Originally Posted by lab fairy
This lattice method is dumb. We wonder why our students can't do math without a calculator? They are so confused. There are so many ways to solve a problem. Why force someone into one method that doesn't work for them? I don't care what a textbook says, I still have to make sure my student masters a concept. I will use a variety of options for them to use. I'm not a purist. I just want them to learn one that works every time. Shortcuts should be taught after the fundamentals and understood well.
Teachers who have lost their grades are a problem. My gradebook was backed up by me daily on my personal flash drive and nightly by the school district. If grades were "lost" the only thing truly lost was the last days entries. Your child/and you should have been given periodic print out of grades. I told my students to keep all graded papers to verify that I haven't entered a grade in error (it happens like a 79 instead of a 97). Their paper was the proof that would make me change the grade.
Computerized assignments should have a server backup or a student grade file somewhere. My students kept a copy and I kept one. I liked the double redundancy. My theory is technology will fail you always. Plan for it.
I guess I should have rephrased my first paragraph differently. I know there are multiple ways to solve ANY problem in most instances. I'm trained to do that. I hold degrees in chemistry, physics and engineering. My minor was math. I also understand the issue of "good failure and bad failure" which just made half of you gasp because I dared use the word failure. My remark, to me, was a good failure because I learned I need to be a lot more PC around here. I apologize for that.