I commend your dedication to public education. Thank you for your service.

The educator's answer that he gave you is very fashionable right now, and I wholeheartedly agree with part of it. There is no reason for grades. What good does it serve anyone to walk around with the notion in their head that they are an "A" (or an "F")? Such thinking stymies growth. Though it's probably not surprising we still adhere to this old system of grading, since a public education diploma has become commoditized these days. Everyone will do anything to get an A. And the easier, the better.

Yet we need learning accountability. Unless public schools are going to adopt the unschooling philosophy (and they're not any time soon), there will still be a curriculum, a teacher, and a room full of students. The question really is (and I think it's the most important question of all): Are they learning? How do we know?

More assignments could be given purely for the sake and enjoyment of learning. Research hasn't really proven that this is effective for most students, however. Many students just won't do the work without the accountability. It's sad to say that, but there are a million reasons why some won't work hard and others will bust their hump to do the best job possible.

Since the school system, both here and in most other countries, demands a certain level of performance from students, then we'll always need tests. But... high stakes tests where learning is not the most important thing are garbage. I hate them. I wish every kid would opt out of our state tests in New York. Even the Regents. Screw them all.

That said... studies have shown that testing is a wonderful learning tool! A self-quiz to see what you know is the best study habit before a big test. It can also smash fluency illusion... that belief you know something when you actually don't. If you can't articulate an idea or concept clearly, verbally or in writing, then you don't understand it. And a well-designed, curriculum-based assessment, can tease that out.

I do worry about ChatGPT, as I explained in the article, because it's such a useful, even addictive tool, for making your life all around easier. Learning isn't always easy or entertaining. Frankly, I don't think schools are ready for it. We haven't come close to instituting best teaching and learning practices yet. (Which I find to be a crying shame. After all, teaching and learning are what we do. You would think understanding the science behind it would be absolutely paramount, but it's not.) AI will just complicate things and we (teachers and students) are not ready for it, even if some teachers think they are.

Thanks for reading!