College of Education News

Archives for June 2021

College of education alumni share their story

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Kerry and Noma Montgomery are both alumni of the Missouri State University College of Education. Their story was recently shared in the spring 2021 issue of “Advancements” magazine, which is a publication of the Missouri State University Foundation. We are happy to share their full story here: 

Noma and Kerry Montgomery can’t remember a time when Missouri State basketball wasn’t in their lives.   

Noma’s dad, Donald Pollard, was born in 1914. He was the first person in his family to go to college when he attended MSU, which was then Southwest Missouri State Teachers College. “He had been an outstanding high school basketball player in Humansville, and played intramural basketball at MSU,” Noma said.  

When her dad graduated, she remained a Bears fan. “I am 78, and I started going to games as a little girl. I don’t remember ever not going.”  

Kerry has been a “rabid fan since the 1950s.” His dad, Lewis Montgomery, was also first in the family to attend college, and also went to then-SMS. His mother, Hazel, attended for two years before becoming a teacher.  

Kerry went to his first Bears game in 1952, when he was 16. “I attended a small high school nearby, so it was a big deal to go to the college campus. I got to see one of the Bears teams that won the NAIA championship.” Both Noma and Kerry later attended the university, sealing their love for Bears athletics forever.  

“My college days were just glorious”   

Kerry was on campus from 1954-58. He graduated with a bachelor’s degree in history and physical education. “I was a member of the Kappa Alpha fraternity and really enjoyed that,” he said. “I am still very close with five or six of my brothers.”  

Noma was at the university from 1960-64. She earned a bachelor’s degree in education with a minor in English. Noma was a cheerleader for basketball and football, putting her close to the sports action. “I still remember which area was my ‘cheer corner’ in McDonald Arena, and who sat there.  

“My college days were just glorious. They really were.” She made lifelong friends while at MSU. “What I probably cherish the most are the wonderful memories and lasting friendships I developed through my Tri Sigma sorority and other campus activities. I stay in contact with at least 15 or 20 of my sorority sisters. Some of them who are local, I see weekly.”  

The couple didn’t attend the university at the same time, but they met on campus — and again, there’s a basketball tie.” Her boyfriend at the time was one of my best friends,” Kerry said. “We were sitting in McDonald Arena watching people come in during a basketball game. I saw Noma and said, ‘There’s a cute girl.’” Kerry’s friend replied: ‘That’s my girlfriend!’”  

They officially met through that friend. When Kerry dated a friend of Noma’s, they even went on double dates — though not as each other’s dates! When those other relationships didn’t work out, they connected with each other. They married in 1966.   

Building careers and a family   

Both Noma and Kerry had careers after college. Noma taught school in Independence, Missouri, for two years. After marrying Kerry, she moved back to Springfield. She was an employment counselor, and retired from that to raise their two sons, Scott and Grant (who have given them seven grandchildren). 

“When the children were grown, I worked in Branson for about 25 years as a tour guide.” She would meet groups at the airport, host tours on buses and take people to shows and attractions. “It was one of the most enjoyable jobs a person could ever have — like being on vacation all the time!” She retired about two years ago.  

Kerry continued his education after MSU. He earned a master’s degree in secondary school administration from the University of Missouri, and then a juris doctor degree from MU’s law school. He worked for a law firm, then the prosecutor’s office, and next went into private practice. In 1991, then-Gov. John Ashcroft appointed Kerry to the Missouri Court of Appeals, Southern District. Kerry worked there until retiring in 2003, and served one three-year term as chief judge in those 12 years.  

He said his start at MSU set him up for success. “My professors and the academics in general were excellent. Dr. Duane Meyer (who later became the university president) was my history teacher. I sat in the first class he ever taught at SMS. What a wonderful professor. We later became friends, and I always had such respect for him.”   

Supporting their teams for 40+ years   

The couple kept many MSU connections through the years. In fact, Kerry served as Alumni Association president in the 1970s. 

When the Missouri State University Foundation was started, Kerry and Noma were a natural fit to become some of its first supporters. Kerry, who is a huge proponent of exercise and fitness — “I still play golf almost every day, weather permitting” — especially wanted to give to Bears athletics. “I bought my first season pass to basketball games in 1965,” Kerry said. “Every year since then, I have had season tickets.  

I think if you help one program, you are helping all of them — there’s more funds to spread around.”  

They plan to continue giving as long as they can, he said. “We want to help any efforts to guide our school and make it the best it can be.” 

