CDI 2.X: Designing Equitable Grading Schemes

Priority will be given to our CDI and c3Design alumni; instructors who have not completed either program will be admitted on a case-by-case basis.

In recent years, alternative grading practices have gained widespread popularity for their emphasis on formative feedback, requirement of transparent communication between teachers and students, and ability to reduce students’ anxiety about grades and return their focus and motivation to learning. Even more importantly, alternative grading practices have the potential to remedy educational inequities—a benefit that hasn't yet been fully realized.

In this two-part series, we'll invite participants to reconsider not only how, but also why we grade. We'll explore the questions: what do grades mean, what do we want them to mean, and what choices are available to us to develop grading schemes that foster significant learning and promote educational equity?

In Part 1 on Dec. 7, we'll discuss the history of grading schemes and diagnose some of the fundamental philosophical problems with the concept and practice of grading student learning. We’ll explain how grading practices sustain educational inequities (particularly racial ones) and explore a range of alternative grading practices that support an ethic of justice and repair.

In Part 2 on Dec. 14, we'll introduce participants to a specific alternative grading method called specifications grading, which prioritizes transparency, student choice, and student responsibility to earn the grade they desire. Participants will analyze and discuss models of specifications grading from a variety of disciplines and class types, and assess their readiness to adopt specifications grading in their own teaching contexts. Participants will design specifications grading systems for their courses, articulate specifications for a course assignment, and give and receive feedback on their work.

Space is limited. You will be notified of your acceptance shortly after the deadline.