The world of education is founded various philosophies that promote life-long learning, improving intellectual status, and opportunities for all.  Each school district has a philosophy that guides their planning and programming.  Individual schools advertise and promote their philosophies in the hopes of gaining support from the parents and students.  Even down to the individual classroom teacher, there is a philosophy or process of thought that guides the activities, events, and assessments that take place in the classroom.  But what happens when a parent doesn't agree with the particular driving philosophy of their child's teacher?  Inevitably, there will be issues at the fundamental level that the parties will not agree on. I am currently in a similar situation.  My child recieved his first kindergarten report card a few weeks ago.  Although I am not naive or so conceited to think that my child is the most brilliant child in the class, I was surprised to find that he didn't recieve any high marks.  I fully expected there to be areas of success (knowing full well that a kindergarten student can improve on anything) and areas of needed improvement.  The root of this disappointment lies in a difference of philosophy.  I believe the student ought to recieve marks that reflect what they have done.  The teacher believes that the students ought to recieve marks that will encourage them to try harder, learn more, and perform at a higher level next time.  So what's the solution?  For now and for us, the solution is to continue to strive for excellence, attempting to learn and improve all the time, without getting too caught up in the philosophy.