Today I attended a talk that was rescheduled after an unfortunate Zoom bombing incident… Asao B. Inoue discussed what labor-based grading contracts is. Inoue described labor-based grading contracts as:
- a set of social agreements with students in a course
- identifies how to determine the final course grade
- uses labor as the only measure for grades
- carefully articulated in a (detailed) document
- negotiated with students
- describes a default grade (the base grade the contract delineates)
- “corporate in nature” because it is made with the entire group
Inoue talked about how “writing quality is divorced from how final course grades are determined,” emphasizing that course grades are often not equal to what a student learns. Inoue also warned that just using labor-based contracts does not make your course antiracist.
The session included pauses to “feel, notice, and reflect” by pausing for twenty seconds and responding individually to “What are you feeling in your body right now? What are you thinking about?” prompts. I had not considered what you are feeling in your body right now! I am tired, yet very interested in this talk. Inoue mentioned that they only mark a grade book when a student doesn’t complete appropriately or on time an assignment… or does more than the expected work.
Chris Anson shared in the chat the Labor-Based Grading Contracts open-access book.
and Inoue’s handout: tinyurl.com/NCSU-handout
Inoue describes in guidelines purpose and goals, process (how much time students should take in each step such as words written or read), and due date:
- Process of the assignment: steps involved in the labor
- Time on task or steps
- Quantity of words written or read
- Due date/time and how the work is submitted
Inoue mentioned that there is a certain level of trust in students for describing their process. A student may miss some assignments. Inoue defines incomplete work as late or incomplete. I found this interesting. Missed work is turned in after 48 hrs because turning in after 48 hrs is less useful for the course. Ignoring work is distinguished with different weights. Inoue discussed how grades give privilege to some and rank. In Inoue’s contract, there is another way to earn a high grade: exemplary labor by not missing classes and “engaging in the fullest spirit asked of them.” Inoue also includes a clause to escape a penalty once with a “gimme” to move a missed assignment to a late assignment or an ignored assignment to a missed assignment. Inoue paused again to have the audience reflect. Inoue referred to characteristics of white supremacy in grading. Inoue read the Grading Contract for ENG XXX (tinyurl.com/LB-GradingContract2020). Paragraph by paragraph, each section addresses issues around grades. One phrase from the second paragraph that I loved was: “And so, how do we make sure that our goals aren’t about grades in this class, but about learning to write?” as it questions our goals for the assignments and learning experience. It is also important that students get to read and think about this statement.
The third paragraph stated at one point: “Grades on our work and writing do not allow us to productively fail. They create conditions that mostly punish failure, not reward it for the learning opportunity it can and should be.” The contract described the harm of assuming everyone is the same, and each learner develops at the same pace.
Another meaningful line:
So we will function as collaborators, allies, as fellow-travelers with various skills, abilities, experiences, and talents that we offer the group, rather than adversaries working against each other for grades or a teacher’s approval.
asaO B. inoue, Grading contract, tinyurl.com/LB-GradingContract2020
The contract emphasizes that students will receive feedback from colleagues and the instructor but not grades. The grades are based on the grading contract template.
During the question and answer session, one attendee asked about what to do with students failing to submit assignments. Inoue mentioned that it is essential to communicate to students the importance of learners showing their work since the contract is based on labor. A second question was how to use this system in STEM, for example. Inoue suggested using quizzes on concepts with multiple attempts and specifications grading (referring to Linda Nilson’s book). Also, Inoue talked about having students describe their journey and having a dialogue about their ideas. Inoue mentioned “responding to the human and not the draft,” which helps make this a conversation for growth and improvement. Another thought-provoking question was if Inoue had to clear the contract with a department chair or curriculum. The answer was no. This question does bring up buy-in and institutional support. The labor-based grading contract is now a template I will keep in mind for written assignments that promote equity and support improvement!
