Student reactions to no grades

I love the first day of the semester, new students, new courses and a unmistakable renewal of energy in the building! I was most excited, however, to be announcing the no grades concept to my music classes, and was curious to see what their initial reactions would be...I was not disappointed!

After the usual meet and greet and the explanation of course expectations etc., I told my class that they will not be receiving numerical grades as a part of their regular assessment. I saw a lot of confused faces, a few students whispering "what?!?!" to their neighbour, and one student even yelled out "Clarke, you're crazy!!"...which I loved!! I was hoping to receive a few different reactions that would fuel my explanation of the no grades learning process. After a lengthy discussion, most students seemed to understand how this was going to play out this semester, although I could tell they were still a little skeptical, having never been a part of a gradeless classroom. 

My biggest concern is what message they brought home to their parents last night. Attached to their course outline, I wrote a letter home to parents (I have linked this document under the "Transforming Assessment in the Arts" resources tab) because the last thing I want is there to be a misconception as to why we are going gradeless, and I want parents to understand how this is going to affect and enhance their child's learning. I am anticipating a few calls and emails, and am hoping parents attend my after school meeting tomorrow if they have any questions or concerns. It is important to me that everyone feels comfortable taking the plunge with me...support is essential!

Towards the end of my classes, as an exit ticket, I asked students to write down/ type out some of their initial reactions to the no grades classroom. I will keep these responses as they will be writing a reflection at the end of the semester on how they felt about going gradeless in June. I'm sharing a few examples as I was surprised about a common theme that emerged as a result of their writing.

The general consensus seemed to be that GRADES = STRESS. Mental health is a huge initiative at our school, as I'm sure it is in other schools in our region. We often talk about stress at home, stress caused by social media, stress caused by bullying etc. While it seems logical that students may stress about completing assignments, or whether or not they're being successful in a course or not, it didn't immediately occur to me that the actual number on a test/assignment/project is a big stress trigger for students, and can interfere with their learning. We discussed this further in class once I saw these responses, and students were very vocal about how a numerical grade negatively impacts them, and how that makes them feel as a learner, and an individual. There was also discussion about how high grades can positively impact and drive students, but can also lead to slacking off on future course work if the grade was high enough.

Not all comments about this initiative were positive, and that's ok. There are students who thrive on numerical grades, and commented that they need to see the number in order to assure themselves that they are doing well in class. Through consistent conferencing, dialogue and self-assessment, I am hoping that students will not feel reduced to a number, but empowered about what they've accomplished in class, and informed about what their next steps may be in order to improve their learning.