I think grades are too dependent on class participation. I've had teachers who actually write down who is participating in class discussions. Just because a student does not like raising their hand in class does not mean that they are not a good student. Some kids are afraid to express their opinions because they believe they will be made fun of by their peers. They don't want to sound stupid or uncool.
Or,
Students can be like me. I am a naturally quiet person. I don't like participating in class discussions. I enjoy observing my classmates and keeping my opinions in my head.
However this does not make me a bad student. I get good grades for the most part, except in classes that require participation.
Its not like I'm sleeping in class or writing notes to my friends. I pay attention, listen well, and take notes on class discussions. I get good test grades and I always do my homework. I answer questions when I am called on and I present in front of the class when I need to. I could be getting an A in a class I'm getting a B in if it wasn't for participation.
Now you tell me, am I wrong here? Should grades really be so dependent on participation?
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Are you in high school or college?
I'm a naturally quiet person, and I find that being required to participate in a class discussion really helps me get to know my classmates and my professors. Also, being involved in class discussions can help your professor/instructor to get to know you, which can seriously help when it comes time to have your instructors write letters of recommendation.
~C
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I'm a new teacher, and I completely support using participation as part of a grade. Sure, perhaps some of the quiet students don't like that so much. However, grades are also often made up of reading, writing, giving presentations, and so on. Are all students good at writing? Reading? Public speaking? Nope, nope, nope. That's doesn't mean we should do away with these various methods of assessment. Having a wide range of assessments helps give every student a way in which he or she can show understanding of the subject matter.
In addition to that point, I also think class participation is important because studies have shown that, as a general rule, student learning increases when students interact with the material and participate in discussions and projects. Class participation can be a benefit to all students, whether outgoing or quiet.
Let's just say that I'm extremely introverted and I like being silent and listening. I'm quiet and not usually outspoken, but I love class discussion. It helps me focus my ideas on a topic and lets me know how other people react to the material. When a person is in a class, they are learning as a group. Adding my two cents into the discussion can let someone suddenly see the light on a topic or vice versa.
As for grading a class discussion, I think (as some other poster above me mentioned) some people are just good at some parts and not good at others. Even though you are paying attention, the teacher can't know how well you understand the material unless you share your knowledge and add your opinion. Even if you do well on tests and projects and quizzes, the teacher doesn't know if you can apply the material to other situations.
For example, in my geometry class, we learned how to use inductive or deductive reasoning. My teacher gave us a prompt totally unrelated to math. We were detectives trying to deduce who committed a murder. As the class discussed the case, we used facts from the information given to us to solve the problem, and as a class we were divided. Half the class decided on suspect 1 and the other half on suspect 2. We could all support our decision. And we all participated in trying to find the actual murderer, we all slowly began to turn to suspect 1 as being guilty because the facts around him were just too convincing.
The point is that by discussing the situation we all learned to deductive reasoning and we all got to that point together. I don't think we were graded on participation, but by participating we all learned together.