Mean Scores in a Mean World - Mean Scores and De-grading Learning - Baines and Goolsby

Aug 28, 2026

Edited volume exploring the roots and consequences of grades and high-stakes testing in education. The book examines policy failures, the mechanics of assessment as a quality metric, and how standardized tests affect learning, student motivation, and classroom life. It contrasts accountability-driven approaches with de-grading and de-testing alternatives, including arguments against grades, rethinking assessment roles, and strategies such as no-testing weeks and feedback-centered workshop models.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages288

Reading Time12 h 6 min

AccessFree to download

Introduction: The Roots of Grades-and-Tests

Part I: De-grading Learning, De-testing Education: The Failure of High-Stakes Accountability in Education

Chapter 1: NCLB’s Lost Decade for Educational Progress

Chapter 4: Mean Scores in a Mean World

Part II: De-Grading and De-Testing in a Time of High-Stakes Education Reform

Chapter 10: The Case Against Grades

Chapter 13: No Testing Week: Focusing on Creativity in the Classroom

Conclusion: Striving toward Authentic Teaching for Social Justice

Dedication Page contents Acknowledgments .................................................... ix Introduction: The Roots of Grades-and-Tests ................................ 1 Alfie Kohn Part I: De-grading Learning, De-testing Education: The Failure of High-Stakes Accountability in Education Chapter 1 NCLB’s Lost Decade for Educational Progress: What Can We Learn from This Policy Failure? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 Lisa Guisbond with Monty Neilland Bob Schaeffer Chapter 2 High-Stakes Testing Assessment: The Deus ex Machina of Quality in Education . . . . .27 Fernando F. Padró Chapter 3 Technocratic Groupthink Inflates the Testing Bubble .........................44 Anthony Cody Chapter 4 Mean Scores in a Mean World ........................................... 51 Lawrence Baines andRhonda Goolsby Chapter 5 De-grading Literacy: How New York State Tests Knowledge, Culture, and Critical Thinking .......................................... 63 Julie A. Gorlewski and DavidA. Gorlewski Chapter 6 The Corporate Model of Schooling: How High Stakes Testing Dehumanizes Education ............................................... 78 Morna McDermott viii | Contents Chapter 7 Standardized Testing and Boredom at an Urban Middle School ................. 96 Richard Mora Chapter 8 Reconciling Student Outcomes and Community Self-Reliance in Modern School Reform Contexts ....................................... 105 Brian R. Beabout and AndreM. Perry Chapter 9 The Role of Assessment in Empowering/Disempowering Students in the Critical Pedagogy Classroom ........................................... 126 David L. Bolton and John M. Elmore Part II: De-Grading and De-Testing in a Time of High-Stakes Education Reform Chapter 10 The Case Against Grades .............................................. 143 Alfie Kohn Chapter 11 Reduced to Numbers: From Concealing to Revealing Learning ................. 154 Joe Bower Chapter 12 Outside the Wounding Machine: Grading and the Motive for Metaphor ......... 169 John Hoben Chapter 13 No Testing Week: Focusing on Creativity in the Classroom .................... 184 Peter DeWitt Chapter 14 Journey into Ungrading ............................................... 194 Hadley J. Ferguson Chapter 15 Moving Beyond “Parents Just Want to Know the Grade!” ..................... 210 Jim Webber and Maja Wilson Chapter 16 De-grading Writing Instruction in a Time of High-Stakes Testing: The Power of Feedback in Workshop ..................................... 219 P. L. Thomas Chapter 17 One Week, Many Thoughts ........................................... 239 Brian Rhode Conclusion: Striving toward Authentic Teaching for Social Justice ..............249 Lisa William-White Author Biographies .................................................. 277 Acknowledgments This volume is and collection a work of collaboration and intersections . As an edited work of voices addressing de-testing and de-grading schools, the col- laboration is obvious . The intersections are unique to this era of New Media since the volume began as a Twitter connection between Joe Bower and P . L . Thomas (volume editors) who shared in part a powerful influence by Alfie Kohn (Introduction and foundational chapter,“The Case Against Grades”) . From Joe Bower: Thanks to Paul Thomas for so graciously inviting me to be a part of this project; to Alfie Kohn for his guidance and patience with my emails and questions; to all the courageous contributors who work so hard to make school a better place by moving away from tests and grades; to my parents for their unconditional support; and to Tamara, Kayley, and Sawyer for putting up with my blogging and tweeting . From P. L. Thomas: Thanks to Joe Bower and Alfie Kohn for helping get this project rolling; to

FAQs

What is the central problem the volume addresses regarding grades and tests?

The volume argues that high-stakes accountability centered on grades and standardized testing undermines genuine learning and can damage educational practices and student experiences.

How does the book frame the consequences of policy and high-stakes assessment?

It examines policy-driven failures and shows how testing assessment can distort teaching priorities, inflate metrics that do not reflect learning quality, and contribute to disengagement.

What alternatives to grades and traditional testing does the volume discuss?

The book presents de-grading and de-testing approaches, including skepticism toward grades, more expressive assessment practices, creativity-focused classroom approaches, and feedback-centered workshop models.

Aug 28, 2026

Uploaded by Alex Sinclair