LA CARLOTA CITY COLLEGE

TEACHERS EDUCATION DEPARTMENT

ED 68/88 (ASSESSMENT IN LEARNING 2)

MODULE 1: GRADING AND REPORTING SYSTEM

Below are possible sources of Grading and Reporting System

 Major Exams or Composition

 Class Quizzes
 Reports or Projects
 Students’ Portfolios
 Exhibits of Students’ Work
 Laboratory Projects
 Students’ Notebook or Journals
 Class Observation
 Oral Presentations
 Homework Completion
 Homework Quality
 Class Participation
 Work Habits and Neatness
 Effort
 Attendance
 Punctuality of Assignments
 Class Behavior or Attitude
 Progress Made

Grading and Reporting Methods

1. Letter Grades

 The most common and best known of all grading methods

 Mostly composed of five-level grading scale
 Letter Grade Descriptors

Despite their apparent simplicity, the true meaning of letter grades is not always clear. What
the teachers would like to communicate with particular letter grade and what parents interpret that
grade to mean, often are not the same (Waltman & Frisbie, 1994). To give more clarity to the meaning
of letter grade, most schools include a key or legend on the reporting from in which each letter grade is
paired with an explanatory word or phrase. Descriptors must be carefully chosen, to avoid additional
complications and misunderstanding.

Advantages:

 A brief description of students’ achievement and level of performance including students’

potentials can be provided to parents and other interested persons.
  Based on parents’ experience when they were still studying, it is easier for them to believe and
understand what letter grade means.

Disadvantages:

 Requires abstraction of a great deal of information into a single symbol (Stiggins, 2001)
 Despite educators’ best effort, letter grades tend to be interpreted by parents in strictly norm-
referenced terms. The cut-offs between grade categories are always arbitrary and difficult to
justify.
 Lacks the richness of other more detailed reporting methods such as standards-based grading,
mastery grading, and narrative.

Different Interpretation of Letter Grades

Grade Criterion-Referenced (Standards- Norm-Referenced Combined Based on

Based) Norm- Improvement
Referenced and
Criterion
Referenced
A  Outstanding or advanced Outstanding: Outstanding: Outstanding:
 Complete knowledge of all among the highest Very high level Much improvement
content or best of performance on most or all
 Mastery of all targets performance targets

B  Very good or proficient Very good: Very good: Very good: some
 Complete knowledge of most Performs above Better than improvement on
content the class average average most or all targets
 Mastery of all targets performance
 Meets most standards
C  Acceptable or basic command of Average: Average: Acceptable:
only basic concepts or skills Performs at the S o m e
 Mastery of some targets class average Improvement on
 Meets some standards some targets
D  Making progress or developing Poor: Below average Making progress:
 Lacks knowledge of most Below the class or weak: Minimal progress on
content average minimum most targets
 Mastery of only a few targets performance for
 Meets only a few standards passing
F  Unsatisfactory: lacks knowledge Unsatisfactory: Unsatisfactory: Unsatisfactory:
of content; Far below average; Lacks sufficient No improvement on
 No mastery of targets among the worst in knowledge to any targets
 Does not meet any standards the class pass

2. Percentage Grades

 Are the ultimate multi-category grading method

 Can range from 0 to 100
  Generally more popular among high school teachers than elementary teachers

Advantages:

 Allows for maximum discriminators in evaluation of students’ achievement and performance

 Maximizes the variation among students, making it easier to choose students for honors or
representative for special programs

Disadvantages:

 Requires a great deal of abstraction

 Interpretation of meaning of a percentage grade extremely difficult
 The cut-offs are no less arbitrary but a lot more
 Because of a large number of grade categories, it is less reliable and more subjective.

3. Standards-Based Grading

In an effort to bring greater clarity and specificity to the grading process, many schools initiated
standards-based grading procedures and reporting forms. Guskey and Bailey (2001) identify four steps in
developing standards-based grading. These steps are:

1. Identify the major learning goals or standards that that students will be expected to achieve at
grade level or in each course of study.
2. Establish performance indicators for the learning goals.
3. Determine graduated level of quality (benchmarks) for assessing each goal or standard.
4. Develop reporting tools that communicate teacher’s judgement of student learning progress
and culminating achievement relation of the learning goals and standard.

