2025 #58 Undoing the Grade (Stommel)

Undoing the Grade: Why We Grade, and How to Stop by Jesse Stommel
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Jesse Stommel is (and has been) one of the most important voices in "ungrading" as a practice. His insights shared on social media, various blogs, and in previous publications have done much to foster the important dialogue(s) that have multiplied over the last decade or so. There's a lot in this tiny volume that is great for excerpting, but the manifesto-like tone and compilation of previous writings (which is more of what it is rather than a book) frustrated me occasionally, especially as someone who is not new to these topics.

Stommel makes a convincing case for "why" we shouldn't grade, for the most part, but the "how to stop" part could be a bit more robust in terms of nuance and detail. That said, there are some really important take-aways, even for those who might not want to adopt a complete "ungrading" approach. Stommel writes, "My goal in eschewing grades has been to more honestly engage student work rather than simply evaluate it" (2). This is a key factor and should be an overarching pedagogical objective for anyone looking into alternative assessments (I use the term in acknowledgement of its problematic aspects). There are also some really wonderful pithy quotes: "Grades are the bureaucratic ouroboros of education" (11) sums up the raison d'etre for Stommel's work, in that it isn't just about grading/not grading/ungrading, etc..., but looking at the larger structural failings of education. "Ungrading" (broadly interpreted) is one way to fight back, and it can be done without necessarily jeopardizing one's gainful employment, especially if it is grounded in sound pedagogy and includes student dialogue and buy-in. That's not to say everyone will have the academic freedom to do so, but as more and more educators make "plus 1" changes (to borrow from Behling and Tobin's Reach Everyone, Teach Everyone: Universal Design for Learning in Higher Education), the tide may eventually turn.

 
Stommel's indictment of relegating "pedagogy" to the LMS is spot-on, although I'd push back a bit at his disdain for rubrics. I appreciate and agree with his criticism of "overly mechanistic" rubrics that are more focused on "efficiency in evaluation" (29), but I gently part company with him when he says: "...when rubrics are given in advance to students, they are likely to close down possibility by encouraging students to work toward a prescribed notion of excellence." (30). While I can see that, I would offer that the right rubric can be an excellent tool for transparency of expectations (especially if those expectations are cultivated through dialogue with the students, as Stommel advocates). With LMS incorporating AI more frequently to assist with things like making rubrics, I fear rubrics are being defined, especially for new faculty, as mechanistic tools for evaluation rather than realizing a fuller potential that they could have as a pedagogical implement for engagement and transparency.

 
In "How to Ungrade" Stommel says, "If you're a teacher and you hate grading, stop doing so much of it." (68). He helpfully differentiates the conversation from one about "efficiency" (a word I'd like to see removed from pedagogical spaces, at least until we regain some balance as far as AI is concerned). I think there's a lot of joy to be had from engaging with student work, and this might shift the conversation a bit: rather than aiming for "less grading" it might be about spending that energy cultivating relationships and I think Stommel makes a strong and impassioned case for doing just that . Overworked and underpaid teachers are (rightfully so) often leaning into "easier said than done" because they are exhausted. So, I'd encourage those who are new to the ideas of people like Paulo Freire and bell hooks to use Stommel's book as a starting point for inspiration, and try out some of the concrete examples for alternative assessment in Chapter 8.

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2025 #57 Failing Our Future (Eyler)

 

Failing Our Future: How Grades Harm Students, and What We Can Do about It by Joshua R. Eyler
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This is a great primer for those uninitiated to the idea of alternative grading, or those who need a baseline rationale. Beautifully researched and convincingly argued, Eyler demonstrates, on multiple levels, the actual harm of grading as a system, without resorting to heavy-handed rhetoric or sanctimonious finger-wagging. Eyler's audience should be parents, educators, and administrators, and there is wisdom here for both K-12 and higher ed. For the purposes of this particular book, his grouping of several alternative grading models under "Standards Based Grading" (SBG) makes sense, but it means that this is not the book if you are looking for nuanced explanations of the differences between, for example, SBG and Specifications (or "Specs") Grading. For that I recommend Grading for Growth by David Clark and Robert Talbert -- a book Eyler cites. Some of the stats and case studies make for tough reading, so consider this a content warning as he does briefly mention suicides at particular institutions (hopefully that doesn't shock anyone working for more than a few years in higher ed). Eyler covers a lot of ground in terms of providing both background and practical advice, and the rich bibliography is a fruitful place for further exploration.

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2025 #56 Signs Preceding the End of the World (Herrera)

 

Signs Preceding the End of the World by Yuri Herrera
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

A timely read, the book offers a "hero's journey" of Makina, a Mexican woman sent by her mother to find her brother on the 'other side', while also carrying a "package" for a certain Mr. Aitch. While something is always lost in translation, I think Lisa Dillman worked hard (at least according to the Translator's Note) to pick up on the craft of Herrera's writing. The style reminded me of both Italo Calvino and José Saramago, the former of whom I love, and the latter I'm still trying...

Pay attention to the beginning as it is what helps situate this Campbellian monomyth. There's a lot of subtlety in the book, and certain moments almost seem like meta-narrative: "Using in one tongue the word for a thing in the other makes the attributes of both resound: if you say Give me fire when they say Give me a light, what is not to be learned about fire, light and the act of giving? It's not another way of saying things: these are new things." (67-68).

Yes, it is a book about migration, but also more metaphorical border crossings.

