Re: 12 Alternatives To Letter Grades In Education

Challenging Traditional Grades

Looks like it is time to ruffle a few feathers on a Monday morning. This is an older article, but one that still has a large amount of relevance in what is currently being discussed in education. A lot of research is being done on the antiquated grading system almost every school has been using for over 100+ years.

The earliest record of a letter-grade system comes from Mount Holyoke College in Massachusetts in 1897. (There is a passing reference in the Harvard archives to a student receiving a B grade in 1883, but no evidence of a complete A-through-F system.) (Quote from Slate.com)
The struggle to change this grading system with something far superior in measuring student learning is very similar to converting Luddites to education technology. However, more parents, teachers, and students seem more willing to adopt technology rather than a new grading system. The letter grade system is easy to understand for parents, as this method was used in how they were evaluated in school. Schools use this as a way to evaluate school (and now teacher) performance. Higher education institutions use letter grades / GPA to decide whether or not to enroll specific students.

See the full article at:http://www.teachthought.com/pedagogy/12-alternatives-to-letter-grades-in-education/

Some source information provided by:
http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/explainer/2010/08/e_is_for_fail.html

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