The Ethics of Grading

Grading is a very interesting idea. It's a scheme claiming that learning is quantifiable, that we can measure in solid terms what a child derives from a class, from time spent under another's tutelage. I find this almost laughable: some skills can be measured, maybe, but often the entire grading process just encourages rote memorization and the conditioning of a student to meet a particular instructor's requirements. It's just a symbol for something amorphous that can deepen in one instant and recede in the next.

Enough about that: my ideas on grading are still a bit muddled and being pondered. However, teaching at a high school as I do, I find myself needing to give grades now. I populate my courses with tests and quizzes and daily grades and participation assessment. I tally the scores and divvy up percentages. I derive a number. And sometimes I arbitrarily change it.

I admit: if a student is teetering on the edge of a higher grade and has demonstrated a willingness and commitment to learning in the classroom, I might bump them up. If a student has been completely lackluster, demonstrating apathy and derision, I won't. I'll leave it be and damn them to learn the lesson. I don't consider this assigning grades, but rather assessing the grade a student has earned with their spirit as well as hard numbers.

This grading period, however, I gave a student an entire letter grade. I outright added 10 points to his final grade average for the period. He didn't particularly deserve them: he's a good kid, but he doesn't apply himself. He's got his priorities mixed up and lets his schoolwork fall by the wayside. I'm big on helping students and doing everything I can for them... if they just show me they are trying. They just have to reach out half-way. They have to make some sort of attempt.

So why did I basically give this kid a grade that would allow him to pass? (For, yes, he was failing.)

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