Sarah Hanover is a first year math teacher that has had no problems with any of her students. But one morning the school secretary summoned her to the math office to take a phone call. She could have decided just to take a message, but this phone call was from an angry parent. The call was from the father of James Kilson, one of the more outstanding students in one of her pre-calculus classes. He had an average score of 98 on his tests, but James never did his homework. She ended up giving him a B on his report card. This is where James' father comes in. He believes his son should get an A in the math class. He decided to give the math teacher a call to express his anger over his son's math grade. The phone call was very awkward for Sarah. This was the first phone call she has ever received from a parent that she did not initiate contact with first. The phone call was heated. Mr. Kilson argued that homework should not be a requirement to get an A in the class. James' father argued heavily on the point that high school students need high grades in order to get into one of the more highly competitive colleges. James got all A's on his tests. Mr. Kilson believed his son's grade should reflect his test scores. Sarah did a very good job of keeping her composure during the phone call. She let Mr. Kilson know that she was serious about homework. She made it clear to everyone in the class that homework was a requirement to get an A in the class. She also tried to use the argument that homework is part of learning discipline as well. However, James was a pleasant student who was not a discipline problem. Sarah and Mr. Kilson agreed to meet after school at 3:00 p.m. that afternoon. Sarah was nervous all day but she didn't let it interfere with her teaching.
             Several critical issues interested me in this case study. The subject that intrigued me the most is the homework requirement requir...