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2025 #55 Elsewhere (Russo)

 

Elsewhere: A Memoir by Richard Russo
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I picked this up randomly as someone had offloaded a bunch of Russo's works in a Little Free Library, and I read and enjoyed Empire Falls. While I'm not usually into memoirs, this is really a beautifully written remembrance of his mother. What makes it beautiful is its honesty. Russo steps back enough in the narrative that it almost reads like fiction--we watch love mixed with guilt and manipulation, with a complexity that I think most people will recognize. Russo also addresses ideas of "home" and how easily they can shift and change, but also how love-hate relationships form with places. It is also an unflinching look at the realities of mental illness in a relatable way, revealing how easy it is to enable and excuse with the best of intentions.

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2025 #54 Hamnet (O'Farrell)

 

Hamnet by Maggie O'Farrell
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This is a book about grief and love. "A Novel of the Plague" doesn't really cover it. That the plague is involved becomes less important than the relationships. It isn't an easy book to read if you have a soul. A historical imagining, O'Farrell illuminates the shadows of the historical icon known as Shakespeare, giving life to stories untold and names unsung. Agnes (alternatively known historically as Anne Hathaway) becomes the protagonist of the novel, which might seem strange given the eponymous role of the couple's son, Hamnet. In the end, however, the title is perfect.

I've had this on my TBR list for awhile now, and was eager to read it before seeing the film. I'm having a difficult time imagining it as a film, to be honest, but I've heard good things. I'll need to sit with Agnes as O'Farrell wrote her for a bit before allowing imaginative interlopers. The book is gorgeous in its details, and the semi-omniscient narration allows for a nuanced and multi-faceted empathy.


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2025FLT #8B  Night Watch <---------- Hamnet  (END)

2025 #53 Night Watch (Phillips)

 

Night Watch by Jayne Anne Phillips
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

The writing is beautiful--Phillips writes her characters with such tenderness, but it is never overwrought. In fact, there's an interesting distance to the the narrative that keeps things feeling more historical than fictional. There were moments of dialogue that I felt dragged on a bit and the use of dialect made it challenging to engage, but that's more a failing of the reader (me) than the book. The story is incredible, tragic, and inspiring--to warrant all three of those adjectives is indeed a feat.


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FTL2025 7B: Demian<-----Night Watch -----> Hamnet

2025 #52 The Book of George (Greathead)

 

The Book of George: A Novel by Kate Greathead
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Who is George? Well, while we are treated to almost four decades of his existence, I'm not sure I felt any more confident in answering that question at the end than I did at the beginning. George is, it seems, fairly unremarkable, and I think (THINK) that's the point? This does lead to some humor, and the frustrating inconsistency of George's attitudes is also a plus. I think we are supposed to see him as flawed -- and he is-- but who isn't? He's self-centered and winds up in precarious situations of his own making (I couldn't help but think of another George...Costanza!), yet also seems to be able to interact socially and land a spot in a Super Bowl commercial. So, he's complex, in that ordinary human kind of way. His on-and-off again relationship with Jenny, who is also flawed, provided the most interest, but there were several spots where this threatened to be a do-not-finish for me. I'm glad I persisted, however, because I actually liked the (non-)ending because it was perfect for the book (something I appreciate even when I don't love the book that much). Ultimately I think it probably did not resonate as much with my Gen-Xness as it might with younger folk.


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2025 #51 The Great Believers (Makkai)

 

The Great Believers by Rebecca Makkai
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

It is stunning to me how visceral my memories of the 1980s are due to the AIDS epidemic. As a young person/pre-teen, I certainly didn't understand all the nuances, but I knew my gay stepuncle was losing friends. I remember well when Ryan White was barred from attending classes due to fear of exposure. My stepmom, who was a supplements editor for the L.A. Weekly, brought me home a print of Robbie Conal's "Artificial Art Official" poster of Jesse Helms.

I was not prepared for how all of these memories would come flooding back in reading this book. In the first few minutes of the audiobook, I listened to Michael Crouch and I thought, "Ugh. This is going to be a long haul." I'm so glad I stuck with it, because I was proven wrong. Michael Crouch's distance is absolutely perfect. It removes sensationalism and replaces it with sincerity--a certain pragmatic matter-of-factness that makes the horrors real, rather than extraordinary.

But it also Yale, who might end up being one of my favorite protagonists ever. What a splendid human in his frailty, his courage, his loyalty. He is written so well and so believably, that he is both inspirational and relatable--and it has little to do with his sexual orientation or even his gender. That's the mark of an amazing character, when identity is in the background of what connects to the reader. That's not to say that his identity as a gay man isn't important -- it is huge, and I'd say he's a very important gay character in that he moves in and out of circles that are often narratively exploited as stereotypes, but in a way that reminds us that we are all human beings trying to find our place in the world, seeking out others who will see us.

Nora Lerner is also another favorite character. She holds the torch -- not just for her lover, but for love itself. The entire book is more about love than anything else. And for something to be about love, it must also be about death, because that's the reality of it, isn't it. Makkai drives home the essential aspect of what makes us human. May we all have the someone we love enough to advocate for them long after they have died.

This book does not shy away from the gruesomeness that is AIDS-related death, but it is never for the shock value. It is related with tenderness and honors those that have suffered it. It isn't an easy book to read, nor should it be, but it is also a wonderful book to read. Any book that reaffirms life through a frank and bold look at death (and love, and joy, and suffering), deserves a place of honor.

This is quite possibly my favorite read this year.


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