Dec 09, 2025

Hybrid Ungrading: A gateway into the ShiftShaping world of alternative grading frameworks

Diana Varma RGD, Toronto Metropolitan University

About this video

Description

Since 2018, Diana has embraced alternative grading to foster collaboration, curiosity and growth. In 2024, co-teaching a course that couldn’t be fully redesigned, she developed hybrid ungrading—a blend of traditional and competency-based assessment. This flexible yet rigorous approach gave students more autonomy and opportunities to improve through feedback and iteration. In this talk, Diana shares how hybrid ungrading was implemented, its benefits and challenges and how it aligns with Universal Design for Learning (UDL). Participants will explore how grading for growth can transform classrooms into inclusive, student-centered spaces that prioritize learning over competition.

Diana Varma RGD

Toronto Metropolitan University

Diana Varma RGD is an award-winning design educator by day and a podcaster by night; getting creative with creatives about all things creative. She is a woman in STEAM who operates a traditional offset printing press, a variety of digital press technologies, as well as engaging in exploratory print-making practices such as LEGO letterpress. She teaches within the School of Graphic Communications Management (GCM) and the Master of Digital Media (MDM) program at Toronto Metropolitan University, as well as through digital learning platform, Domestika.Diana has written 160+ published articles in Graphic Arts Magazine and through the Association of Registered Graphic Designers, as well as 270+ episodes through her podcast, Talk Paper Scissors, speaking with global experts about design, printing, typography, branding, books and publishing. Diana holds the position of VP of Education on the RGD Board of Directors for Canada’s largest professional association for graphic designers and she’s actively involved in organizational initiatives, chairing the RGD’s Education Committee, regularly speaking at conferences and conducting workshops.