In a recent ASCD webinar, Starr Sackstein outlined how teachers can move toward more comprehensive "learning-focused" assessment.
The new school year is now underway, and many educators are turning again to a familiar, but sometimes fraught, part of the job: grading. Assessment is a vital way to document learning, but too much focus on scores can derail some students. At one point in her recent ASCD webinar on “Assessing with Respect” (available free on-demand), education consultant and former teacher Starr Sackstein responded to a comment from a participant that said, “Letter grades are the enemy of learning.” She took the idea one step further:
“All kinds of grades are the enemy of learning,” said Sackstein.
A Student Perspective on Learning
That idea on grading might be a shock to some. And even for teachers who understand the concept theoretically, it can be unclear how to break free from established norms and reimagine assessment. So, to offer guidance, Sackstein started her presentation with a short video of a one-on-one conference she had with a student during her time as a teacher.
In the recording, the 12th grader describes her progression as a writer over the school year.
“I need to work on transitions. When we got to that, my writing got better, but you can always improve your writing . . . I think I’m meeting the standard,” she said.
Flipping through the pages on her desk, she mentioned off-handedly, “I kept a document of all the feedback you gave me. It got better over time so I’m proud of that.”
The student mentioned a letter grade only once, at the very end of the conversation.
The webinar’s chatbox, with participants from around the world, lit up as they observed the conversation.
“There was such rapport between the two of you. It looked like she felt very comfortable having this conversation with you,” wrote one viewer.
“I appreciate how she accepts the criticism and uses it to grow and learn. Very self-reflective. She recognizes where she can do better,” another added.
This reflective, progress-oriented discussion is exactly the kind of assessment Sackstein strives for. It looks quite different from a letter stamped across the top of an exam, but it’s clear from her experience that it means much more to students.
“I like to really challenge teachers to think about the fact that the learning we’re doing needs to feel valuable to students,” she said.
The video represents that goal, but Sackstein admitted that it takes quite a bit of work to achieve it. To begin, teachers should challenge their own beliefs around evaluating their students. Even common forms of assessment that aren’t directly related to learning, like penalizing late work or offering extra credit, can be problematic, she said. What’s most important is to document what a student knows, not how much time or support they have at home.
Formative and Summative Assessment
Evaluating true student learning also requires understanding the differences between formative and summative assessment. Formative assessment measures students’ needs and progress and provides multiple opportunities for them to demonstrate their understanding. It can be formal or informal and it should happen often. Vitally, it should never be graded, Sackstein explained.
Some examples might be discussions, class reflections, or journaling. She outlined the keys to formative learning as follows:
- It is more about the process than the product.
- It builds clarity and practice into everyday work.
- It relies on feedback and student goal setting and reflection.
- It provides multiple opportunities to learn and show learning.
- It meets every child where they are and allows them to progress based on their own needs.
On the other hand, summative assessment represents culminating learning activities with the primary purpose of evaluation, although it still doesn’t need to be graded. This form of assessment should be scored with predetermined or co-created success criteria. Examples include exams, benchmark assignments, or larger projects.
Put simply, Sackstein distinguished between the two as “assessment FOR learning” and “assessment OF learning.” Striking the right balance between the two will be different for every teacher, since schools and families have such wide-ranging expectations around how students are evaluated. It isn’t always easy to convince stakeholders to adopt new, less rigid forms of assessment. But for educators who want to try moving away from standard letter grades on assignments, Sackstein recommended reminding parents and school leaders of how much more valuable these qualitative forms of assessment can be.
“Make sure everyone understands why we’re making this shift,” she said. “They’re going to get far more information that aligns with this system than if they just received a grade. We want to make sure that our colleagues are working together to help the entire environment have a more inclusive belonging about it.”
Looking Ahead
For teachers who are still at the beginning stages of rethinking how they measure student progress, the webinar included a list of key takeaways. If you can manage to incorporate these ideals into your instruction, Sackstein argued, you’re well on your way to cultivating more inclusive and authentic learning experiences:
- If a grade is necessary, delay it for as long as you can.
- Provide multiple formative assessment opportunities, daily.
- Provide strategic feedback that promotes growth.
- Empower students to advocate for their own learning.
- Facilitate reflection in students as an essential part of learning.
- Have clear learning goals and co‐construct success criteria.
- Celebrate successes and mistakes as a means for more growth.
- Build a culture of peer efficacy and let students practice.
Not all these classroom reforms will work for every teacher but moving the dial away from quantitative scores and toward more comprehensive "learning-focused" evaluation can have a dramatic effect on student motivation and sense of belonging. And given the challenges young learners have faced over the past year, finding ways to lower the stakes of traditional assessment may be more important than ever.
Related Resource
Starr Stackstein dives deeper into grading and its link to SEL in the ASCD book Assessing with Respect: Everyday Practices That Meet Students' Social and Emotional Needs.
