Grading systems in middle school should be abolished.

My first contention is that kids are more focused on getting good grades then actually learning. If a teacher gives criteria for a certain assignment, many kids will simply do exactly what is required to get what they consider "good grades". By doing this, they aren't really learning anything, since there is no incentive for doing anything else "extra", also known as learning more then what's required. Many teachers will accept extra credit, but this really does not allow kids to learn anything else because they're interested, it is simply another way to increase that all-important grade. "The book suggests that by giving grades beginning in early education, we teach children that learning for knowledge is not necessary, and all that is needed are the skills to pass tests and play the game the teacher is playing." ~Ted Montgomery, after reading "This Book is Not Required." My second contention is that grades cause bad self-esteem and unnecessary stress. When a kid sees a huge red F on a paper they put effort into, even if it was a last-minute effort, they feel disappointed and worried about how they're parents will react. This causes a lot of stress and a decline of self-esteem. Also, the kids that really, really care about doing well, and getting full credit on every assignment spend so much time and effort striving for this that they experience a LOT of unnecessary stress. By abolishing the standardized grading system, we are talking a lot of stress off of every kid, whether they are a procrastinator, or just spend way too much time doing schoolwork for that coveted grade. This middle school English teacher agrees "It makes them afraid to ask questions (because the system penalizes not-knowing), afraid to work things out by trial and error, and -- worst of all -- afraid to express unpopular opinions. None of this is what real learning is all about. Learning is messy. It involves taking risks and making mistakes. It requires you to admit your ignorance at times. But by the time most students reach college age, they have already decided that questions and experiments are dangerous, and the safest course is to memorize, repeat, and tuck everything into a neat plastic binder." My third contention is that kids need more specialized feedback. By handing them back a paper with a big red letter on the top, we are saying "Here, you fall into this category." Teachers simply use grades as a time-saver in middle school. Without them, teachers would still need to give kids feedback, but it would be more in a written-evaluation form, which is better for kids in the long run, because it gives them a more specific evaluation, especially during middle school, where kids are beginning to really learn and develop and discover their strengths. Yes, standardized tests are useful in college and high school, because they can determine whether you get into certain classes, but at least for middle school, it would be better for the kids if the grading system was abolished. By having a teacher take the time to really think about each individual student, and write, say, a paragraph about them every once in a while, detailing what they're doing well, and what they need to improve upon, it will make a much bigger impact. Now I'll refute my opponent's arguments: 1. My opponent's first argument was that grades provide preparation for the grading system in high school and college. "Having a standardized way of communicating how much a student learns or knows" is not as necessary in middle school as it is later on. Middle school should be a time for focusing on students' strengths and weaknesses, which come out much better through written evaluations. 2. My opponent's second argument is that grades equal motivation. However, it is not the grades themselves, but the idea of feedback that motivates students. This explains why some don't care about putting effort into their work, because they don't find letters motivational. The letters themselves provide no real feedback, just as a gauge for what category you fall into. Getting a personal paragraph that's very positive is much more of an incentive then a letter "A" written at the top of your paper. 3. My opponent's third argument is that grades can be used to give students feedback about their progress. While this is true, they are not the best form of feedback, especially for middle schoolers. A written evaluation will accomplish the exact same thing, in a more inspiring way. 4. My opponent's final argument was that grades provide teachers with guidance for instructional planning. However, you don't need an official grading system to accomplish this. All a teacher has to do to see how her class is doing is read over some of their work. Then they can see more in depth what the students are and aren't getting, instead of just glancing at overall grades, to completely maximize students' education. For all these reasons, the grading system should be abolished.