Grading vs. Assessing

I love finding out how my students are learning.  I love talking with them, listening to them problem solve, and helping them shed misconceptions.  But, I hate grading.  You may think that this doesn't make sense. Grading doesn't feel like it really makes much of a difference. Maybe it is the way that I do it? Maybe it is because I feel like many students don't care about the comments or the feedback because the papers end up in the recycling bin before they are ever examined.

Standards-Based grading seems like a possible solution to this problem.  Can I develop a method of grading that truly assesses what my students know? Can this system help students retain their learning for a longer period of time? Can assessment motivate my students to learn rather than motivating them for a grade?

This is my quest!!

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