Grading participation is a controversial subject of interest for many educators. Jessica Lahey writes about her journey as an educator who placed value on student participation. In Lahey’s class, “every week, students were given between one and ten points for participation, and in the final tally, it counted for less than 5 percent of their grades”. Some parents did not agree with her decision to include a section for participation. Lahey continues to discuss how her advocacy for participation pushed her to realize the difference between being an introvert and being shy. Lahey ties shyness to anxiety and stress caused by engaging in situations that require more public participation.

After an overwhelming response to an article titled, “Introverted Kids Need to Learn to Speak Up at School”, Lahey was forced into a situation that required some extreme reflection. She has since “engaged in a real effort to… ‘rethink how we understand students’ silences’”. The responses from her article made her see how participation grades can sometimes be seen as a “metaphor for the bias against introverts”.

Lahey’s journey somewhat parallels the process of my inquiry. I was not expecting to go in the direction that I am. With respect to participation, I have now begun to explore the question that Lahey asked herself: “Can students participate without speaking out loud?”

Absolutely, if there is active learning happening. Assessing participation with regards to speaking out loud, could almost be considered a synonym for assessing personality types. Looking back on my observations in classrooms, it is now starting to be clear how there is simply just different personalities in a classroom and that they are going to participate with their learning in different ways.