WHY YOU SHOULD NEVER GRADE FOR CLASSROOM PARTICIPATION
Students participate as a result of their leadership personality traits. Think about your class–students who have a strong leadership personality enjoy raising their hand (even if they consistently have the incorrect answer). Those who have a weak leadership personality trait are extremely reluctant to raise their hand–even if they know the correct answer. This does not mean that these students are less on-task than those who continually raise their hand. Therefore, if you give points for classroom participation, are are really rewarding those with a strong leadership personality style and punishing those with a weak one.