“A student asked his Zen master how long it would take to reach enlightenment. ‘Ten years, ‘ the master said. But, the student persisted, what if he studied very hard? ‘Then 20 years,’ the master responded. Surprised, the student asked how long it would take if he worked very, very hard. ‘In that case, 30 years,’ the master replied. His explanation: ‘If you have one eye on how close you are to achieving your goal, that leaves only one eye for your task.'”

 

Are grades a demotivater? What is the role of grades in the elementary  or middle school classroom? This article argues that grades are a deterrent for students to take risks in their learning, encouraging them instead to do just what is needed for the marks rather than learning for its own sake. Kohn presents the question of whether it is fair to be preparing students to be good at following other people’s instructions and criteria while leaving little space for students themselves to decide what matters and how to assess their own learning. Is it time to move from “measuring” to more meaningful assessment in schools? The Surrey School District seems to think so. De-grading will likely change the very underpinnings of what we assume about learning and academic success. As the BC school board moves away from the knitty-gritty PLO’s to much more overarching ideas and concepts, will the factory modeled school system be no more?

CBC Article on Surrey No-grade Pilot Program: http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/surrey-school-district-extends-its-no-letter-grades-program-1.2485832

Kohn, A. (2012). The case against grades. Educational Leadership, 69(3), 28-33.