Advantages:

 When clear learning goals or standards are established, standards-based grading offers
meaningful information about student achievement and performance to student, parents and
to others.
 If information is detailed, it can be useful for diagnostic and prescriptive purposes.
 Facilitate teaching and learning processes better than any other grading method.

Disadvantages:

 Takes a lot of effort.

 Often too complicated for parents to understand.
 May not communicate the appropriateness of students’ progress.

4. Pass/ Fail Grading

Simplest alternative grading method available to educators reduces the number of grade
categories to just two: pass or fail. In the late 1800 pass and fail grading was originally introduced in
college level courses in the college in order for student to give more importance to learning and less to
grades they attained. By lessening the emphasis on grades, many educators believed that students
would be encourage to take more challenging subject.

Pass/Fail was most popular in most universities and colleges in 1970s. These universities and colleges
utilized this pass/fail grading to various programs.

Advantages:

 Simplifies the grading process for teachers and students.

 Use of single minimal cut-off and only two grade categories improve the reliability of
grades assignments.
 Pass/Fail grading has the potentials to make learning environment more relaxed by
focusing students’ attention on learning rather than on grade. (Goldstein & Tilker 1971).
 Pass/Fail grading is what students will face in many real-life situations.

Disadvantages:

 Students gain very little prescriptive information

 Students spend less time studying if pass/fail grading is used than when a wider striving
for excellence.

Method Advantages Disadvantages

Letter  Convenient;  Broad, sometimes unclear indications of
Grade  Concise; performance;
 Familiar  Often includes a jumble of factors including
effort and improvement.
Percentage  Easy to calculate, record,  Broad, sometimes unclear indications of
Grade and combine; performance, false sense of difference
 Familiar between close scores;
 High scores not necessarily signifies mastery
Standards-Based  Focus on high standards for  May not reflect student learning in many
all students; areas;
 Pre-established  Does not include effort or improvement
performance level
Pass/Fail  Simple;  Little discrimination in performance;
 Consistent with mastery of  Less emphasis on high performance
learning

Developing Effective Reporting System

The most critical issue to be address in selecting the tools included in reporting system is what
purpose or purposes it is to serve, Why we need to convey this information and what we need to
accomplish.

To determine the purpose or purposes, three aspect of communication must be considered.

Critical Aspects in Determining Communication Purposes;

a. What information or messages do you we want to communicate?
b. Who is the primary audience for that message?
c. How would we like that information or message to be used?

Tools for Comprehensive Reporting System

Reporting systems most highly regarded by parents typically include a mix of traditional and
more modern reporting tools.

Tools that might be included comprehensive reporting system:

1. Report Card
2. Notes: Attached to report Cards
3. Standardized Assessment Report
4. Phone Calls to Parents
5. Weekly/Monthly Progress Reports
6. School Open-Houses
7. News Letter to Parents
8. Personal Letter to Parents
9. Evaluated Projects of Assignments
10. Portfolios or Exhibits of Students’ Work
11. Homework Assignments
12. Homework Hotlines
13. School Web Pages
14. Parent-Teachers Conferences
15. Student-Teacher Conferences
16. Student-Led Conference

Guidelines for Better Practice

To ensure better practice of grading and reporting systems, the following statements serve as guide on
how to utilize effectively the grading and reporting systems:

1. Begin with clear statement of purpose.

2. Provide accurate and understandable descriptions of learning.
3. Use grading and reporting to enhance teaching and learning.
 Do’s and Don’ts Effective Grading

Do Don’t
Use well-thought-out professional judgements. Depend entirely on number crunching.

Try everything you can to score and grade fairly. Allow personal bias to affect grades.

Grade according to pre-established learning Grade on the curve using the class as the norm
targets and standards. group.

Clearly inform students and parents of grading Keep grading procedures secret.
procedures at the beginning of the semester.
Base grades primarily on student performance. Use effort, improvement, attitudes, and
motivation for borderline students.

Rely most on current information.
Mark grade and return assessments to students
as soon as possible and with much feedback as
possible.
Penalize poorly performing students early in the
semester.
Return assessments weeks later with little or no
feedback.

Review borderline cases carefully, when in doubt, Be inflexible with borderline cases.
assign the higher grade.

