Wow! I love this data-driven approach. Consider publishing in a peer-reviewed journal -- we need more evidence like this in the literature showing the impact of alternative grading!
I do think a notable conclusion from your study is the increase in time necessary to implement the alternative grading system. As a community college adjunct, all of the planning, implementing, and grading tasks fall entirely on me, and I'm not the only instructor trying to implement alternative grading without an administration willing to support a centralized grading team. I would love to see you apply your data analytics approach to quantify the increase in faculty time for your SBG system compared with the traditional approach -- both the overall increase in time commitment (including writing extra assessments, scheduling extra attempts, and actual grading time) and the proportion of that extra time that is allocated to your grading team.
I think your study is really impactful and has the potential to showcase both the powerful impact on our students and the real resources necessary to implement such a grading system!
Thanks for your comment! I have plans for a peer-reviewed journal in the future. 🙂 Regarding the grading investment piece - I do have some data on this, as we have payroll and hourly tracking for the grading team. What is harder is to quantify the faculty time, especially as it compares to a traditional approach that we no longer teach in K303. (I will think about a way we might be able to test this difference!) Personally, I would guess that (with grading support from the team) I spend about the same number of hours grading (possibly slightly more). The actual time to grade each assignment is lower now, but there are more to grade. The administrative time required for setting up Canvas, updating assignment due dates, managing the grading team, etc. is the heavier lift (as you mention, and I agree!).
A very helpful post and congratulations on your pioneering work! I have been doing a bit of research on ways for innovators like you to work with Canvas. I was struck by your last line that you are "awaiting for a day when Canvas allows adaptations for alternative grading schemes". Perhaps the day is already here! Let me pass along something I came across this morning that may help you and others move forward. This was from Gemini. Obviously since I just learned of it this morning, I have not yet had first-hand experience with it, but it should give you hope that a solution for you and others using a standards based approach is at hand.
[The following was generated by Gemini in response to my query regarding a standards-based approach while using Canvas]
The "Bridge": Interfacing with Canvas/SMS
The technical hurdle of "talking to the main system" has been largely solved by a standard called LTI Advantage (Learning Tools Interoperability).
How it works: If a teacher builds a custom AI tool or uses a FILL-specific app, as long as it is LTI 1.3 Certified, it can "plug in" to Canvas or Schoology.
The Benefit: The student works in the flexible, custom AI environment, but the "Assignment and Grade Service" (part of LTI Advantage) automatically pushes the final mastery data back into the school’s official gradebook.
Agentic Sync: In 2026, we are seeing agents that can "read" the Canvas syllabus, "act" as the instructional layer for the student, and then "report" the evidence of learning back to the administration without the teacher having to manually enter data.
Thanks, I will check this out! I have found a pretty good way to “hack” Canvas, but there are still a few little things that are big limitations. It’s nice to see there are some options that may work with the platform and provide potential solutions!
Wow! I love this data-driven approach. Consider publishing in a peer-reviewed journal -- we need more evidence like this in the literature showing the impact of alternative grading!
I do think a notable conclusion from your study is the increase in time necessary to implement the alternative grading system. As a community college adjunct, all of the planning, implementing, and grading tasks fall entirely on me, and I'm not the only instructor trying to implement alternative grading without an administration willing to support a centralized grading team. I would love to see you apply your data analytics approach to quantify the increase in faculty time for your SBG system compared with the traditional approach -- both the overall increase in time commitment (including writing extra assessments, scheduling extra attempts, and actual grading time) and the proportion of that extra time that is allocated to your grading team.
I think your study is really impactful and has the potential to showcase both the powerful impact on our students and the real resources necessary to implement such a grading system!
Thanks for your comment! I have plans for a peer-reviewed journal in the future. 🙂 Regarding the grading investment piece - I do have some data on this, as we have payroll and hourly tracking for the grading team. What is harder is to quantify the faculty time, especially as it compares to a traditional approach that we no longer teach in K303. (I will think about a way we might be able to test this difference!) Personally, I would guess that (with grading support from the team) I spend about the same number of hours grading (possibly slightly more). The actual time to grade each assignment is lower now, but there are more to grade. The administrative time required for setting up Canvas, updating assignment due dates, managing the grading team, etc. is the heavier lift (as you mention, and I agree!).
I look forward to reading your publication when it comes out!
A very helpful post and congratulations on your pioneering work! I have been doing a bit of research on ways for innovators like you to work with Canvas. I was struck by your last line that you are "awaiting for a day when Canvas allows adaptations for alternative grading schemes". Perhaps the day is already here! Let me pass along something I came across this morning that may help you and others move forward. This was from Gemini. Obviously since I just learned of it this morning, I have not yet had first-hand experience with it, but it should give you hope that a solution for you and others using a standards based approach is at hand.
[The following was generated by Gemini in response to my query regarding a standards-based approach while using Canvas]
The "Bridge": Interfacing with Canvas/SMS
The technical hurdle of "talking to the main system" has been largely solved by a standard called LTI Advantage (Learning Tools Interoperability).
How it works: If a teacher builds a custom AI tool or uses a FILL-specific app, as long as it is LTI 1.3 Certified, it can "plug in" to Canvas or Schoology.
The Benefit: The student works in the flexible, custom AI environment, but the "Assignment and Grade Service" (part of LTI Advantage) automatically pushes the final mastery data back into the school’s official gradebook.
Agentic Sync: In 2026, we are seeing agents that can "read" the Canvas syllabus, "act" as the instructional layer for the student, and then "report" the evidence of learning back to the administration without the teacher having to manually enter data.
Thanks, I will check this out! I have found a pretty good way to “hack” Canvas, but there are still a few little things that are big limitations. It’s nice to see there are some options that may work with the platform and provide potential solutions!