Grading

The purpose of this book is to help practicing and aspiring teachers bothto understandgrading andto doit. Chapters, illustrations, and exercises are aimed at helping students to (1) see how grades function in schools and schooling, and (2) develop skills in assigning grades to student work and combining grades into marks for student report cards. Grades are a major means of communicating about student work to students, parents, future teachers, and other schools, so it is important that they convey information as clearly and accurately as possible. Grades also evoke many emotional responses and can cause difficulties for teachers, parents, and students if they are not handled carefully; therefore, it is important for teachers to understand their function in the process of schooling. The theoretical principles on which the recommendations in this book are based come from the research literature. The reference list is lengthy, and I encourage readers to research their areas of interest. The practical applications of measurement and instructional theories to teaching come from my years of experience, first as a classroom teacher and then as a college professor, working with teachers and school administrators about the thorny issues of measuring school achievement. My bias is explicitly stated as a theme of the book: In a perfect world there would be no grades--at least, not as we know them now. Assessment in general, and grading in particular, is the part of their work that many teachers like the least. Since we tend to do best the things we like and know, one of the goals of this book is to serve as a resource that will help teachers begin to see themselves as competent graders. Because most teachers' professional practice will require them to grade papers and assign report card grades, it is important to learn how to do these things well. At the same time, it is important to learn how to advocate for changes in student assessment practices that will serve students even better than present practices do. TEXT ORGANIZATION AND SPECIAL FEATURES The text is characterized by clear explanations, lots of stories and illustrations, samples of student work, sample report cards and other artifacts, and references for further study Each chapter begins with a list of Key Concepts. Each chapter ends with a set of questions or practice exercises designed to assess understanding of the chapter's contents. Since one of the main goals of the book is skill development, some of these exercises are aimed at practical, skill development (e.g., assign a grade and write feedback for a sample of work). Each major part of the book ends with a more comprehensive assignment designed to assess synthesis of major concepts and applications of readers' understanding to their future work as educators. The material is organized into three parts. Part 1, Understanding Grading,introduces the subject of grading and its importance, defines terms, and sets grading in its historical, social, legal, and psychological contexts. Because of the huge impact of grading practices on both learning and motivation, an entire chapter is devoted to the educational psychology of grades. Self-reflection is encouraged, at the outset and throughout readers' progress through this book. Part 2, Integrating Assessment and Instruction,discusses the grading of individual assignments. Chapters 4 and 5 present instruction and assessment concepts, whereas Chapters 6 and 7 are more skill oriented. When teachers talk about "grading" papers, they usually refer to both assigning a grade or score and writing formative feedback to students on those papers. Assigning valid and reliable scores and writing helpful feedback are different skills, although both are crucial to the teaching-learning process. Part 3, Combining Grades Into Marks for Report Cards,discusses how to move from a set of individual assignmenBrookhart, Susan M. is the author of 'Grading' with ISBN 9780130423764 and ISBN 0130423769.