As a teacher, I love a new page in the grade book or blank workbook on a spreadsheet. The new semester is a fresh start for students. It was a symbol of hope for everyone who wanted a fresh start. The teacher’s grading practices can either encourage or discourage students eager to start a semester with a clean page in the gradebook.
When my math-phobic daughter took Algebra II, her teacher gave a pop quiz on the second day of class. Andrea was distraught over a grade of 20 out of 100 points on the quiz. I assured her that the teacher would not record the grade, as she hadn’t practiced math skills in some time. The school was on an accelerated block schedule. Since geometry followed Algebra I in the school’s math sequence, she hadn’t practiced algebra for 1 ½ years. Her teacher was trying to figure out what the students knew. Using teacher language, I assumed this was a formative assessment to inform instructional practices.
I was wrong. The teacher recorded the grade as a major test grade. So much for having a fresh page in the gradebook! The unfortunate students, like my daughter, who did not immediately recall previous math skills had to struggle the entire grading period in an attempt to make up for the low grade. One problem with the numerical grading scale is that a grade of zero or below 50 disproportionately lowers the overall average. Mathematically, the numerical 0-100 scale is unfair. A student that makes an F, B, B, A has an average of B-. A student with similar numerical grades, such as 0, 80, 80, 95 has an average of 64, which is failing in many school districts.
When I asked Andrea’s teacher about her grade, she assured me Andrea would be okay. If she didn’t ask to leave the class to go the restroom the entire grading period, she would drop the lowest grade in the gradebook. I couldn’t believe my ears. What did going to the restroom have to do with how well students learned math?
As a school improvement and curriculum specialist, I’ve worked with many teachers, schools, ad districts clinging to the numerical system and defend it as if it is a hallowed practice. The American school system adopted the numerical grading system as public school populations exploded during the baby boom, as a way to manage grades for large numbers of students. It was what teachers knew to do at the time, but may have outlived its original purpose. Some teachers are loyal to practices they experienced as students or practices they learned in their early years of teaching. Often, they have not examined why they adopted a numerical system. Some assign grades as a method of keeping students under control. Grading practices should reflect content mastery rather than student compliance or controlling student behavior.
What are your experiences with fair or unfair grading practices?