purpose. As for grades and behaviors, if they aren't stopping the student from moving on, I see no reason for those issues to stop them from participating in the made up "graduation". Long ago I don't remember students not being allowed to walk over behavioral infractions during the year if they qualified to graduate. That "punishment" came about more recently.
I would go so far as to say that the parents realize that not all of these students are A students, and that the honor is they have qualified, in whatever manner, to leave the elementary school and move on to Junior High, where some may end their careers as students altogether, based on my personal observations. Throw them a bone and be happy the ones who are the biggest problems will be replaced by new faces next school year, although that does not hold a guarantee of better behaved students.
