Grading and Its Discontents:
An Inquiry
Dave SmuldersSENIor MANAGER, FACULTY DEVELOPMENT
START
You would think it would be easy to offer some concrete advice about grading practices for the courses and programs we offer. And, in a way, it is easy. We have a system that describes letter grading, pass/fail, or complete/incomplete requirements. We put these in our course outlines and follow the guidance offered by our academic policies. Instructors work from these systems to attach values to their designated assessments. If you use rubrics wisely, you can provide clear instructions and expectations about what students need to do in order to succeed. When students follow these instructions and work effectively within a set of predetermined limits like timed tests or assignment word counts, they increase their chances of success. In theory, this all works as it should. Instructors set challenges for students in the form of assessments and students dutifully work to meet and exceed those challenges. The output of that effort comes in the form of a percentage or letter that suggests the quality of their learning.
NEXT
QUESTIONS
Given the integrity of the above-described system, how do you understand the following scenarios? Consider each one and reflect on the following questions:
Q2
Q1
reflection
reflection
Hover over the icon below to reveal the question.
Hover over the icon below to reveal the question.
NEXT
SCENARIOS
Scenario 3
Scenario 2
Scenario 1
Bird Course
No Stupid Questions
Assessments and Learning Outcomes
Scenario 5
Scenario 4
Ungrading
Sink or Swim
Scenario 1
An instructor, keeping a noble philosophy of service in mind, works tirelessly to support her students. She provides clear instructions and expectations, her rubrics are foolproof designs for success, students have numerous opportunities to get and respond to feedback from the instructor and other students, all in all this instructor’s course is an exemplar for how to encourage and support student learning. As a result everyone does well. Their assessments demonstrate excellence. What’s the problem? The instructor gets a note from a concerned administrator that her courses seem to show signs of grade inflation. Students are doing too well. The course has the reputation for being a “bird course.” Reddit sub-threads abound about how easy it is to pass, “as long as you follow all the instructions the instructor provides…”
NEXT
Scenario 2
Another instructor introduces the class by saying that his classroom is a site for learning, and that means there are no stupid questions, and mistakes are a necessary component of learning, so students are encouraged to explore and discover their knowledge through experimentation. The course has two major assessments: a project and a final exam. What is the criteria for success? And how does one encourage mistake making in light of this set up?
NEXT
Scenario 3
A class syllabus includes a pedagogical statement from the instructor about their beliefs on teaching and learning. It is clear that the intention is to make that explicit link between assessment and learning outcomes. In other words, an assessment is meant to be seen as the demonstration of one’s learning. In this class, there are four main assessment components that add up to 60% of the final grade. The other 40% is reserved for participation and discussions. Also, each assessment has a 5% per day penalty for lateness. What’s that alignment between achievement of learning objectives and assessment again?
NEXT
Scenario 4
The fourth instructor has read the research on grading and realizes that grades are possibly the primary inhibitor of learning in her class. Grades, according to several studies, can be seen to contribute to a fixed mindset where students don’t take chances, don’t experiment, are petrified of mistakes, and unwilling to risk doing anything beyond a stated rubric. A possible solution appears to be the practice of “ungrading,” which is an innovative approach to assessment and feedback that seeks to shift the focus from traditional grades to deeper learning, student agency, and intrinsic motivation. The philosophy behind ungrading challenges the conventional reliance on grades as the primary measure of student learning and performance. Instead, it emphasizes formative feedback, self-assessment, and reflective learning processes. The end of the course approaches, and the recording keeping system demands a set of final grades.
NEXT
Scenario 5
The final instructor doesn’t buy all that new-fangled so-called research on education. “When I was a student, my instructors told me what I didn’t know. Students need to know the information and I’m here to provide it.” The abiding philosophical position of this instructor is “sink or swim.” If the educational practices helped bring this instructor to where they are now, what is the problem? That is evidence of success, isn’t it?
NEXT
in summary
Grading is meant to serve as a bridge between teaching, learning, and assessment. Institutes and educational organizations use grading as a way to try to communicate the quality of their programming to each other. Too often we accept grading as a kind of immutable fact in the education system. There are so many problems with it, as the research has abundantly pointed out. Concerns include the potential for grades to reduce intrinsic motivation, promote anxiety, and distract from the joy of learning, which are pain points that any thoughtful instructor would like to avoid rather than promote. I started thinking on this topic about what advice we could gather from the literature, but we haven’t even started problematizing the idea of grading sufficiently. As members of our educational community, it would be constructive to deliberate on this paradox around grading instead of insisting on its persistence as part of some real-world condition.
NEXT
Further Reading
Blum, S. D., & Kohn, A. (Eds.). (2020). Ungrading: Why rating students undermines learning (and what to do instead) (First edition.). West Virginia University Press. Dweck, C. (2006). Mindset : The New Psychology of Success: Vol. 1st ed. Random House. Fenwick, T. J., & Parsons, J. (2008). The art of evaluation : A resource for educators and trainers (2nd ed.). Thompson Educational Pub. Henning, G., Baker, G. R., Jankowski, N. A., Lundquist, A. E., & Montenegro, E. (Eds.). (2022). Reframing assessment to center equity: Theories, models, and practices (First edition.). Stylus Publishing, LLC. Kohn, A. (2013). The Case Against Grades. Counterpoints, 451, 143–153.
