When I taught fourth and fifth grade at a school that didn’t assign grades, the topic occasionally came up among the students. On the bus, they’d hear their peers from other schools boasting about their As on tests for spelling or naming all the state capitals. Grades seemed like fun and useful bragging points. We … Read more
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 … Read more
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 … Read more
Many years ago I wrote an article with the title The Carrot and the Cattleprod. It’s so long ago that although I wrote it on a word processor I no longer have an electronic copy. It’s buried and yellowing deep in a file cabinet somewhere in the basement. So I don’t know where it is … Read more
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 … Read more