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Qualitative Grading

Qualitative Grading. Notes compiled by Mary D’Alleva January 18 th , 2005 Office of Faculty Development. Purpose of Grading. Constructive criticism: analysis of product or performance in order to improve skills

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Qualitative Grading

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  1. Qualitative Grading Notes compiled by Mary D’Alleva January 18th, 2005 Office of Faculty Development

  2. Purpose of Grading • Constructive criticism: analysis of product or performance in order to improve skills • Evaluation: measure product or performance against objective standards in order to assign a grade • Ranking: comparing students through measured evaluation

  3. The Grading Process: establishing points of reference for the instructor • How well did the student’s performance or product demonstrate or address the criteria for the assigned task? • How does the student’s performance or product compare against expected norms for this level? • How does the performance or product measure against student’s earlier work (most useful to ask if assignment incorporates drafting or revision options)

  4. Establishing Evaluation Criteria • An essential part of qualitative grading is the development of a grading standard (rubric) that outlines and prioritizes your expectations for the assignment • The achievement standards in the rubric should match the specifics of the assignment (i.e. if the assignment asks students to summarize and evaluate an author’s argument, summary and evaluation should be represented on the rubric)

  5. Creating Content for Grading Rubrics • Does it measure the application of knowledge/skills to a new context? • Is it fair to all students (if students are self-selecting topics, have they been given clear guidelines for format and ‘thinking’ applications?) • Does it prioritize my expectations? • Does it measure both quality of content and format?

  6. Giving the Grade: Biggs’ Taxonomy for Grading Students from Biggs, John (1992). A qualitative approach to grading students HERDSA News, 14(3),3-6.

  7. Influences on the Grading Decision • Graphic quality (visual appeal) • Readability (sentence structure, spelling) • Use of structural conventions (text or format expectations) • Student text (how well work addresses assignment) • Teacher’s prior knowledge/expectation (assumptions of student’s level of work) • Teacher’s personality (desired student perception) • Teacher’s philosophy of grading/education • Teacher’s experience in grading • Quality of preceding work (overall class performance impacts individual grading)

  8. Different Types of Qualitative Grading

  9. Analytic Grading • Numerical points are assigned to subskills (e.g. in writing, numerical points are assigned to rhetorical and syntactical aspects of the paper) • Analytic grading leads to easier compilation of total grading points • Drawbacks: using a ‘points only’ system doesn’t provide substantive commentary for improved learning; students focus on points rather than writing • Analytic scoring works best for learning when partnered with written feedback from instructor

  10. Sample Analytic System • Focus: with a clearly defined topic and relevant details (20%) • Content: that is well-developed with details and original ideas (25%) • Organization: that moves logically and smoothly from beginning to end (25%) • Style: that is appropriate for audiences & topic (15%) • Mechanics: demonstrating an understanding of grammar, punctuation, spelling rules (15%)

  11. Grid Scoring • Analyzes rather than evaluates writing • Uses a simple checklist to divide writing into criteria • Criteria judged on general categories (e.g. ‘weak,’ ‘ok,’ ‘strong’) • Works best for assignments that include drafting (quick, non-punitive) • Doesn’t translate well into numerical grading • Needs written feedback to enhance learning

  12. In Summary: • Decide on and prioritize evaluation criteria per assignment based on teaching philosophy, purpose of graded assignment • Create grading rubric based on assignment criteria • Grading rubric can also be turned into a grading sheet • Share rubric/grading sheet with students

  13. Sources 1.http://www.flinders.edu.au/teach/assess/grading.htm 2. Gallagher, Eddye. Teaching Real Writing. Bedford/St. Martins, Boston: 2001.

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