99 - Challenging Grading as a System: Labor-Based Grading in Rhetoric and Composition, An Interview with Asao Inoue

In this episode, Sharona and Bosley sit down with Dr. Asao Inoue, the opening keynote speaker of the 2025 Grading Conference, to discuss his use of Labor-Based Grading in the teaching of writing. Exploring everything from negotiating a grading contract with students to intentionally discussing creating a culture of compassion in the classroom, this fascinating conversation is a great opportunity to think about our classrooms in new ways.

Links

Books from the WAC Clearinghouse are free to access in PDF and ePUB formats.

• Labor-Based Grading Contracts: Building Equity and Inclusion in the Compassionate Writing Classroom, 2nd Edition (from the WAC Clearinghouse)
• Cripping Labor-Based Grading for More Equity in Literacy Courses (from the WAC Clearinghouse)
• Above The Well: An Antiracist Argument From a Boy of Color (from the WAC Clearinghouse)
• Antiracist Writing Assessment Ecologies: Teaching and Assessing Writing for a Socially Just Future (from the WAC Clearinghouse)
• On Compassion and Brave Space, Asao Inoue
• The Greater Good Website
• The Science of Compassion

Resources

The Center for Grading Reform - seeking to advance education in the United States by supporting effective grading reform at all levels through conferences, educational workshops, professional development, research and scholarship, influencing public policy, and community building.

The Grading Conference - an annual, online conference exploring Alternative Grading in Higher Education & K-12.

Some great resources to educate yourself about Alternative Grading:

• The Grading for Growth Blog
• The Grading Conference
• The Intentional Academia Blog

Recommended Books on Alternative Grading:

• Grading for Growth, by Robert Talbert and David Clark
• Specifications Grading, by Linda Nilsen
• Undoing the Grade, by Jesse Stommel

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All content of this podcast and website are solely the opinions of the hosts and guests and do not necessarily represent the views of California State University Los Angeles or the Los Angeles Unified School District.

Music

Country Rock performed by Lite Saturation, licensed under a Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.