Convert scores to the same scale before Use zero scores indiscriminately when averaging
combining. grades.

Weight scores before combining.
Use a sufficient number of assessments.
Be willing to change grades when warranted.
Include extra credit assignments for a semester
grade.
Rely on one of two assessments for a semester
grade.
Lower grades for cheating, misbehaving,
tardiness, or absence

Planning and Implementing Parent-Teacher Conference

The parent-teacher conference is the most common way teachers communicate with parents
about student progress. It is typically a face-to-face discussion, though phone conferences and calls can
also be used. Parent-teacher conferences may be initiated by either the teacher or the parent, based on
purpose.

There are two types of parent-teacher conferences, based on two purposes.

A. Group Conferences
 These are conducted in the beginning of the year to communicate school and class policies, class
content, evaluation procedures, expectations and procedures for getting in touch with teachers.

B. Individual Conferences

These are conducted to discuss the individual student’s achievement, progress or difficulties.

It is important to plan the conference to be prepared. It means having all the information well-
organized in advance and knowing what to achieve from the conference. It will include a list of areas
pertaining to student that need to be discussed with parents. The conference is the ideal time to discuss
and point out specific areas of strength and weakness that is not communicated through the report
card. Note that conference is not a lecture type of gathering or meeting. It is a conversation. Listening is
the primary key to understanding. Listening to parents will help the teacher understand the student
better.

McMillan (2007) shared the following checklist in preparing for parent-teacher conferences.

Checklist for Conducting Parent-Teacher Conferences

 Plan each conference in advance.

 Conduct the conference in a private, quite, and comfortable setting.
 Begin with class discussion of positive student performances.
 Establish an informal, professional tone.
 Encourage parent participation in the conference.
 Be frank in reviewing student strengths and weaknesses.
 Review language skills.
 Review learning targets with examples of student performances that show
progress.
 Avoid discussing other students and teachers.
 Avoid bluffing
 Identify two or three areas to work on in a plan of action.

Indeed, parent-teacher conferences entail hard work to be successful. It is necessary that

preparations of the logistics as well as teachers for their face-to-face encounter with parents be carried
out so as to ensure that the objective of the parent teacher conference is met. The table below
summarizes some recommendation for effective parent-teacher conference.

Recommendations for Effective Parent- Teacher Conferences

Before the Conference… During the conference… After the Conference

●Encourage parents to review
student work at home, note
concerns or questions, and
bring those to the conference.
●Schedule times that are
convenient for both working
●Provide child care,
refreshment, and
transportations if necessary.
●Show multiple samples of
student work and discuss
specific suggestions for
●Provide parents with a
telephone number and
schedule of specific times so
they may call you with
concerns.
●Follow up on any questions or
and non-working parents.
●Notify parents well ahead of
scheduled conference items.
●Provide staff development for
new teachers on the purpose
for conferences, preparations,
and scheduling.
●Consider alternative locations,
such as church or community
centers for parents’
convenience.
●Print conference schedules
and materials in multiple
languages, if necessary.
improvement.
●Actively listen and avoid the
use of educational jargon.
●Communicate expectations
and describe how parents can
help.
●Develop a system for no-going
communication with each
parent that recognizes parents
as partners.
●Provide resources materials
that parents might use at home
to strengthen students’ skills.
concerns raised during the
conference.
●Plan a time to meet again if
necessary.
●Encourage parents to discuss
the conference with their child.
●Ask parents for written
evaluation of the conference
and encourage them to make
suggestions.
●Debrief with colleagues to
look for ways to improve future
conferences.
Effects of Grading on Students

A. We can call this activity as Effects of Grading on Students 3-2-1. Just simply follow the template
provided which contains the detailed instructions you need to follow.

Effects of Grading on Students 3-2-1

List three things you have learned about Effects of Grading on Students.

1.

2.

3.

List two things you think will be beneficial effects of grading on students.

1.

2.

List one insight you have about effects of grading on students.

 Plan a Parent-Teacher Conference

D. Create a list of questions that you want to clarify with parents that you will ask during the conference.
Provide also the key ideas and topics that you need to discuss during the conference.

Key ideas/topics to discuss during the conference

1.

2.

3.

Questions to ask parents during the conference

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.