Toward a Scope of Practice for (Un)Graders
Emily Pitts Donohoe applies Karen Costa's educator scope of practice framework to the work Donohoe does with ungrading approaches. It's a great application and a solid way to (re)think about where our roles and boundaries could influence the way we consider grading student learning.
On how Emily found this exercise useful...
"I found this activity helpful for a few reasons. The first is that the process of grading and giving feedback can be really overwhelming. I talk to graduate students all the time about how to assess student work without letting it take over your life. Accomplishing this requires getting to the root of what we’re responsible for and not responsible for as instructors. Establishing a scope of practice can help us do that."
and...
"Relatedly, I found this activity useful because it helped me separate my scope of practice as an educator and assessor from the functions I’m expected to serve as a grader, or at least the functions that the grades I assign are expected to serve. Here’s what I mean. When I assess student work, my first commitment is to my students, and I consider it my job to provide assessments of their work primarily for their benefit. But the assessments I provide, particularly in the form of letter grades, are also expected to make the work of admissions committees and employers easier by neatly ranking students and sorting them into buckets."