4 out of 4 stars
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The book The “New” Epidemic – Grading Practices by Andre Mathews provides an in-depth analysis of the grading systems in American public schools. The biggest focus of this book is the flaws in these grading policies and the imbalance that it creates among students. It is clear from the start that Mathews is highly opinionated about the current grading practices in the USA. He spends the entire book arguing for a fairer policy. This book provides detailed descriptions of the various systems used to rank students.
Mathews is advocating for an integrated system so that all students will have equal chances of success in their academic and work life. He divides the book into four sections, each detailing different aspects of the current grading system. Throughout the book, Mathews gives strong arguments about why the present strategies are mathematically biased. He uses terms and definitions to get his points across. Additionally, there are charts and diagrams to give visual representations on the erroneous grading policies.
I liked how strongly Mathews felt about the current system within American schools. He is very knowledgeable about the many ways that schools grade and rank their students. This allowed him to make very strong arguments against those methods. I also really liked the visuals that he presented throughout the book. They were very helpful in giving the reader a more solid idea of the issues. Furthermore, I thought it was great that he included definitions for words that others working outside of public schools may not know. Not only did that strengthen his arguments, but it also denoted patience for the average reader. He was willing to share his knowledge with the wider public. His dedication for this book made that very evident.
I hardly found any errors in this book. It was very well-edited for the most part. I only saw a couple of typos towards the end, but they didn’t take away from the overall content of the book. I did notice a couple of run-on sentences. Shorter sentences are better in these instances because they would not catch the reader off-guard. Most of the mistakes I found were in the last pages of the book. Although it wasn't a lot, it made the ending seem more careless in comparison to the beginning and middle.
All in all, I rate this book 4 out of 4 stars. The errors and typos were minimal and easily forgotten. The content within the book makes for a great reading and educational experience. I think it would be a good pick for those that enjoy books about theories as well as academic and psychological terms. I would also recommend it to students and parents so that they can get a better understanding about school grading policies.
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The New Epidemic-Grading Practices
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