Grading Can Be Capitalist, Racist, and Exploitative

Part One: What are we actually grading anyway?

By Ken Shelton and Nadia Razi

Now that you are here, take the time read and process this series. Too many look at the title and do not take the time to read and process. Pre-questions to consider:

1. What are/were your experiences with grades when you were in school?
2. Did they truly represent your learning?
3. Were there times where you felt earning a good grade was more of a game than actually representational of learning?
4. If the title elicits an emotional response ask yourself why is that the case?
5. Are you willing to own and accept existing systems of inequity?

In this multi-part series, Ken and Nadia will present a detailed examination, analysis, and interrogation on the enduring norm we call grading. We will examine the embedded purpose of grading, policies that are inequitable by design, and potential solutions that will not only provide a pathway towards reform but also be aligned with a more just and equitable system.

Though we have reworked policies and practices in the spirit of educational equity, grading remains a longstanding tradition that hasn’t changed much since before…