I believe that grading in college and university courses should be abolished because the grades alone do not reflect how well the person knows the subject.
Grades are just another system of control to keep students distracted from what they really should be doing: Growing. The people that benefit most from colleges and universities are the people that realize grades are not as important as expanding your skill base and focusing on learning the most you can during your time as a student.
Example: - Although the courses for program x in universities cover approximately the same material, if they are not administered by the same professor, there is bound to be a difference in evaluation. It is unfair to say that because student one scored an A, and the other a B that the first student is more qualified.
Not only students, teachers often fall prey to grading system as well. Studies suggest that students believe the professors who give the most "A"s are the "best" professors to take courses from. Sadly, this warped idea encourages some professors to hand out good grades instead of what students actually need, which is constructive criticism if they are below par. This, in turn, teaches the student nothing.
When hiring prospective employees, a company is more likely to hire students that are driven, who participate in leadership opportunities at the university, students who put tremendous amounts of thought and effort into everything that they do. Those are the real students who are going places.
Most importantly, if the grading system is done away with, students who are serious about their educational careers will take what is really important from their courses: the lessons taught to them.
A new system of rewards based on effort, drive, passion, and talent should be implemented. By using a grading system that ranks a student's performance, it encourages students to "make the grade" as opposed to "make the most of your experience, and grow as much as you can". Students will be more motivated and energetic to learn and acquire skills and knowledge in a friendly, grade-pressure-free, learning environment than in a negative, pressure cooker grade-worry atmosphere. The needed learning and acquisition of knowledge should be in a hand on, semi one-to-one, practical in-class "workshop" atmosphere of practice.
However, instead of an "A" through "F" grading system, a pass or fail might be more effective. This would encourage students to look past the insignificant letter grades but still reward those who put in the required effort. For those that go above and beyond their semester coursework, they won't take home an "A+" but instead what they have learned. Instead of listing a high GPA on their resume, students could point out educational accomplishments.
Stop focusing on the grade, and focus on what is going to make you a better person and what is going to help you succeed in life. Do the best you can do in your classes, and be able to say you have no regrets that you should have worked harder in a class.
