I was at it...again. I was thinking.
And here’s a question for everyone, I guess.
When you speak to students, the thing they hate the most...other than any course that I teach...is taking exams and getting graded. Ask faculty, and they’ll tell you grading is the worst part of their job. So are we all just masochists? Have we all collectively signed up for something that everyone hates...and that, quite frankly, reflects very little actual learning?
Yes, I’ve heard the urban legends. The one course where grades motivate students to learn. The rare classroom where assessment captures deep insight and real growth. I’m not saying those don’t exist. But most of us know, deep down, that they’re more myth than norm.
Anyone who came across the recent report from a very well-known university knows the grading system is failing. And those who claim they’ve “figured it out” either don’t understand the problem...or think we don’t.
So let’s imagine. Let’s imagine the world is inching closer to Finland. As I understand it (full disclosure: I haven’t studied it yet), Finland’s model is built on gradeless schooling. No rigid evaluations. No GPA calculators defining lives.
Now contrast that with other systems, where every breath a student takes is assessed by someone who may have never had a day of formal teaching training.
“You sneezed too many times in class? That’s a C+.” “You memorized answers from past tests and highlighted all the right phrases? Wow...A+ potential.”
It gets worse.
Some believe educators are really just recruiters for corporations or graduate schools. That our job is to stamp students with grades so the HR team can sort them out. And that’s where we start sliding...fast. I’ve heard academics argue that schools should give more A’s to help students land jobs...because other schools are doing it.
Let HR do its job. Let me do mine.
I’m here to teach. And that’s already a hard enough task. Don’t turn me into a filter in some industrial feeder system.
Now, if schools are too scared to go fully progressive, here’s a compromise: Make every course Pass or No Pass.
And if that’s too soft, fine...add a Distinction. But that “Distinction” has to mean something real. Not “turned in everything on time.” Distinction comes from distinct and if everyone gets a Distinction, then how is it distinct? It should signal deep learning, consistent reflection, actual engagement. Not perfect compliance. We’re not raising machines.
Under this system, the truly motivated students would aim for Distinction. The students who would have gotten Bs, Cs, or Ds would settle for Pass. And yes, I hear the counterpoint...“But what if a B motivates a C student to work harder?”
Does it? Really? And does the grade really reflect learning?
We criticize corporations for earnings management. GPA management is no different. It’s just a more polite version of the same dysfunction.
If the only way we believe students will learn is by dangling grades in front of them, then we have much bigger problems than grade inflation. We have a motivation crisis.
From childhood to adulthood, we need to create environments where learning is about more than an external reward. And yes, there may be new issues we face under a Pass/No-Pass system, but are we supposed to keep working with a failing system until the perfect solution arrives?
It’s no secret that I’m firmly against grades and awards...for students and academics. If we’re always pushing people to do things only for recognition, for medals, for validation...then we’re raising a generation of mercenaries.
People who will only act if there’s something in it for them.
What do you think? I would love to hear from students (current and former) - am I a naive dreamer or are there (other) ways to make this work?
I believe that we can do better than this. We have to do better than this.