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the bias “baked into” the system. Grades reward those who have resources, time, support and prior knowledge. Grades often do not recognize and support students with fewer support systems and who have experienced more systemic barriers to academic success as well as more negative experiences with schools and other institutions of power.
The Seven Paradigm Shifts to Move Beyond Labels:
Ungrading your classroom requires a shift in not just procedures and materials, but rather of mindset.
• Shift 1: “Grading is not neces- sary for learning but feedback is.” What students crave is information about something they are passionate about. Dump the labeling and create more opportunities for feedback.
• Shift 2: Assessment is not the same as “evaluation” but includes it. The assessment process requires you to gather (or notice) information/data, evaluate it by examining it, and then act upon it. Here’s the catch – the “act” doesn’t have to be assigning a grade! It might just mean that you decide to reteach the concept with a different strategy.
• Shift 3: Start with why. If you are creating an assessment, start with defining the purpose of the assess- ment. What question are you hoping to answer?
• Shift 4: Who is assessing? Where the feedback originates is important. Do not underestimate the power of self-reflection and peer input beyond just your critique.
• Shift 5: It begins with quality teach- ing and curriculum. “One can have the best assessment imaginable, but unless the accompanying curriculum is of quality, the assessment has no use.” – Howard Gardner
• Shift 6: When to assess? We’ve heard a LOT about formative and summative, but how much do we consider diagnostic? Where are your
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students starting from? What unique skills and aptitudes do they possess? How can the learning be personal- ized to meet their individual needs?
• Shift 7: How to assess. I believe the secret to life (and assessment) is to pay attention. Notice, ask questions, be curious. Create opportunities for students to demonstrate learning in ways that speak to them as individu- als. Provide the three keys to intrin- sic motivation: autonomy, mastery and purpose. Above all, ask good questions. The best teachers in my life asked me the best questions.
It is time to dismantle some historically bad practices regarding grading and re- place them with equitable ideas that will transform not only the way you teach but also your relationships with your students. Students deserve better feedback, better questions, and more opportunities to dem- onstrate learning in a way that resonates with them. It is time to change this outdated technology, to go beyond measure, and to ungrade our classrooms.
References:
Feldman, J. (2018). Grading for Equity: What It Is, Why It Matters, and How It Can Transform Schools and Classrooms.
Guskey, Thomas. “Undoing the Traditions of Grading and Reporting.” (2021). School Administrator.
Kohn, A. (2021, June 17). “The Case Against Grades (##).” Alfie Kohn. https://
www.alfiekohn.org/article/case-grades/.
Rose, T. (2016). The End of Average: How We Succeed in a World That Values Sameness. San Francisco, CA, HarperOne. (ISBN-10: 0062358367).
Sackstein, Starr. Hacking Assessment: 10 Ways to Go Gradeless in a Traditional Grades School. Times 10 Publications, 2022. ISBN-10: 1956512217.
Schinske, J., & Tanner, K. (2014). “Teaching More by Grading Less (or Differently).” CBE Life Sciences Education.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih. gov/pmc/articles/PMC4041495/.
Stommel, Jesse. Undoing the Grade: Why We Grade, and How to Stop. Hybrid
6522 Seybold Rd. Madison 11 608.271.2626
Pedagogy, Inc., 2023. ISBN-13 979- 8986676425.
Chris Gleason is arts and creativity consultant at Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction and 2017 Wisconsin Teacher of the Year.
Email:
christopher.gleason@
dpi.wi.gov
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