Mr. Walter should begin to have individual conferences with the students that are earning grades in which do not show mastery. During these conferences, Mr. Walter should show the students where they are and where they should be for this particular area. Mr. Walter should then ask the student to come up with obtainable goals to ensure the student feels successful. This will hopefully remove the "I'm find with my C-" and create a positive approach of striving for better.

At some point there is a separation of grades. Everyone in society does not choose to pursue an advanced degree because of the work load, the cost, or because they are simply content with where they are. Not all students desire to make A's and B's. I agree that mastery of the content is the focus. Mr. Walter has given the opportunity. Some students may or may not take advantage of this opportunity. One motivator I have used in my classroom to help motivate students is coffee and doughnuts. If you will correct your graded assignment up to a B, then you will receive coffee and doughnuts. For some reason students like coffee and doughnuts. Some still chose not to correct their assignment and in return did not receive coffee and doughnuts.

This is another situation where there no such thing as a perfect way to handle it, however, I think that Mr. Walter should try his best to help foster a sense of accomplishments within the student/s by highlighting and making a big deal of example where that student did put fourth just a little more effort.

Encourage students to do better by having incentives for anyone with a B+ or higher; talk with each of them and let them know that settling for mediocrity is a bad habit to develop.

I would begin to offer incentives for students that choose to try again to do better at improving their grades. For example, you can offer more reading time or maybe some snacks/treats for students who try again.

Mr. Walter should not use the letter grading system anymore in his class. He should insist that all students show mastery of the content before moving on. Students that work hard and show mastery on the first try will be permitted to move on to the next lesson or unit of study. Students who struggle or don't care will be forced to stay on the current topic or lesson until showing mastery. Although this may cause stubborn students to withdraw and refuse to move ahead at first, consistent monitoring, parent contact, and individual guidance will help. Stubborn students will finally realize that they must put forth the effort in order to succeed in Mr. Walter's class.