Learn more about the MSU Foundation.

Ungrading: shifting the classroom focus back to learning

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“If my curriculum and pedagogy aren’t sufficiently engaging, is that an argument to rely on grades to coerce students into doing what I want?” 

This is a quote from Alfie Kohn’s foreword to “UNgrading: Why Rating Students Undermines Learning (and What to Do Instead).”  

The book inspired Dr. Chloe Bolyard, assistant professor in Missouri State University’s department of childhood education and family studies (CEFS).  

Now Bolyard is looking for ways to take the emphasis off grades in her classroom.  

She first heard about the topic of ungrading through interactions on Twitter between various education professionals.  

Ungrading is a classroom philosophy that emphasizes feedback rather than scores or letter grades.  

“We all define it differently, but I think the goal is the same,” Bolyard said. “It’s a focus on learning.” 

What ungrading looks like  

When Bolyard adopted this new philosophy, she had to decide what specific things she would need to change in her classroom to align with ungrading. 

“You can’t just get rid of letter grades and say that you’re ungrading,” Bolyard said. “It carries over into all of the decisions you make as a teacher.”  

This spring was Bolyard’s first semester implementing ungrading.  

Some noticeable changes in her methodology:  

  • Shifting from scores and rubrics to narrative feedback. 
  • Creating flexible deadlines or “best by” dates.  
  • Having students self-assess and reflect on their learning throughout the semester. 
  • Asking students to suggest their grade at the mid-point and end of the semester. 

“My whole goal with ungrading, aside from focusing on learning, is to make my work with students more humanizing,” Bolyard said. 

Rewards of ungrading  

A big part of ungrading for Bolyard has been considering what she can do to acknowledge her students’ humanity.  

“My students are humans. They’re not just students in my class. They have other classes, and they have life beyond Blackboard,” Bolyard said.  

“Humanizing is recognizing that these students are doing a whole lot. The semester is full of unknowns in terms of their health, their family members’ health, their schedule, their mental wellbeing.” 

Already, Bolyard has received feedback from her students about how functional ungrading has been for them.  

“Students have commented about appreciating the flexibility,” Bolyard said. “They don’t need to apologize to me for turning in things that they perceive as late.”   

“One student has been really vocal about how it has helped her to learn so much, and to push herself to take more creative risks,” Bolyard said.   

Challenges of ungrading  

Ungrading is not an easier version of traditional classroom grading. There are many challenges to face when adopting a philosophy that goes against the status quo.  

“Part of the ungrading conversation is figuring out how the teacher navigates institutional requirements to still submit a final grade,” Bolyard said. “Some folks who’ve adopted ungrading may still use grades but use fewer grades. Or assignments might be worth fewer points.”  

Another challenge is how to set clear expectations while giving students more creative freedom.  

“Students don’t like ambiguity when it comes to a teacher’s expectations,” Bolyard said.  

Self-assessment is one of the most important aspects of ungrading. In Bolyard’s classes this semester, students are using self-assessments and determining their own grade.  

“I had a student tell me that she doesn’t know how to grade herself or evaluate herself. That’s another reason why we need to do this,” Bolyard said. “If students can’t evaluate how they’re doing for themselves, I think that’s problematic.”   

Another challenge is the different workload that ungrading requires.  

“It’s way more work intensive for me. It takes longer to leave narrative feedback than to check boxes on a rubric,” Bolyard said.  

Getting started with ungrading 

Ungrading, as a classroom philosophy, is still an emerging conversation. Bolyard just wrapped up her first semester using it in her classroom, and she admits there is still a lot for her to discover. 

“I’m going to spend a lot of time this summer reflecting on what I think went well and looking at student feedback from the end of the semester,” Bolyard said.  

 She also acknowledges that she has a lot of freedom in her position to be able to try different approaches to student evaluation.  

“I have a lot of privilege in my position in higher ed to say yes to ungrading,” Bolyard said. “I recognize for other people, depending on a number of factors, that it might be something they need to more carefully consider.” 

The challenges for getting started with ungrading may look different depending on each person’s situation, so she offers some advice for educators who are interested in using ungrading in their classroom.  

“Read as much as you can, talk to other people who are doing it, and find a community who can support you,” Bolyard said. “Don’t feel like you have to completely toss grades out from every assignment. Maybe you just choose a couple of assignments, and you see what happens when you don’t use grades on those assignments.”   

Join the conversation. Read about #Ungrading on Twitter.