Definition: The process of de-emphasizing or even eliminating grades as a measure of learning. Upgrading allows teachers and students to pay more attention to strategic feedback and they delay grades if they are required, as long as possible. Grades are then typically agreed upon by teacher and student in a collaborative conversation. The goal is to ensure that students are progressing from where they are and aren’t focusing too heavily on subjective points and averages determined solely by the educator or by some other force external to the student (like an online gradebook’s calculations).

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