Are grades really necessary?

16.Feb.2009

We grow up getting used to receive grades for everything we learn. During our education they range from purely qualitative grades at elementary school, to highly quantitative at high school and later at University. Yet, are they really necessary? Do they help in any way the learning process?

Alfie Kohn, a known education book author, wrote an essay called From Degrading to De-Grading stating several reasons for dropping students’ grading all together. A controversial point of view definitely, but many of the arguments sound terribly true and I can’t say I wasn’t affected directly and indirectly by some. Two selected excerpts, though I recommend reading the entire article:

Grades tend to reduce students’ preference for challenging tasks. Students of all ages who have been led to concentrate on getting a good grade are likely to pick the easiest possible assignment if given a choice (Harter, 1978; Harter and Guzman, 1986; Kage, 1991; Milton et al., 1986). The more pressure to get an A, the less inclination to truly challenge oneself. Thus, students who cut corners may not be lazy so much as rational; they are adapting to an environment where good grades, not intellectual exploration, are what count.

“If I can’t give a child a better reason for studying than a grade on a report card, I ought to lock my desk and go home and stay there.” So wrote Dorothy De Zouche, a Missouri teacher, in an article published in February . . . of 1945. But teachers who can give a child a better reason for studying don’t need grades. Research substantiates this: when the curriculum is engaging – for example, when it involves hands-on, interactive learning activities—students who aren’t graded at all perform just as well as those who are graded (Moeller and Reschke, 1993).

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3 Comments

If you compare the grading system with economic incentives usually given at companies worldwide, then most of the conclusions above stand out on their own. Money incentives can, an often do, promote the wrong kind of attitude towards work. Still, most companies use it, so that should give you something to think about. Sure, it's not perfect, but it's probably a lot better than nothing at all. HOWEVER, i don't think grading and economic incentives can be compared. Economic incentives were created to reward performance, whereas grades have the purpose to reward learning. These are two very different, often opposing, beasts. If you make sure that your grades reward those who learn the most (and not necessarily those who, having learned nothing, still manage to perform well), then students will still be encouraged to choose the most challenging tasks, no matter how smart they are.
Manuel Padilha manuel padilha / 17.Feb.2009 at 12:24pm
I couldn't agree more with the article you posted. Hugz, Luís
Luís Miguel Silva luís miguel silva / 18.Feb.2009 at 12:41am
Manuel, I don't agree that grades reward learning, they are simply used as a unit to measure how good you are. And when we talk about grading exams (and not practical tasks), grades will simply measure who can assimilate the most information in the shortest period of time and how they handle in stress (which obviously has nothing to do with mastering the subject itself). Best, Luís
Luís Miguel Silva luís miguel silva / 18.Feb.2009 at 12:47am

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