ABSTRACT
Combining historical and comparative perspectives, this chapter sheds light on the history of formal grading and the associated examination and testing instruments in Norwegian and Swedish basic education. As grading was no longer necessary due to the expansion of comprehensive school systems over the course of the 20th century, Norway, Sweden, and Denmark cleared away grades in Years 1-7, well before grades and testing were put to use in accountability policies to a greater or lesser extent throughout the world from the 1990s onward. The policy trajectories of Norway and Sweden demonstrate how the prohibition of formal grading in primary education is a characteristic feature of Nordic education. At the same time these examples illustrates how this common characteristic-perhaps together with the notion of the Nordic education model itself-is about to dissolve. The return of early formal grading in Sweden can, to some extent, probably be explained by the country’s stronger accountability and associated school inspection policies. This is illustrative of how the main role of formal grading in the Nordic region and beyond has shifted from the purposes of disciplining, informing, and motivating individual students to controlling the school and the teachers.
