Argues that educators must "think outside the box" to improve school performance. Suggests several areas for expanded thought, including school size, curriculum coverage, grading practices, use of time, organization of students, time management, and belief statement. (PKP)

Discusses how to grade papers online. Proposes that students whose papers are graded online internalize information more readily than students whose papers are not. Concludes that through meeting on the Internet, many students sense a narrowing culture gap between teachers and students. (PM)

Discusses the most satisfying part of teaching writing--helping students discover what they have to say and showing them how to say it. Notes that the basic skills of writing (audience awareness, organizing thoughts, and revising) are bigger than the rules of grammar and spelling and do not change from grade to grade. (RS)

Discusses aspects of one teacher's responses to students' writing that have survived over the years. Argues that students (1) should write for a teenage audience; (2) deserve written and oral responses from their peers; and (3) benefit from successes shared with their parents. Suggests that responses to writing begin with content, which makes…

In an attempt to frame an agenda for research on grading practices, the grading practices of 15 high school teachers of mathematics, language arts, science, and social studies were examined. Results underscore the ambiguity in current grading practices and highlight 19 possible reasons for deviations from recommended practices. (SLD)

Third-year medical students prepared case studies involving ethical issues, drawn from clinical experience. A study of the quality of the projects, the types of ethical issues raised, and attitudes expressed in them revealed limited student understanding of the range of ethical issues and widespread disagreement with physician handling of cases.…

Discusses grading in elementary and secondary schools, focusing on the following topics: combining and weighting data, grading criteria, absolute grade standards, relative grade standards, contracting for grades, mastery and continuous progress grading, grading for effort or improvement, report cards, and procedures for grading students. (SR)

Presents strategies to help staff developers and classroom teachers work through the transition phase of a paradigm shift in educational practice, highlighting traditional assessment and grading models and noting the importance of allowing teachers time to reframe and integrate the new model, meeting in small groups to understand the transition.…

Describes a course on hypermedia issues in education offered in the Graduate School of Education at the State University of New York at Buffalo. The general design and philosophy of the class are discussed; course requirements and grading are explained; and supporting materials, required texts, and suggested readings are listed. (LRW)

This article briefly describes research and authentic assessment and outlines methods for developing rubrics which offer a more authentic approach to assessment. It offers a rubric for assessing secondary students' original research, along with benchmarks showing examples for each criterion. It also suggests ways to translate rubric assessments…

Study examined effects of training on positive grader bias toward nicely handwritten essays. Nine typed essays, nine in neat handwriting, and nine in poor handwriting were transcribed into the other modes. Graders trained to avoid bias and three controls graded the essays. Both groups showed significant bias toward good handwriting. (SM)

A study of college students' (n=98) writing strategies and instructors' essay evaluation strategies revealed that time spent on the essay, number of books used, number of references cited, and proportion of research-based content in the essays influenced grading. However, students emphasized content and instructors emphasized argument. (Author/MSE)

Discusses the dearth of material concerning how A-level boards assess British students' economics essays. Describes the practices of the Joint Matriculation Board (JMB) in grading papers on various subjects. Reveals how the London Board grades advanced level economics papers. Includes a chart showing London Board grading criteria. (SG)

Offers six descriptions from middle school, high school, and college teachers regarding how they handle grading and evaluation in the reading/writing workshop. (SR)

Acquaints readers with music education research journals and summarizes recent research on instructional techniques, factors influencing performance, grading systems, and broad lines of inquiry. One study showed that students perceiving greater involvement, affiliation, teacher support, and organization tended to receive better music contest…