• by Bobby , December 13, 2010

I like to know where I stand in my classes. Everyone has that one professor that treats your grade as if it is some secret number that no one has access to. Not even you.

Growing up, I had to meet with my teachers to find out what my grade was at any given moment. They kept track of points in a grade book. You know, sort of like a journal. Being the shy kid I was, I didn’t feel comfortable going to meet with some of my teachers, so my grade at the end of the semester was usually a complete surprise.

My sophomore year of high school brought a surprise as well—an online grade book.

I thought that it was the absolute worst idea in the world. I figured it would go something like this:

I take a test on Monday.
My teacher puts grades online on Tuesday.
I get disappointed on Wednesday.

But I couldn’t have been more wrong. Seeing my grades online actually served as motivation rather than a burden. Knowing where I stand in a class has proven to be extremely important for me because it lets me know where I can improve.

I can credit much of my transformation as a student to having constant access to my grades online.