Are grades Needed?

I have recently seen clips of a Daniel Pink, author of A Whole New Mind, interview (http://youtu.be/dE6aUCauhUg)  in which he addresses the need for grades versus the actual measurement of success in a classroom. His example is that he took French for a six year period and received A's but he cannot communicate in french.

This author views that the traditional grading system in our schools has become outdated and poorly trains our youth to be successful adults. I agree with him. In my own experiences as a student, that took four years of Spanish, and as an educator I believe that there is a disconnect between learning and achieving high grades. Anyone can cram before a final exam and do well in a class but how much of that information did they learn, apply, etc. On the other hand I have learned a great deal from classes that i may have not scored well on the homework but could easily explain the concept to someone better than the highest grade in the class.

I believe that the purpose of a grade should be a reflection of a students advancement in class. Did they succeed or did they fail. The hard part to this method would be the application of higher education and the competition to be admitted (Not all students should get into MIT). I see this as only a temporary problem though, now that the online curriculum is being more readily adopted.

Another aspect that this brings up is the equity in education and the purpose of public schools as well. In short, not everyone gets into MIT but everyone is not going to be an engineer either. The purpose of public school and grading is to create well rounded, participating citizens in a democracy. So every school should offer the chance to achieve higher education but it should also appropriate trade and or ROP programs as well.

Back to the grading, I am not sure what should be done but I know it needs to change.