For Harker students enrolled in the same course, the expectation is simple: each section should provide the same rigor and learning. Yet the reality is often more complicated. Every teacher brings their own expertise and unique teaching style, which can lead to disparities in pace and overall learning. As a result, two students in the same course can have a completely different understanding of the material, simply because of the teacher they were assigned.

In a Schoology poll of 130 students, 110 respondents said that learning experience depended more on the teacher than the course itself. 101 students feel that teaching style varies significantly between teachers of the same course, and 69 believe grading standards differ heavily. 

Because certain teachers favor different teaching methods, students can experience inconsistencies in information reception and engagement between classes. When one teacher leans toward hour-long lectures while another prefers interactive, hands-on activities, students’ experiences are not equal even when the same course appears on their transcript. 

Departments across campus approach this issue differently. Teachers for STEM-oriented classes like math and science, which inherently possess more objectivity in terms of curriculum and grading, collaborate on point distributions and curves for assessments. Physics 1 teachers, for instance, directly discuss and design their tests and quizzes together with each other so that students receive the same grade regardless of who grades their work. However, even with these precautions in place, the teachers’ methods of teaching concepts can lead to discrepancies in performance and education.

The issue becomes more apparent in humanities classes, which have a built-in subjectivity largely dependent on individual teachers’ preferences and stylistic choices. English teachers strive to assign similar types and frequencies of assessments, but in reality one classroom may emphasize the revision process, while another may focus more on timed writings and place less weight on the final draft. In addition, English teachers face more difficulty in maintaining similar grade ranges. Unlike STEM courses, there is no correct answer or right way to write a paper so it’s impossible for two different teachers to read a paper through the same lens and evaluate it with identical standards. 

One way to reduce teaching differences without restricting teacher autonomy is the implementation of end-of-semester or mid-semester feedback forms to gauge student progress and topic understanding. End-of-year forms, which teachers in most classes use, arrive too late: students have already finished the course and will not benefit from any of its resulting changes, which also reduces their motivation to offer meaningful feedback for future years.

Additionally, teachers should increase transparency in grading. While many teachers already compare class averages and grade distributions with colleagues, allowing them to benchmark their own grading practices, making these statistics available for students will encourage accountability and trust in the system. Clear rubrics and sample essays shared between classes can also help ensure that students have a proper understanding of the grading and are evaluated more objectively according to the rubric.

Standardization doesn’t mean restricting every teacher’s creativity and unique strengths or enforcing identical classrooms. It means guaranteeing that every student receives equal opportunities, whether in learning or expectations, and ensuring that variations between teachers will enrich students’ experiences rather than determine the quality of their education.