Beyond the Grade: Rethinking Grading Practices for Student Success

Community Information

Facilitator: Brad Kimbrough, Life Design Coach, Radbill Center for College and Life Design & CFE Faculty Associate

Community Duration: Fall 2025-Spring 2026

Meeting Schedule, Modality & Location: 

• Fri, Sept 19, 2:00-3:00 PM, Olscamp Hall Room 106
• Fri, Oct 24, 2:00-3:00 PM, Olscamp Hall Room 106
• Fri, Nov 14, 2:00-3:00 PM, Olscamp Hall Room 106
• Fri, Dec 12, 2:00-3:00 PM, Olscamp Hall Room 106
• Fri, Jan 16, 2:00-3:00 PM, Olscamp Hall Room 106
• Fri, Feb 13, 2:00-3:00 PM, Olscamp Hall Room 106
• Fri, March 13, 2:00-3:00 PM, Olscamp Hall Room 106
• Fri, April 17, 2:00-3:00 PM, Olscamp Hall Room 106

Community Participants: All BGSU faculty, adjunct instructors, graduate students, and staff who are current instructors of record are welcomed and encouraged to participate.

Community Description:

Are you ready to rethink the way you grade? As a participant in this community, you will have an opportunity to critically examine and reimagine conventional grading practices. You will engage in a comparative analysis of traditional and alternative assessment models, including standards-based, specifications-based, and contract-based grading systems. Additionally, we will investigate how factors such as student labor, behavior, and learning outcomes intersect with these approaches and how revolutionizing your grading practice can impact student motivation and success. 

In the first semester, we will read and discuss Grading for Growth by David Clark and Robert Talbert, using it as a springboard for critical discussion. During the second semester, we will focus on the practical redesign of instructional materials—such as assignments, rubrics, and syllabi—to align with alternative grading principles. 

Sessions will be in-person, discussion-oriented, and highly interactive, incorporating case studies and collaborative exercises. Our aim is to cultivate a community dedicated to supporting each other as we move forward in our implementation of alternative grading practices.

Community Learning Outcomes:

By participating in this community, you will be able to:

• Analyze the strengths and limitations of traditional grading systems in the context of student motivation and learning outcomes.
• Compare and contrast alternative grading models such as standards-based, specifications-based, and contract-based systems.
• Revise existing course artifacts—such as assignments, grading rubrics, and syllabi—to better align with alternative grading principles.
• Design new assessment strategies that prioritize transparency, fairness, and student growth.
• Collaborate with peers to troubleshoot challenges and share successes related to implementing new grading practices.
• Develop a personalized action plan for piloting alternative grading methods in a future course/s.

Participant Expectations:

As a member of this community, you are expected to:

• Meet the community learning outcomes.
• Actively participate in and attend at least 80% of all scheduled community meetings.
• Complete any assignments.
• Complete final syllabus project and presentation.

Registration for this community is now closed.