<p>Just when you think that you have read (or heard) it all, you read an article about extra credit for bladder control. It seems that in several schools in the area, students get extra credit for NOT going on bathroom breaks. The article includes the story of one student who raised a grade in AP History from a C+ to a B by not asking to go to the bathroom during class. Later you discover that he expects to be named valedictorian of his class. </p>
<p>So, in a college-level AP course you get credit for not going to the bathroom. I wonder if adcoms now which schools give extra potty credit to boost gpas...</p>
<p>It seems to be pretty common in the high schools and middle schools in this area for the teachers to hand out 3 bathroom passes at the beginning of each marking period for their class. In a typical 7-period day, that's 21 passes total. Students are generally given a point extra credit for any unused passes at the end of a marking period. I don't think 3 extra points makes that much of a difference in anyone's grade. It's a good way for teachers to control the amount of time kids waste on unnecessary visits to the bathroom. Any student with an emergency is allowed a "free" pass to the nurse.</p>
<p>Wow. That is so over the top I can't believe it. And I thought it was awful that kids were allowed to skip lunch to take extra classes and get ahead of those who are too "lazy" to want to eat a meal. That policy discriminates againsts boys, athletes, and those with diabetes, and the bathroom one definitely discriminates against women, who for biological reasons are unable to hold their urine as long as men do and would risk urinary track infections in the process.</p>
<p>When I think how hard my kids work in an AP class, and how rarely they have asked to leave ANY class to go to the bathroom, without any grade advantage, I am outraged to think that other kids are having huge grade increases for this!!!!!! At D's school her final grade was .25 short of an A- in one of her AP courses, but the teacher NEVER rounded up for anyone, so she got the B+. (and got a 5 on the AP exam!!) I can assure you, the kids in that class were not the kind that looked for excuses to get out of the classroom. I hope adcoms everywhere are taking note of this latest form of grade inflation!!</p>
<p>And what about girls who are having their periods? in our school, the time alloted for going from one class to another was 3 minutes and lunch was 20 minutes. And the school was sprawling (two different buildings, and on 4 different floors).</p>
<p>The types of kids that post here and the kids of the parents on CC certainly would find this to be ridiculous. I know of no AP teachers in our school that do this, (because those serious students tend to use the privilege appropriately) but teachers who teach the less motivated students do this as an incentive to keep the kids in class. They have experienced kids who abuse the privilege and do anything to get out of class. I know of some teachers who give out a pass, and if it is turned in at the end of each 6 weeks, they can get a few bonus points on a test. By the time it is added in, it MIGHT raise someone's 6-week grade one point, from 89.4 to 89.5, which will round up to 90. So, it hardly makes a huge difference. It may or may not work with the kids who don't care about their grades or their education (yes, there are many of those), but it rewards those that stay on track even if just a little bit, and with some kids, it might just be the incentive needed to keep them on track. Those teachers do not discriminate against girls - if it is an emergency, they get a pass to the nurse, which does not count.</p>
<p>It is also sexist....females have a different anatomy...and females who "hold it" can get bladder infections</p>
<p>And in schools, I have seen kids get dehydrated, because they are so busy, they forget to drink enough water, they can get dizzy, get headaches, etc., so if they are afraid to ask to go potty, they will not drink enough water, and it can be a serious problem</p>
<p>When I did my student teaching in 1992, the teacher told me a story about how his first year (1959) he didn't allow students to go to the bathroom (anyone can hold it for 42 minutes, right?)--and he had a student whose bladder burst. His advice: work on minimizing disruption, not forcing bladder control.</p>
<p>I've used his system ever since: one student at a time, get my nod before going (most students point to the door and mouth 'bathroom'), and remember no one else can go until you get back. That part takes care of peer pressure. I find students go very quickly and quietly.</p>
<p>Wow... that's ridiculous. I rarely go to the bathroom during class, but at my school you don't even have to ask to go to the bathroom, you can just get up and go. That might have something to do with it being an all-girls school though... most of the male teachers are uncomfortable with girls asking to go to the bathroom, lol. Plus the teachers trust us not to hang out in the bathroom or leave for no reason.</p>
<p>now that I have been working out every day and drinking lots of water- it is like when my kids were little- I have to know where all the bathrooms are!</p>
<p>Yes, holding you bladder while trying to pay attention in class and getting points for it is a great life lesson</p>
<p>Anyone remember, oh gosh, what was that program people went to, for self esteem or whatever, and they good pee ALL day, someone help me remember- OH YEAH EST!!!!</p>
<p>ANd gosh, even the President of the USA goes potty!!!</p>
<p>I don't think the queen of england does though</p>
<p>My S's school has teachers who give out passes at the beginning of the semester. If you don't use them all you can turn them in at the end for extra credit. He hoards his passes and always turns them back in(of course at his school going into a bathroom is an activity you'd want to avoid anyway). His school has many mobile unit classrooms behind the school and I think these teachers are the ones trying to stop the parade of students sauntering across campus to the bathroom and back. I'm not sure how much credit he gets but I know it has never turned a B into and A</p>