The promise and pitfalls of gradeless learning: responses to an alternative approach to grading

ABSTRACT

This paper examines an alternative approach to grading at a public university in Singapore. Beginning in 2014, all incoming students were given a ‘grade-free’ period of assessment. This was designed to give new students time to adjust to university life and to inspire students to approach their learning free from the worry of grades. Similar to pass/fail systems elsewhere around the world, this example of what we call ‘gradeless learning’ reflects long-term national aims of reducing society’s emphasis on the letter- and number-based grades and developing a country of lifelong learners. This paper shares student and faculty reaction to the alternative approach to grading, through four surveys conducted during the 18 months following its implementation. Over 3000 responses from students and nearly 500 responses from faculty reveal both groups recognise the potential of gradeless learning to positively impact student learning and well-being, by helping students adjust to university life and encouraging them to take more academic risks without worrying about grades. However, both groups cite problems with gradeless learning, namely poor learning attitudes and behaviours, which arise when grades can no longer be relied on to motivate learning. Faculty members, in particular, feel frustrated by their lack of an active role in this alternative approach to grading, which was designed exclusively to benefit students. This study suggests that the success of gradeless learning anywhere requires the support of faculty partners, who must be integral in developing pedagogical innovations that can help de-emphasise grades as a way to motivate and measure learning.

KEYWORDS:

• Grades
• stress
• well-being
• motivation
• gradeless learning

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the National University of Singapore Centre for Development of Teaching and Learning.

Notes on contributors

Chris McMorran

Chris McMorran is Associate Professor in the Department of Japanese Studies at the National University of Singapore. He is a cultural geographer of contemporary Japan who has published on a wide variety of topics from mobilities, tourism and gendered labor to post-disaster volunteer tourism and area studies. He also studies the geographies of teaching and learning and has published articles on field studies and online learning (MOOCs) and co-edited Teaching Japanese Popular Culture (Association for Asian Studies, 2016). He is currently engaged in projects related to podcasting and gradeless learning.

Kiruthika Ragupathi

Kiruthika Ragupathi is an Associate Director for Educational Technology and Research at CDTL. She has been with the Centre since 1997. She oversees the Technology in Pedagogy Series (TiPS), co-leads the planning of Continuing Professional Development Programme (CPDP) and co-plans the core module of the PDP-T. In addition, she has oversight in the development of teaching evaluation instruments at NUS—student feedback system and online peer review system— and also helps in administering the teaching awards submission system. Her research interests are in analysing pedagogical issues surrounding the integration of educational technologies into teaching and learning; understanding the learning processes and outcomes for learners engaged in technology-supported tasks; and in tracking and supporting learning in interactive learning environments. Her current research focuses on optimising instructor interventions in massive open online course (MOOC) discussion forums to enhance the student learning experience, and the impact of gradeless learning on student motivation.