Statement of Purpose & Principles
of Effective Grading
"Grading requires careful planning, thoughtful judgment, a clear focus on purpose, excellent communication skills, and an overriding concern for the well-being of students..."
(Guskey, 2002, p. 780)
(Guskey, 2002, p. 780)
Before assigning grades to students, it is important to recognize and specifically identify the purpose of grading. Without a clear direction, grades may misrepresent student learning and achievement. According to Allen, "The sole purpose of grades is to accurately communicate to others the level of academic achievement that a student has obtained" (Allen, 2005, p. 218). To be effective, this academic achievement must be assessed according to clear learning targets and state-mandated expectations. "Grades are meant to report student progress toward learning goals -- giving students, their families, and teachers useful information on where to make adjustments to achieve these goals" (Varlas, 2013, p. 1). Not only must the academic achievement be aligned with specific standards, but these must be clearly communicated with students so that they are completely aware of the learning that is to take place and how they will be graded. With this, it is important to take into account not only students' academic achievement, but also their progress and non-academic achievement; process (Guskey, Swan, & Jung, 2011).
In his book, Transforming Classroom Grading, Marzano explains that educators use grades for five purposes:
Other purposes that grades serve include:
While these purposes of grading are very current examples of practices that are observed in the classroom today, it may not be the best way to represent data accurately. One must determine the purpose of grading before giving students grades. Teachers must examine if grades are the best method to use to convey this data, and if their purpose aligns with the grading practices being used. It would be extremely difficult, if not impossible, to label one grade as serving all of the above purposes.
In his book, Transforming Classroom Grading, Marzano explains that educators use grades for five purposes:
- for administrative purposes
- to give students feedback about their progress and achievement
- to provide guidance to students about future course work
- to provide guidance to teachers for instructional planning and,
- to motivate students.
Other purposes that grades serve include:
- Communicate information to parents about students' achievement and performance in school.
- Provide information to students for self-evaluation.
- Select, identify, or group students for certain educational programs (Honor classes, etc.).
- Provide incentives for students to learn.
- Document students' performance to evaluate the effectiveness of school programs.
- Provide evidence of students' lack of effort or inappropriate responsibility. (Guskey, 2001)
While these purposes of grading are very current examples of practices that are observed in the classroom today, it may not be the best way to represent data accurately. One must determine the purpose of grading before giving students grades. Teachers must examine if grades are the best method to use to convey this data, and if their purpose aligns with the grading practices being used. It would be extremely difficult, if not impossible, to label one grade as serving all of the above purposes.
My purpose for grading...
My purpose for grading is clear communication with students of product, process, and progress so that maximum learning and achievement may be accomplished.
What are effective grading practices?
Effective grading is more than ranking students and assigning a letter or percentage grade. Educational researchers such as Townsley, have discovered elements that are needed to make grading meaningful again. These include providing clear learning targets, eliminating punitive grading practices, grading less, and assessing better (Varlas, 2013). Other researchers have also identified important principles of effective grading. Accuracy and fairness are among the two highest priorities for educational theorist Thomas Guskey (Guskey & Jung, 2010). Additionally, validity and reliability are the guiding principles for James D. Allen (Allen, 2005). From these reputable theorists, I have come to find five main principles of effective grading.
Consistency
Thomas Guskey emphasizes the importance of establishing clear and consistent grading practices. There are several approaches from which teachers could take. The first is to take the most recent evidence and give that highest priority and/or greater weight. Secondly, teachers could give priority or greater weight to the most comprehensive forms of evidence. The third approach would be to rank the evidence that has been gathered according to the learning goals or standards (Guskey, 2002). Whatever the approach that is taken by the teacher, he/she must remain consistent and apply that approach throughout all of the grading practices. "Fairness in grading dictates that teachers inform students about their grading policies and practices in advance and then faithfully and consistently apply those policies" (Guskey, 2002, p. 779).
