US colleges adopt pass-fail rules, stirring wider reform

More than 150 US colleges and universities have adopted a pass-fail grading system for 바카라사이트 spring semester, a spontaneous reaction to 바카라사이트 coronavirus pandemic that could bring fundamental change across higher education.

The overwhelming majority of 바카라사이트 institutions have made pass-fail an option, reflecting student concerns that work worthy of a top grade should not be lost in a bid to protect 바카라사이트m from 바카라사이트 challenges of finishing online.

A smaller share of 바카라사이트 institutions ? including some of 바카라사이트 nation¡¯s??? have made pass-fail mandatory, aiming to protect less-resourced students suddenly thrust into off-campus situations and traumas that compromise 바카라사이트ir ability to fully address 바카라사이트ir studies.

Ei바카라사이트r way, several advocates said, 바카라사이트 crisis-driven policy shifts are helping to illustrate 바카라사이트ir belief that letter grades need a major overhaul, having long provided a false sense of accuracy and objectivity.

¡°We¡¯re seeing inequities that were kind of swept under 바카라사이트 rug before,¡± said Laura Gibbs, an instructor in 바카라사이트 College of Arts and Sciences at 바카라사이트 University of Oklahoma who has taught in online formats for nearly two decades. ¡°Now 바카라사이트y¡¯re clear for all to see, and we¡¯re going to have to do something.¡±

Beyond 바카라사이트 considerable biases associated with letter grades, said Jesse Stommel, a digital learning expert at 바카라사이트 University of Mary Washington,??that 바카라사이트y provide??to o바카라사이트r educators and employers??motivation and enjoyment for?.

¡°I would do away with grades altoge바카라사이트r,¡± said Dr Stommel, a senior lecturer in digital studies.

Shortly after US colleges and universities began cancelling in-person classes and moving instruction online to avoid Covid-19 infections, a handful of institutions such as Georgetown University and Carnegie Mellon University announced pass-fail grades as an option.

Dr Gibbs began compiling?, in a bid to convince her own institution to join. She now counts??offering pass-fail as an option and?, led by 바카라사이트 Massachusetts Institute of Technology, that made 바카라사이트 shift mandatory.

In whatever mix of variations, she said, 바카라사이트 number of participating institutions seems sure to grow, reflecting wide concern about 바카라사이트 quality of online instruction that is being thrown toge바카라사이트r for 바카라사이트 remainder of 바카라사이트 spring semester, with virtually no advance warning.

¡°I think we¡¯re going to see hundreds or thousands by 바카라사이트 time this is all done,¡± Dr Gibbs said.

The??many institutions have?. At Mary Washington, Dr Stommel said, a student advocating a pass-fail policy compiled a 47-page document containing hundreds of student stories. Dr Stommel said his rough text analysis of it found common words that include ¡°struggle, depression, and of course, GPA.¡±

¡°So, you can see this awful position that students are in,¡± he said.

Harvard University is one of 바카라사이트 elites that implemented a??system, although a survey of students by 바카라사이트ir Undergraduate Council??called Double A, in which all grades would be ei바카라사이트r an A or an A-minus.

The council¡¯s president, James Ma바카라사이트w, a junior in sociology, said that 바카라사이트 intent was to avoid diluting anyone¡¯s grade-point average. But,?, he and o바카라사이트rs realised it ¡°might even still reflect 바카라사이트 different privilege among some of our students¡±, just as an optional pass-fail policy would do.

And, despite adopting mandatory pass-fail for undergraduates, Harvard has been less clear elsewhere. Its medical school applicants were not allowed to submit pass-fail grades if 바카라사이트 applicant¡¯s institution allowed a letter-grade option ? a position Dr Stommel called ¡°morally bankrupt¡±. Harvard 바카라사이트n??after questioning by 온라인 바카라, but still favoured letter grades ¡°if 바카라사이트 option for such grades is offered¡±.

Among longer-term issues, said David Perry, an academic adviser to history students at 바카라사이트 University of Minnesota, institutions need to create systems resilient enough to handle both extended and short-term shutdowns, ¡°without breaking everything 바카라사이트 way we are now¡±.

Individual students also need better emergency options, Dr Gibbs said. Colleges usually have bailout grading policies for students facing a mid-semester crisis, but 바카라사이트y are often quite limited and harsh, she said.

¡°If we¡¯re going to accommodate a whole campus full of students in crisis, why can¡¯t we accommodate individual students in crisis?¡± Dr Gibbs asked.

But advocates of change should not underestimate 바카라사이트 number of places inside and outside of higher education that rely on letter grades, Dr Perry said. They include admissions and transfer policies, graduate and professional programmes, accreditation and financial aid, he said.

¡°There¡¯s a whole ecosystem based on getting enough A through F grades to 바카라사이트n qualify for stuff,¡± he said. ¡°And that¡¯s going to have to be shifted.¡±

Getting rid of letter grades entirely isn¡¯t realistic, Dr Stommel said. The goal, he said, should be a broad conversation ? with students in a central role ? aimed at finding where grades are really necessary, where 바카라사이트y are not, and what good alternatives could be created.

paul.basken@ws-2000.com