The following advantages are regularly cited for traditional grading: it is in common use and allows relatively standardized information about students; it enforces academic discipline; it serves numerous administrative purposes; it prepares students for the competitions of life; it motivates students; and it is a fairly reliable index of academic…

Author, who is the President of the University of Michigan, discusses the principal change in the grading system in recent years - pass-fail grading. (Author/RK)

This study was conducted to determine reactions of 213 colleges and universities to an experimental program modifying existing letter grade evaluations given for all courses. (Author)

Feedback is one of the most powerful influences on learning and achievement. Hattie (2002) found that the giving of quality feedback to students is one of the top five strategies teachers can use to improve student achievement. Research has confirmed that the right kind of feedback is essential for effective teaching and learning (McMillan, 2007).…

This Information Capsule answers the most frequently asked questions about M-DCPS' academic performance during the 2008-09 school year. M-DCPS earned a performance grade of "B" in 2009 and was only four points short of an "A." Over half of the District's schools (58 percent) earned an "A" and the percent of…

Over the past twenty years in performance testing a specific item type with distinguishing characteristics has arisen time and time again. It's been invented independently by dozens of test development teams. And yet this item type is not recognized in the research literature. This article is an invitation to investigate the item type, evaluate…

Effective criterion referenced assessment requires grade descriptors to clarify to students what skills are required to gain higher grades. But do students and staff actually have the same perception of the grading system, and if so, do they perform better than those whose perceptions are less accurately aligned with those of staff? Since…

When assessment tasks are set for students in universities and colleges, a common practice is to advise them of the criteria that will be used for grading their responses. Various schemes for using multiple criteria have been widely advocated in the literature. Each scheme is designed to offer clear benefits for students. Breaking down holistic…

A retrospective study was performed to evaluate a satisfactory/unsatisfactory (S/U) grading scheme in a didactic surgery laboratory during the first 3 years of implementation (2002-2004) and identify areas for improvement that might be adapted to this course or similar courses. Each instructor graded six students per session by assigning a…

An extensive database of exam scores is studied to determine the effects of a grading policy that drops the lowest exam score. We find evidence that some students engage in strategic behavior, either by understudying for one of the exams or missing one altogether, but the vast majority of students show no evidence of strategic behavior. We also…

Scores are the most visible and widely used products of a testing program. The choice of score scale has implications for test specifications, equating, and test reliability and validity, as well as for test interpretation. At the same time, the score scale should be viewed as infrastructure likely to require repair at some point. In this report…

The present study was carried out within a systems analysis and design workshop. In addition to the standard analysis and design tasks, this workshop included practices designed to enhance student capabilities related to non-technical knowledge areas, such as critical thinking, interpersonal and team skills, and business understanding. Each task…

This book provides a provocative look at the issues and controversies surrounding grade inflation, and, more generally, grading practices in American higher education. The contributors confront the issues from a number of different disciplines and varying points of view. Topics explored include empirical evidence for and against the claim that…