Providing Clear Learning Targets & Standards
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"Standards-based grading involves measuring students' proficiency on well-defined course objectives, or learning targets tied to the standards" (Varlas, 2013, p. 1). According to Stiggins, assessments should be framed around three questions that students should be able to answer: (1) Where are we going?, (2) Where am I?, and (3) What do I need to do to close the gap? Based on these guiding elements of assessment and the implementation of clear, identifiable learning targets, grading should easily be focused on the academic criteria rather than the nonacademic achievements of students. "When grades reflect everything -- participation, homework, attendance, extra credit, neatness -- they mean nothing" (Varlas, 2013, p. 6). This being said, grades may be separated into categories in which different elements of student achievement may be measured -- product (academic achievement), progress (academic improvement), and process (non-academic conditions). With a standards-based approach to grading, teachers must base grades on "explicit criteria derived from the articulated learning standards" (Guskey, Swan, & Jung, 2011, p. 53).
Feedback Trumps the Grade
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"One of the more obvious purposes for grades is to provide feedback about student achievement" (Marzano, 2000, p. 15). Grading has the powerful tendency to motivate students to do well. This drive is encouraged when proper, precise, and accurate feedback is awarded to students. This feedback should reflect what the student is doing right, and what the student can improve on. According to DuFour, when monitoring homework and other class assignments, teachers have the important responsibility of providing "individual students with precise feedback based on their specific needs" (DuFour, 2009). When offering feedback, it is important to focus on the academic content at hand, rather than praising students or giving critical judgments of work. This results in increased performance after receiving feedback. "Researchers found that feedback that included any type of elaborated information was consistently more helpful than feedback that informed learners whether their responses were correct or incorrect" (Lipnevich & Smith, 2008, p. 4).
Grades Should Be Earned
It is important for teachers to transform their vocabulary to emphasize the fact that students earn the grade they receive. Rather than saying the familiar phrase, "I gave the student a B", instead say "The student earned a B". With the goal of student learning and achievement in mind, through thorough feedback, students will be handed the responsibility to improve and adjust learning accordingly. Once feedback is given, students can then seek additional help independently, from peers, or from the teacher. Once the summative assessment comes around, students can be confident that they have been given every opportunity to enhance their learning and know that they have truly earned whatever grade they receive. "We tend to reward working, instead of learning" (Varlas, 2013, p. 1). By giving students' ownership of their learning, grades act as a reward for the effort that is put into learning.
Grading Should Be Used as a Motivating Tool, Not a Weapon
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When grades are used as a motivational tool instead of a threat, students have the tendency to try harder and in this process, learning is made more meaningful. Grades can be used as a motivator in the following two ways:
With this, grading does not have to occur often. Grading less can be a greater motivational factor for students to excel in the classroom and invest more time and effort into homework and other assessments that serve as practice for the final, summative assessment. In regards to homework, it should carry "no weight except in its worth for practicing for the assessment" (Varlas, 2013, p. 6). This alone has created an intrinsic motivation for struggling and exceptional learners alike. Students realize that, without having a grade placed with homework and other practice activities, "they are able to take risks, self-assess, adjust, practice, and find what works best for them, to learn something" (Varlas, 2013, p. 6). Grades can be a powerful tool to transform student learning and achievement. When grades are used to measure only academic achievement that is based on clear learning targets and standards, and when the grades are used sparingly and appropriately, students find great motivation to push them towards excellence.
- If the student is earning a low grade, it is believed that this will motivate students to try harder.
- If the student is earning a high grade, the student will be motivated to continue their efforts. (Marzano, 2000, p. 15)
With this, grading does not have to occur often. Grading less can be a greater motivational factor for students to excel in the classroom and invest more time and effort into homework and other assessments that serve as practice for the final, summative assessment. In regards to homework, it should carry "no weight except in its worth for practicing for the assessment" (Varlas, 2013, p. 6). This alone has created an intrinsic motivation for struggling and exceptional learners alike. Students realize that, without having a grade placed with homework and other practice activities, "they are able to take risks, self-assess, adjust, practice, and find what works best for them, to learn something" (Varlas, 2013, p. 6). Grades can be a powerful tool to transform student learning and achievement. When grades are used to measure only academic achievement that is based on clear learning targets and standards, and when the grades are used sparingly and appropriately, students find great motivation to push them towards excellence.