Traditionally, the key principle of assessment was based on the depth and intensity of the knowledge taught in class. In our modern state, the notion of assessment is more about learning and less about whether it is deep or surface learning. This could be attributed to challenges facing higher education, such as marketisation, massification,…

In music education, current assessment trends emphasize student reflection, tracking progress over time, and formative as well as summative measures. This view of assessment requires instrumental music educators to modernize their approaches without interfering with methods that have proven to be successful. To this end, the Longitudinal Scales…

In an effort to cure the ills of current grading and reporting systems, many schools and districts across the United States have attempted to implement a standards-based system. The authors recommend four best practices in this area: (1) Get rid of the omnibus grade, which tells teachers little about the content measured or the difficulty level of…

Critical thinking is an important outcome of a college education. Assessment techniques that require students to demonstrate their understanding of course concepts are referred to as authentic assessment and promote the development of critical thinking. Little research exists on the types of assessment and grading practices utilized by community…

Much grading of student work is based, overtly or tacitly, on assumptions derived from scientific measurement. However, the practice of grading and the cumulation of grades into an overall index of achievement are socially constructed activities that fall a long way short of what is expected of scientific measurement. If scientific measurement is…

Purpose: Student evaluation of teaching (SET) questionnaires are used in many countries, although much current research questions the validity of these surveys. US research indicates that more than 90 percent of academic accounting departments use this performance measurement. This paper aims to focus on the validity of SET data.…

Test misgrading is treated as a stochastic process. The expected number of misgradings, inter-occurrence time of misgradings, and waiting time for the "n"th misgrading are discussed based on a simple Poisson model and a hierarchical Beta-Poisson model. Examples of model construction are given. (SLD)

The spuriousness of basing grades on test scores fitted to a normal curve is discussed. A grading system which attempts more truly to reflect reality is presented. (JP)

This publication offers suggestions to any teacher in the field of education. It is not intended to answer all questions regarding evaluation, but rather to serve as a springboard toward stimulating new ideas and encouraging teachers to experiment with new methods of evaluation. Three classifications are used to show the varied methods of…

If you've ever questioned the logic of reducing a student's entire academic performance to a single test score or a vague letter grade, then here's a book that will revolutionize the way you think about assessment and grading. Drawing from years of in-depth research, Robert J. Marzano provides you with guidelines and steps for designing a…

Student achievement can be assessed by demonstration, direct observation, unobtrusive measures, oral tests, self-ratings and reports, and on-the-job performance in addition to paper-and-pencil tests. Resulting information can be used for planning, counseling, diagnosing, evaluating, classifying, and grading. An extensive bibliography is appended.…

Reliability methodology needs to evolve as validity has done into an argument supported by theory and empirical evidence. Nowhere is the inadequacy of current methods more visible than in classroom assessment. Reliability arguments would also permit additional methodologies for evidencing reliability in classrooms. It would liberalize methodology…

The monograph is a complete outline for a program designed to help English departments institute logical and fair procedures for grading student essays. The contents in this monograph include "Factors in Judgments of Writing Ability,""The Effect of Bias,""Measuring Improvement in Writing,""Personal vs Staff Grading,""Standard Scores for Test…

The University of Western Ontario's Clinical Grading System was developed to improve assessment of speech-language pathology students' performance in clinical practicum. The system permits flexibility in weighting the contribution of particular skills to the final grade, allows for grading over an entire practicum, and provides profiles of…

This report examines grading practices, the uses of grades and the influence of grades on the student, faculty, administration and society. The author also indicates how grading practices can be and are being altered to provide an educational tool that accurately reflects the many dimensions of student performance. It is noted that grades seem…