What is “ungrading” and why is it having such an impact right now? Dr. Susan D. Blum, professor of anthropology at the University of Notre Dame, is one of the nation’s leading experts and practitioners of the combination of evaluative practices loosely known as “ungrading.” In this interactive workshop, Dr. Blum will discuss the reasons why it is important to think about our grading practices—where they come from, how they do or do not promote or inhibit learning, and what better ways and models are available. Editor of the recent and influential Ungrading: Why Rating Students Undermines Learning (and What to Do Instead), Dr. Blum will be giving a virtual, interactive talk open to all of CUNY. In Ungrading, fifteen educators—from an array of fields that span the humanities, social sciences, and STEM, some from higher ed, some pioneers in K-12—write about their strategies for different ways to go gradeless and why. Having given talks across higher ed institutions around the country, Dr. Blum is both a champion of ungrading in her own classroom and also has had conversations with hundreds of educators about its challenges and rewards. To join us for this interactive talk, RSVP here (opens in a new window).  

Susan D. Blum is a professor of anthropology at the University of Notre Dame, currently fixated on education and pedagogical praxis, after a previous incarnation as a China anthropologist. She is the author of “I Love Learning; I Hate School”: An Anthropology of College (Cornell, 2016) and My Word! Plagiarism and College Culture (Cornell, 2009), and the editor of the recent volume Ungrading: Why Rating Students Undermines Learning (and What to Do Instead) (West Virginia University Press, 2020). 

We will have ASL interpreters for the event. Closed captions will be provided by TypeWell. To access the streaming text outside of Zoom, enter the following URL into any browser: https://east.typewell.com/ofhbmlpe