144 - Second-Order Change: Why Grading Reform Requires Leadership, Not Just Teachers

About this episode

The episode discusses the necessity of leadership support for effective grading reform in education.

In this episode, Sharona and Boz welcome back Matt Townsley to dig into a critical—and often overlooked—truth about grading reform: if leaders don’t understand and support it, it simply won’t scale. Drawing on both research and real-world experience, Matt explains why grading reform is a “second-order change” that requires deep philosophical commitment from administrators, not just technical adjustments from teachers. The conversation explores the upcoming Iowa based leadership-focused standards-based grading conference, the role of systems-level support, and emerging frameworks like multi-tiered support for teacher implementation. Along the way, the trio connects these ideas to broader challenges in both K–12 and higher education, from structural barriers to the growing urgency of reform in the age of AI. The takeaway is clear: isolated classroom innovation isn’t enough—lasting change requires aligned leadership, intentional systems, and a shared purpose for what grades are meant to communicate. Links Please note - any books linked here are likely Amazon Associates links. Clicking on them and purchasing through them helps support the show. Thanks for your support…

People in this episode

Hosts: Sharona Krinsky, Robert Bosley

Guest: Matt Townsley

Topics covered

• grading reform
• leadership in education
• standards-based grading
• K-12 education
• higher education
• AI in education

Keywords

• grading reform
• leadership
• education
• standards-based grading
• K-12
• higher education
• AI

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Iowa based leadership-focused standards-based grading conference, All Things Standards-Based Grading

Books & works: Grading Reform Isn't Options Anymore - Here's Why, Top 5 standards-based grading articles for 2025

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