<p>Emily Pitts Donahoe shares what we can learn about grades from an “emerging failure&#8221; on episode 588 of the Teaching in Higher Ed podcast.
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<h2>Quotes from the episode</h2>
<p><img fetchpriority="high" decoding="async" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-20330" src="https://images.coachingforleaders.com/cb:ztCJ~31fd5/w:auto/h:auto/q:mauto/f:best/ig:avif/https://teachinginhighered.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/TIHE588-4.png" alt="One of the most important functions of grades or marks given on individual assignments is to communicate to students about how they're progressing in a certain subject. Traditional grades don't serve this communicative function very well." width="930" height="620" srcset="https://images.coachingforleaders.com/cb:ztCJ~31fd5/w:930/h:620/q:mauto/f:best/ig:avif/https://teachinginhighered.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/TIHE588-4.png 930w, https://images.coachingforleaders.com/cb:ztCJ~31fd5/w:300/h:200/q:mauto/f:best/ig:avif/https://teachinginhighered.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/TIHE588-4.png 300w, https://images.coachingforleaders.com/cb:ztCJ~31fd5/w:768/h:512/q:mauto/f:best/ig:avif/https://teachinginhighered.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/TIHE588-4.png 768w, https://images.coachingforleaders.com/cb:ztCJ~31fd5/w:600/h:400/q:mauto/f:best/ig:avif/https://teachinginhighered.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/TIHE588-4.png 600w, https://images.coachingforleaders.com/cb:ztCJ~31fd5/w:360/h:240/q:mauto/f:best/ig:avif/https://teachinginhighered.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/TIHE588-4.png 360w, https://images.coachingforleaders.com/cb:ztCJ~31fd5/w:930/h:620/q:mauto/f:best/ig:avif/dpr:2/https://teachinginhighered.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/TIHE588-4.png 2x" sizes="(max-width: 930px) 100vw, 930px" /></p>
<p>They introduced a framework that attempts to identify the common features of alternative grading for growth systems that are meant to prioritize student growth and student learning over just grades and performance.
-Emily Donahoe</p>
<p>Those four pillars are marks that indicate progress, reattempts without penalty, clearly defined standards, and helpful feedback.
-Emily Donahoe</p>
<p>One of the most important functions of grades or marks given on individual assignments is to communicate to students about how they&#8217;re progressing in a certain subject. Traditional grades don&#8217;t serve this communicative function very well.
-Emily Donahoe</p>
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<h2>Resources</h2>
<ul>
<li><a href="https://emilypittsdonahoe.substack.com/">Unmaking the Grade, Emily Pitts Donahoe’s blog and reflective journal chronicling one educator&#8217;s experiences with ungrading and other progressive teaching practices</a></li>
<li><a href="https://bookshop.org/a/79174/9781642673814">Grading for Growth: A Guide to Alternative Grading Practices That Promote Authentic Learning and Student Engagement in Higher Education, by Robert Talbert & David Clark</a></li>
<li><a href="https://gradingforgrowth.com/">Grading for Growth</a></li>
<li><a href="https://bookshop.org/a/79174/9781946684646">How Humans Learn: The Science and Stories Behind Effective College Teaching, By Joshua R. Eyler</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.press.jhu.edu/books/title/53857/failing-our-future">Failing Our Future: How Grades Harm Students and What We Can Do About It, by Joshua R. Eyler</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt32374361/">Harry Potter Wizards of Baking</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.sarahrosecav.com">Sarah Rose Cavanagh</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.robatawasa.com">Japanese restaurant at Irvine Spectrum all four of the Stachowiak family members like: Robata Wasa</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1262426/">Wicked</a></li>
<li><a href="https://bookshop.org/a/79174/9780439136358">Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban</a></li>
<li><a href="https://bookshop.org/a/79174/9781541619593">More Everything Forever: AI Overlords, Space Empires, and Silicon Valley&#8217;s Crusade to Control the Fate of Humanity, by Adam Becker</a></li>
<li><a href="https://bookshop.org/a/79174/9781571313560">Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge and the Teachings of Plants, by Robin Wall Kimmerer</a></li>
</ul>
<p></div></p>


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