Second Chance Grading: An Equitable, Meaningful, and Easy-to-Implement Grading System that Synergizes the Research on Testing for Learning, Mastery Grading, and Growth Mindsets

ABSTRACT

This article describes the synthesis of the research on mastery grading, growth mindsets, and testing for learning to produce a new grading system – Second Chance Grading. The system and the research it is based on are described in detail. Reflections of the system's effectiveness, impact, and reception are also discussed. Finally, the appendix to the article contains an F.A.Q. section addressing some of the common questions and concerns related to the system.

KEYWORDS:

• Mastery grading
• growth mindset
• inclusive teaching
• test-enhanced learning

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

I wish to thank all of the students who have given me detailed feedback about Second Chance Grading, as well as my colleagues who have supported me in my implementation of the system. Your collective comments have been immensely valuable.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Oscar E. Fernandez

Oscar E. Fernandez earned his Ph.D. in Applied and Interdisciplinary Mathematics from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, in 2009. While there he became interested in pedagogy and the science of learning, spurred on by the University's comprehensive training of its Graduate Student Instructors in active learning and inquiry-based learning. After Michigan, Fernandez joined the faculty at Wellesley College – a liberal arts college for women in Wellesley, MA – where he is now an associate professor of mathematics. In 2017 he was appointed Faculty Director of the college's Pforzheimer Learning and Teaching Center. In that role, he supports faculty at the College as they explore new instructional strategies and new mechanisms for assessment, and coordinates New Faculty Orientation. He regularly organizes workshops on pedagogical topics of interest to the faculty and helps manage funding sources intended to encourage innovative teaching.