Labor Based Grading Contract

In my courses, I use what is referred to as a 'labor based' grading approach. This means instead of comparing your work to everyone else's, or you creating writing that you think I will like, you are graded on the amount of labor you are willing to put into the course. The more effort you put into completing your work on time, the higher grade you will receive. If you do not put a lot of effort into your coursework, are consistently submitting work late, and/or not submitting work at all, your final grade will be impacted by that. Over the last several years of implementing this approach, students have been very happy with this approach and many say it takes the pressure off of them to perform so they can really enjoy the writing process!

Through this grading process, you will not receive any letter grades from me. When you submit assignments, as long as you meet the expectations of the assignment, you will receive a “Complete” (check mark) on Canvas. If you do not submit an assignment, or need to revise your work to meet the expectations of the project, you will receive an “incomplete” (an “X”). Your goal, by the end of the semester, is to have few to no incompletes! It is the student’s responsibility to ensure all links submitted are working. At the end of the semester, you will have the opportunity to advocate for the grade you feel you deserve for the course and support why you should receive that grade. I will take your input into consideration when assigning your final grade for the course.

To succeed in this class, you are expected to put labor (or effort) into your work. If your work needs revising, you are expected to put labor into your revisions. This approach also allows for flexibility between me and you. It is not uncommon for students to have situations arise that prevent them from completing an assignment on time or accurately. Some of these situations are beyond our control, and I want to make room for you to succeed, in spite of life conflicts. Please contact me anytime you have questions, issues, or concerns, and we can work through them together. I want every student in my courses to be successful and grow in their academic reading and writing!

To earn a “B” grade in the class, students must:

Attendance: Maintain regular class activity by working on modules every week and not falling too far behind in module completion
Participation: Sustain active, engaging, on task participation on Canvas discussion boards
Course Work: Submit variations of each assignment (outlines, rough drafts, final drafts) and make substantial revisions throughout the writing process
Timely: Have few late assignments
Complete: Ensure most/all assignments are marked complete by the end of the semester

To earn an “A” grade in the class, students must:

Not just meet but exceed the “B grade” expectations
Demonstrate a higher level of effort in their coursework, discussion boards, projects, and module completion
Highly recommended: Collaborate with an English center tutor at least twice during the semester (by meeting on Zoom or in-person).

To earn a “C” grade in the class, students must:

Attendance: Maintain regular class activity throughout the semester and complete all modules
Participation: Sustain active, engaging, on task participation on most Canvas discussion boards
Course work: Submit and earn a complete all three projects, meeting the required standard for each project with some revisions throughout the writing process
Timely: Have some late assignments
Complete: Ensure most assignments are marked complete by the end of the semester

Students will have ONE MONTH after receiving feebdack to revise and submit to earn a complete. Within that month, you can revise and resubmit as many times as needed. Students who do not earn a complete on an assignment one month after receiving feedback will not be able to revise the assignment any further.

Note that students who do not earn a complete all three required projects may not pass the class. If a project is marked incomplete, it is the student's responsibility to revise the project and meet 'complete' standards within a month of receiving feedback in order to earn a C or higher.

Students who do not complete most or all of their work, have low attendance, don’t participate in the revision process, and/or have several incomplete assignments by the end of the semester may receive a D or lower.

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