The Myth of the Value of Grades

The myth: grades are valuable. They're not.

https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/how-do-life/201708/the-case-not-giving-grades

https://stanforddaily.com/2010/11/05/sense-and-nonsense-grades-and-learning/

Grades damage intrisic motivation.

They don't measure what they purport to measure.

They often include non-achievement notions that don't have anything to do with achievement.

They're made up data.

They create toxic competition.

They tend to destroy deeper learning.

This article: https://www.thnk.org/blog/3-reasons-grades-bad-education/

Alfie Kohn, author of The Schools Our Children Deserve: Moving Beyond Traditional Classrooms and “Tougher Standards” and Punished by Rewards, writes extensively about the influence of grades on learning. We asked him to articulate how grades impact a student’s education, as well as what adults can do to minimize the negative effects.

What effect does handing out grades have upon the student when it comes to motivation and learning outcomes?

Kohn: The research suggests three consistent effects of giving students grades – or leading them to focus on what grade they’ll get. First, their interest in the learning itself is diminished. Second, they come to prefer easier tasks – not because they’re lazy, but because they’re rational. After all, if the point is to get an A, your odds are better if you avoid taking intellectual risks. Third, students tend to think in a more superficial fashion – and to forget what they learned more quickly – when grades are involved.

George Couros - digital portfolios -- Innovator's Mindset