Grading and Its Discontents
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Transcript
Grading and Its Discontents:
An Inquiry
Dave SmuldersSENIor MANAGER, FACULTY DEVELOPMENT
START
You would think it would be easy to offer some concrete advice about grading practices for the courses and programs we offer. And, in a way, it is easy. We have a system that describes letter grading, pass/fail, or complete/incomplete requirements. We put these in our course outlines and follow the guidance offered by our academic policies. Instructors work from these systems to attach values to their designated assessments. If you use rubrics wisely, you can provide clear instructions and expectations about what students need to do in order to succeed. When students follow these instructions and work effectively within a set of predetermined limits like timed tests or assignment word counts, they increase their chances of success. In theory, this all works as it should. Instructors set challenges for students in the form of assessments and students dutifully work to meet and exceed those challenges. The output of that effort comes in the form of a percentage or letter that suggests the quality of their learning.
NEXT
QUESTIONS
Given the integrity of the above-described system, how do you understand the following scenarios? Consider each one and reflect on the following questions:
Q2
Q1
reflection
reflection
Hover over the icon below to reveal the question.
Hover over the icon below to reveal the question.
NEXT
SCENARIOS
Scenario 3
Scenario 2
Scenario 1
Bird Course
No Stupid Questions
Assessments and Learning Outcomes
Scenario 5
Scenario 4
Ungrading
Sink or Swim
Scenario 1
An instructor, keeping a noble philosophy of service in mind, works tirelessly to support her students. She provides clear instructions and expectations, her rubrics are foolproof designs for success, students have numerous opportunities to get and respond to feedback from the instructor and other students, all in all this instructor’s course is an exemplar for how to encourage and support student learning. As a result everyone does well. Their assessments demonstrate excellence. What’s the problem? The instructor gets a note from a concerned administrator that her courses seem to show signs of grade inflation. Students are doing too well. The course has the reputation for being a “bird course.” Reddit sub-threads abound about how easy it is to pass, “as long as you follow all the instructions the instructor provides…”
NEXT
Scenario 2
Another instructor introduces the class by saying that his classroom is a site for learning, and that means there are no stupid questions, and mistakes are a necessary component of learning, so students are encouraged to explore and discover their knowledge through experimentation. The course has two major assessments: a project and a final exam. What is the criteria for success? And how does one encourage mistake making in light of this set up?
NEXT
Scenario 3
A class syllabus includes a pedagogical statement from the instructor about their beliefs on teaching and learning. It is clear that the intention is to make that explicit link between assessment and learning outcomes. In other words, an assessment is meant to be seen as the demonstration of one’s learning. In this class, there are four main assessment components that add up to 60% of the final grade. The other 40% is reserved for participation and discussions. Also, each assessment has a 5% per day penalty for lateness. What’s that alignment between achievement of learning objectives and assessment again?
NEXT
Scenario 4
The fourth instructor has read the research on grading and realizes that grades are possibly the primary inhibitor of learning in her class. Grades, according to several studies, can be seen to contribute to a fixed mindset where students don’t take chances, don’t experiment, are petrified of mistakes, and unwilling to risk doing anything beyond a stated rubric. A possible solution appears to be the practice of “ungrading,” which is an innovative approach to assessment and feedback that seeks to shift the focus from traditional grades to deeper learning, student agency, and intrinsic motivation. The philosophy behind ungrading challenges the conventional reliance on grades as the primary measure of student learning and performance. Instead, it emphasizes formative feedback, self-assessment, and reflective learning processes. The end of the course approaches, and the recording keeping system demands a set of final grades.
NEXT
Scenario 5
The final instructor doesn’t buy all that new-fangled so-called research on education. “When I was a student, my instructors told me what I didn’t know. Students need to know the information and I’m here to provide it.” The abiding philosophical position of this instructor is “sink or swim.” If the educational practices helped bring this instructor to where they are now, what is the problem? That is evidence of success, isn’t it?
NEXT
in summary
Grading is meant to serve as a bridge between teaching, learning, and assessment. Institutes and educational organizations use grading as a way to try to communicate the quality of their programming to each other. Too often we accept grading as a kind of immutable fact in the education system. There are so many problems with it, as the research has abundantly pointed out. Concerns include the potential for grades to reduce intrinsic motivation, promote anxiety, and distract from the joy of learning, which are pain points that any thoughtful instructor would like to avoid rather than promote. I started thinking on this topic about what advice we could gather from the literature, but we haven’t even started problematizing the idea of grading sufficiently. As members of our educational community, it would be constructive to deliberate on this paradox around grading instead of insisting on its persistence as part of some real-world condition.
NEXT
Further Reading
Blum, S. D., & Kohn, A. (Eds.). (2020). Ungrading: Why rating students undermines learning (and what to do instead) (First edition.). West Virginia University Press. Dweck, C. (2006). Mindset : The New Psychology of Success: Vol. 1st ed. Random House. Fenwick, T. J., & Parsons, J. (2008). The art of evaluation : A resource for educators and trainers (2nd ed.). Thompson Educational Pub. Henning, G., Baker, G. R., Jankowski, N. A., Lundquist, A. E., & Montenegro, E. (Eds.). (2022). Reframing assessment to center equity: Theories, models, and practices (First edition.). Stylus Publishing, LLC. Kohn, A. (2013). The Case Against Grades. Counterpoints, 451, 143–153.