This Issue:

Table of Contents

Cover Story

Cover Story - Spanish Version

Mini-Lesson

Comprehension Quiz

Teacher's Guide and Worksheets

Grading by Students Passes a Test

Get out your red pens! Last week, in a unanimous decision, the Supreme Court ruled that it is legal for students to correct and grade each other's work in class. An Oklahoma mother, Kristja Falvo, had challenged this practice in court. Her son had been called a "dummy" by classmates who graded his paper and saw his low score. Falvo's lawyers said grading by students is embarrassing and a violation of a 1974 federal law that protects the privacy of a child's transcript and other school records. They argued that student grading should occur only if a parent agrees. Government lawyers argued that the 1974 law did not apply to ordinary assignments, only to final school records. The Supreme Court agreed. Said Justice Anthony M. Kennedy: "Correcting a classmate's work can be as much a part of the assignment as taking the test itself."

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