At 11 p.m. the night before an exam, a student spends hours cramming content. They know they’ll forget everything they’ve learned by tomorrow afternoon, but long-term retention isn’t the priority. They continue scribbling down notes, solely fixated on getting an A. 

With rising grade inflation, many students don’t spend time understanding a topic as long as they know enough to pass a test. To ensure that students build on previously learned information, teachers should provide evolving assignments, focusing on students’ ability to apply lessons in cross-curricular contexts. MCPS should implement a standards-based grading system, evaluating students’ progress on specific learning goals over time rather than computing individual grades from tests and assignments.

The standards-based system has seen success in the Lindsay Unified District in California. In 2006, they replaced the traditional letter or percentage-based grading of individual assignments with a four-point scale, rating students on how well they mastered specific concepts across different assessments. In return, the district’s graduation rate rose from 67% to 95%, and they saw an increased proficiency in English Language Arts. 

Instead of receiving an unchangeable grade for a task, students should receive assignments that identify gaps in their knowledge, with their final grade reflecting how their skills evolved throughout multiple activities. Testing the mastery of a specific learning objective over a multitude of instances ensures a complex comprehension of the material and displays effort in correcting mistakes. This way, teachers would evaluate students based on how much they improve, how effectively they apply feedback and how well they demonstrate understanding over time.

Whitman’s education often consists of learning all the content within a unit, completing assignments and taking a final test. These assessments mostly require students to apply information in ways they wouldn’t outside of school, simply having them memorize information. In turn, students tend to learn in a way that is tailored to test content and not how it might be useful in the future.

 AP U.S. Government and Politics teacher James Groff says students often limit their learning to what will be useful in class. 

 “From my perspective, that’s not education doing its job effectively,” Groff said. “What matters is not just a trajectory they’ve been on, but what’s the future trajectory of their own self-guided learning in that area.”

Two types of motivation drive behavior: intrinsic — when one performs an activity for their own sake — and extrinsic — when one does something for external rewards or to avoid punishment. Grades are an example of extrinsic motivation, while intrinsic motivation comes when students learn material for their own interest, understanding its importance for their future. The current grading system creates an imbalance between the two types of motivation. Students are mostly driven by extrinsic motivation, or grades, and lose intrinsic motivation when prioritizing short-term performance over long-term understanding. 

Freshman Charlotte Anderson says she often memorizes facts instead of conceptualizing class material. 

“I just want to do well in the class,” Anderson said. “I don’t think as much about what it is that we’re actually learning,” 

Structuring education around point-heavy unit tests results in harmful learning habits, such as last-minute cramming or using artificial intelligence (AI) to complete assignments. This is simply the result of a grading system that rewards immediate performance over learning. A one-time test score measures success, and students will do anything to get as high a score as possible, even if the material isn’t retained. By structuring education around growth across multiple assignments, the county could encourage students to understand the importance of retaining information long-term. 

Sophomore Eden Chang believes this problem is especially prevalent at Whitman. 

“The environment is very academically competitive, “ Chang said. “ It’s a lot of pressure when everyone around you is excelling.” 

Reza Shadmehr, a professor at the Johns Hopkins Department of Biomedical Engineering, found that excelling at a task is partly caused by the brain recognizing previous errors. While mistakes are essential to building knowledge, students often lack the opportunity to grow from their mistakes, as some tests can’t be retaken and certain skills are only assessed very few times with inefficient feedback. Students could lose motivation to continue learning because of the sizable impact one mistake can have. Additionally, they might procrastinate learning a certain topic because they know they won’t be assessed on it again.

One of the clearest manifestations of this issue is the rampant use of AI to complete assignments, often fueled by academic pressure. In an ACT Research study, 46% of students reported using AI for assignments. Because many students don’t prioritize information retention, they have AI complete their assignments, while receiving the same credit.

Despite the curriculum’s limitations, grades are a measurable statistic that remains the top factor in college admissions. While standards-based grading systems may not provide accurate comparisons between students, they exemplify students’ dedication to growth. 

As various external factors such as extracurricular activities and learning environments impact performance, education should be centered around evolution from mistakes. Altering the grading system to assess students’ progression could shift conventional schooling from benchmark percentages to genuine interest.