Slashdot Mirror


Australian Teachers Told Marking In Red Damages Students

Teachers who mark homework with a red pen could be inflicting psychological damage on their students, according to new Australian guidelines. Teachers are being urged to use less aggressive colors, like the-real-world-is-going-to-eat-you-alive green, and setting-you-up-for-failure blue. Stephen Robertson, the Queensland health minister, defended the new rules, saying that youth suicide was a serious issue. "If mental health professionals determine that as one of a number of strategies teachers should consider, then I'll support them every day of the week," he said. "This is not a matter for ridicule, this is serious."

19 comments

  1. Use red for positive marks! by redshirt · · Score: 2, Funny

    Seriously, I had an Literature teacher in high school that felt red was getting a bad rap, so he used green for negative marks and red for positive marks. It didn't bother me so much, but I think he drove a student with OCD completely mad.

    1. Re:Use red for positive marks! by fj3k · · Score: 1

      I think the prevailing reactions to teachers using colours other than red for marking when I was at school ranged from "This teacher is crazy" to "It makes it so hard to find the comments". I do remember one person saying that red was a kinda depressing colour, but she was also the one who complained to another teacher when they used a different colour... I really don't understand the point of this.

      --
      Two men claimed to have walked into a bar. Only one had the bruises to prove it.
    2. Re:Use red for positive marks! by kandela · · Score: 1

      Red is used for the positive wire in electronics. This always confused the hell out of me, until I realised that the electrons flowed around the circuit â" which is the opposite of conventional current â" then I remembered it by thinking "the colour is the opposite of the convention." Now, if we start associating red with positive by convention, I'll be screwed up again. But then, so will everyone doing economics, so it's not all bad.

      --
      Conservation of angular momentum makes the world go round.
    3. Re:Use red for positive marks! by Just+Some+Guy · · Score: 2, Insightful

      I do remember one person saying that red was a kinda depressing colour

      Sure, because it means you made a mistake. Green will be depressing as soon as it comes to imply that Little Johnny is less than perfect.

      --
      Dewey, what part of this looks like authorities should be involved?
  2. Colorblind by moose_hp · · Score: 1

    Can you please people think of the colorblind children?

    On a more serius note, after some time they do that, you can actually say "blue is the new red" and they will starting to ban blue and going for colors less agresive ... like red.

    Is not that the color is evil purely because of it's wavelength, but _also_ because is asociated that way.

    --
    DON'T PANIC.
    1. Re:Colorblind by kandela · · Score: 1

      'Colour blind'. Can someone please thing of the non-American children?

      --
      Conservation of angular momentum makes the world go round.
  3. Yeah by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Funny

    Right, after getting my paper marked up with red ink to the point I am supposed to be psychologically damaged, I go home and kill people in grand theft auto for about 4 hours, then sleep and dream about my recent Gears of War victories, which involved killing more people and the use of a chainsaw.

    The red ink is still far more damaging, though.

    (For added fun, read this page's HTML source)

  4. Tread softly and... by kandela · · Score: 1

    carry a light blue pencil.

    --
    Conservation of angular momentum makes the world go round.
    1. Re:Tread softly and... by moose_hp · · Score: 1

      light blue pencil of death?

      --
      DON'T PANIC.
  5. Canada by Nerdfest · · Score: 1

    I know several teachers in Canada that have been told the same thing, although I'm not sure whether or not it was an official prohibition. Between things like this, the dumbing down of math (no calculus in high school, or at least it was proposed), and all the non-competitive grading, these students are in for a large shock. The last studies I read showed that trying to build students self esteem this way actually had the opposite effect in the long term.

    1. Re:Canada by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      You used "read" you insensitive clod!

    2. Re:Canada by giantweevil · · Score: 1

      I really think the schools should be back-pedalling on the touchy-feely stuff. I mean, does the real world care if you have good self-esteem? Does the real world care if you insult people?

      I mean, seriously, isn't school supposed to prepare you for the real world, not set you up for failure?

      Also, suicide is a useful population control, and should be viewed as such.

      --
      Disregard the above.
    3. Re:Canada by TheGeniusIsOut · · Score: 1

      Also, suicide is a useful population control, and should be viewed as such.

      Evolution in action, let the weaker ones die off, we will be much better for it as a species in the long run. And no, I'm not being sarcastic.

      --
      Ignorance is Bliss -- And the Opposite is True -- Genius is Madness
  6. help them prepare for the real world by petes_PoV · · Score: 3, Insightful

    Don't give handwritten responses (in any colour). Instead, emulate what will happen then the little darlings get out into the big wide world of commerce and industry. Make them email their assignments in, then completely ignore them. When pressed (for the third or fourth time) to mark them, skim the first couple of sentences and award a purely random mark based solely on that.

    --
    politicians are like babies' nappies: they should both be changed regularly and for the same reasons
    1. Re:help them prepare for the real world by conufsed · · Score: 1

      No mod points today, otherwise I would have upped

  7. Who cares by damnfuct · · Score: 1

    Quit crying. Maybe telling someone that what they have done is wrong is the real "damaging" action. Maybe we should just tell everyone that they are always right? No. Welcome to reality.

  8. Pens; symbols of masculine aggression by gsslay · · Score: 1

    It's doesn't take a genius to see that all pens are symbolic of masculine aggression, suppressing the student with violent slashes across their virgin white paper.

    Students will only truly enter into a nurturing and caring learning environment when teachers see pens as the instruments of oppression that they are, and mark papers with rose-petals sprinkled across the page to form kisses.

  9. Offtopic - Re:Use red for positive marks! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    I just read your comment at: http://news.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=1033711&cid=25813949

    And what? The suspense is killing me!

    1. Re:Offtopic - Re:Use red for positive marks! by kandela · · Score: 1

      Sorry to disappoint you but I didn't really have any specific plans for it, I was just making a point about reminiscing. Next time the old 486 moves it will probably be because my father wants the space back under the stairs.

      --
      Conservation of angular momentum makes the world go round.