In “Grades and Money,” Steven Vogel makes it clear that he is disappointed and frustrated with what grades have become. He believes that grades have become a commodity and that students' grades suffer because of their relationship to money. Vogel also believes that students are no longer taking risks with their education. I agree with Vogel that grades are equated with money by students, student work suffers because of grades, and students no longer take risks in their educational process. To begin with, I agree with Vogel that grades are equated to money. by many students. Vogel claims that because students see this way, they do things for the wrong reasons! Vogel writes: “The relationship between me and the students is in reality one of exchange: they provide me with work of a certain quality and I reward it – I pay for it – by granting them credit…” (391 ). I can understand what Vogel is saying here since I too am a student. As a student, I sometimes feel like the work I turn in is a product and, in a sense, the instructor provides quality control. Taking a course is supposed to put students in a learning environment, but sometimes it feels like a big deal. The atmosphere generally makes me want to do as little work as possible to get a decent or passing grade. Vogel then writes: “Students expect their grade to indicate the time they spent on their course, as if they were working on time…” (391). Vogel relates student time to that of an hourly wage proportional to the time spent in the classroom. Because Vogel views grades as being equated to money by students, many students essentially think of the associated course content as work, for which they in turn are paid. This makes... middle of paper ...... agile product, and what we perceive associated with it can seriously affect the learning process as a whole. Students need to ask themselves what they are really learning and why! Students need to understand what a letter grade means to them financially and educationally. Students should approach their grades without fear of receiving a letter or worrying that their scholarship will be taken away. Students should learn for the right reasons in order to achieve the greatest educational benefit. As soon as students stop following their dreams and passions because of an A, B, C, D or F, it is a very sad day; one that I honestly hope I never see, and I hope students see it the same way as well. Works Cited Vogel, Steven. “Notes and money”. Reading and writing in the academic community. Edited by Mary Lynch Kennedy and Hadley M. Smith. Ed. personalized. Boston: Pearson, 2013. 389-92. Print.