The case against grades and grading has been so clearly made that it is time to turn the tables. Why – in 2019 – with all the evidence available – Why are institutions and individuals still clinging to this pernicious practice? Why do educators persist in wasting time discussing such irrelevancies as grading standards, grading formulas, grade inflation and what…
The November Educational Leadership is devoted to the topic of grading. It includes an article by Alfie Kohn an expanded version of which you can read here: The Case Against Grades. I’ve given grades. For years I worried about how to get a system right, tried to focus students and their parents on the learning not the grade. I’ve spent…
The ratio between success and failure remains pretty constant. To succeed means we must fail. And the more often we fail the more we succeed. The key is to fail frequently and fail fast. Then move on and try something else. That was the message of Tina Seelig who works at the entrepreneurship center at Stanford. The focus of her…
Take Paul Barnwell’s “test” in this article from NEA Today. How do your answers compare? Did he miss any questions? What’s in an ‘A’? Take this test and compare your answers with mine. By Paul Barnwell Fill in the blank: 1. Grades are a great way to ___ (a) provide meaningful feedback; (b) sort students by ability; (c) get…
It’s testing season and here’s a timely reminder that traditional testing for ability is not the last word in thinking about what makes for success. This is from a May edition of Education Week Robert J. Sternberg often writes about a lecture-style psychology course he took as a college freshman in which he got a C. “There is a famous…
The Climate for Learning A follow-up to Passionate Learning Part 1 and Part 2 Stained Glass Dr. Robert L. Fried is a leading American educator and teacher of teachers. He is an advocate for passionate learning and passionate teaching. Rob spent the day working with PDS faculty last week. In Rob’s view the climate for learning is changing here in…