Teachers and administrators expressed concerns regarding grading English Learner (EL) students in a school district in a mid Atlantic state. Grade retention rates of ELs were disproportionately high. A professional development pilot was designed and implemented based upon the district's recently developed EL Grading Guidelines. The purpose of this…

The current generation of American students find themselves ill-prepared for the post-secondary level of mathematics study due to graduating high school without the requisite skills to be successful. While there are many factors that contribute to this defecit, it remains the job of educators and educational researchers to make strides toward…

This essay explores the use of contract grading as a means to combat the commodification of education. Starting with an examination of traditional grading practices, the author moves on to explore contract grading as an alternative to the free-market, capitalistic approach to higher education in the United States and its apparent ultimate goal of…

This study applies the Shapley value within the context of class-group based peer assessments by treating it as a cooperative game and giving fairness to each group member to cushion the effect of coalitions. Based on scenario analysis, the Shapley Value method is used to identify the fair marks which should be given/allocated to individuals with…

The increasing interest in electronic management of assessment is a sign of a gradual institutionalisation of e-submission and e-marking technologies in UK Higher Education. The effective adoption of these technologies requires a managed approach, especially a detailed understanding of current assessment practices within the institution and the…

The value of simulations in the classroom is well established, and there are numerous publications that feature specific role-play exercises that can readily be introduced into the classroom. Frequently, however, instructors would like to design their own simulations to fit their specific learning objectives for a class, but don't know where to…

Thorndike's (1969) "three P" model of faculty grading orientations (FGOs) serves as a theoretical basis for examining faculty's grading behavior in this study. Using data from a 2014 faculty survey I analyzed the responses of 1,742 faculty at 18 four-year, primarily teaching institutions in the U.S. to examine the relationship between…

Nearly all first-year composition learning objectives state that writing instructors will help each student to improve their knowledge of written conventions, like punctuation, spelling, and grammar. Historically, it has been difficult to achieve significant learning gains in writing mechanics. This teaching failure disproportionately damages the…

Accrediting agencies for English language programs, such as the Commission on English Language Program Accreditation (CEA), require a plan in writing for monitoring and reviewing assessment practices. Nonetheless, web-search queries such as "assessing assessment," "how to assess assessment," "assessing assessment…

Pervasive narratives about who and what counts as competent in science disproportionately impact students historically underrepresented in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM), and are perpetuated in the design of STEM courses. Equity-focused education literature argues for the need to develop robust learning ecologies that support…

STEM disciplines remain highly White and male-dominated, particularly in regards to engineering. The climate, as a result, for women of color in engineering remains to be 'bitter' cold due to their intersectionality. A case study was employed to understand how 11 Latinas experience their intersectionality within a STEM context in their pursuit of…

If the pandemic has taught us anything, it's that students don't need more stress. Fortunately, we can reduce students' anxiety about grading--and improve their learning. Grading expert Joe Feldman shares four "outdated" grading practices and their constructive, more equitable alternatives.

Specifications grading is a version of mastery grading distinguished by giving students clear specifications that their work must meet, and grading most things pass/fail based on those specifications. Mastery grading systems can get quite elaborate, with hierarchies of objectives and various systems for rewriting and retesting. In this article I…

An adapted grading system for students with disabilities in general physical education allows utilization of existing assessment tools such as rubrics and checklists and provides methods of individualization and modification based on the student's needs. Adapted grading methods include weighting components of class grades and unit assessments,…

In this study, researchers examined the collaborative process that occurred when early childhood teacher candidates and engineering students partnered to design exhibits to be used in an informal learning setting for young children. The findings present data from 52 early childhood candidates who participated in the study over the course of two…