Criterion-Referenced; Weighted Percentage Method
Student Name
Austin
Bridget
Cesar
Dominique
Eduardo
Francesca
Gil
Harry
Imelda
Josephine
Homework
Percent
Lab
Percent
Quiz
Percent
Test
Percent
Composite
Score
Letter
Grade
90%
80%
100%
90%
70%
80%
60%
90%
70%
100%
87%
100%
100%
0%
67%
53%
93%
80%
67%
67%
83%
73%
97%
73%
60%
63%
83%
80%
77%
83%
83%
67%
97%
93%
33%
60%
50%
40%
70%
77%
85%
77%
98%
68%
52%
62%
70%
65%
71%
79%
B
C
A
D
F
D
C
D
C
B
To obtain the green columns I divided the number of points the student earned by the
total points the assignment was worth, multiplied by 100, and finally I rounded each percent to
the nearest whole number. For the quiz percent I added the two quizzes together and divided by
30 because there were two quizzes, each worth 15 points. To obtain the composite score I
multiplied the homework percent by .1, the lab percent by .2, the quiz percent by .3, and the test
percent by .4 and finally added all of those numbers together to obtain the final percent.
To assign the letter grade I used the following system:
A = 90% - 100%
B = 89% - 80%
C = 79% - 70%
D = 69% - 61%
F = 60% and below
Criterion-Referenced; Total Points Method
Student Name
Austin
Bridget
Cesar
Dominique
Eduardo
Francesca
Gil
Harry
Imelda
Josephine
Total
Points
Composite
Score
Letter
Grade
72
65
83
59
45
53
60
57
61
68
85%
76%
98%
69%
53%
62%
71%
67%
72%
80%
B
C
A
D
F
D
C
D
C
B
To obtain the total points I simply added up all points each student earned. To find the
composite score I divided the students’ earned points by the total number of points (85),
multiplied by 100, and rounded to the nearest whole number. I used the above described system
to assign the letter grade for each student.
Norm-Referenced; Grading On the Curve Method
Student Name
Austin
Bridget
Cesar
Dominique
Eduardo
Francesca
Gil
Harry
Imelda
Josephine
Quiz
Percent
Lab
Percent
Quiz2
Percent
Homework
Percent
Test
Percent
Composite
Score
80%
73%
93%
80%
53%
67%
93%
73%
73%
80%
87%
100%
100%
0%
67%
53%
93%
80%
67%
67%
87%
73%
100%
67%
67%
60%
73%
87%
80%
87%
90%
80%
100%
90%
70%
80%
60%
90%
70%
100%
83%
67%
97%
93%
33%
60%
50%
40%
70%
77%
85%
79%
98%
66%
58%
64%
74%
74%
72%
82%
To find each percent in the pink columns I divided the students’ earned points by the total
points for the assignment, multiplied by 100 and rounded to the nearest whole number. To find
the composite score I simply added all the percent’s students earned on each assignment and
divided by the total number of assignments (5), then rounded to the nearest whole number.
Student
Name
Composite
Score
Letter
Grade
Cesar
Austin
Josephine
Bridget
Gil
Harry
Imelda
Dominique
Francesca
Eduardo
98
85
82
79
74
74
72
66
64
58
A
B
B
C
C
C
C
D
D
F
I sorted the scores from highest to lowest and used the pre assigned letter grades of:
highest grade earns an A, next two scores earn a B, next four scores earn a C, next two scores
earn a D, and the last score earns an F.
Analysis
I personally use and prefer the total points method. I feel as though the total points
method is like KISS (keep it simple stupid). Although this is a simple method I still feel as
though I can “weight” different assignments by making them worth more or less points
depending on the importance of the assignment. I have also found that for students and/or
parents to figure out their grade there is not much work they have to do. They keep track of their
earned points and then add their points and divide by the total points for the marking period. My
school uses a weighted method to calculate their final semester grade (each of the two marking
periods are worth 40% and the final exam is worth 20%) and the students have a hard time trying
to figure out “what they need” to pass or earn a certain grade.
A weighted percentage method can be fairly easy to use if you set up your own excel
spreadsheet and just use it continually or if your district uses a program that you may just have to
set some parameters and then you just enter your grades. My school uses PowerSchool and I
know teachers that use the weighted percentage method set their weights for each assignment
type at the beginning of the year and then you just add students’ scores as points or percent’s and
the program figures out the final grade. This is easy for the teacher to use, but for a student to
figure out their grade can be another story. Even some parents have a hard time grasping this
concept, I have parents who do not understand the 40-40-20 percent method we use to calculate
the final semester grade.
The norm referenced grading system is fairly easy to use because you just average each
student’s percent for all assignments then put their scores in order from greatest to least and
assign the letter grade using a 10-20-40-20-10 percent method. Our book also states that
teachers that do not want to assign any failing grades can use a different method such as 20-2040-20 percent.
I feel a total points method is fair to use because my students know upfront what each
assignment will be worth. So the more points an assignment is worth, the more it will affect
their grade. Some teachers may argue that if you make each homework assignment worth 6
points (which is what I do) then students will realize that 6 points is not much so they will not
put a major emphasis on completing their homework. I can argue this point by saying that I have
at least 10 homework grades by the end of the marking period so their total homework grade is
worth 60 points which is usually equivalent to a test. So as points add up, the category is worth a
lot. I also grade my homework for completion and not accuracy, so if my students just do their
homework all the time and they have a very low test score their homework grades can offset the
low test score.
I feel in terms of fairness total points and the weighted percentage method are pretty
much equal, for me it is a matter of ease of use between the two. I feel as though the norm
referenced method is the least fair because, “the grade a pupil gets provides no indication of how
well or poorly the pupil performed.” (Airasian, 2005) The question I always like to raise is,
“Are students really deeply learning if they are only competing for a grade or are they doing
what they need to be better than the other students in the class?”
According to Ferguson (2004), “Critics claim an emphasis on testing and ranking
students detracts from genuine, or "deep" learning, in which the aim is for kids to absorb
information into their long-term memory where it can be accessed and used creatively. As well, a
wide body of research indicates that grades and other externally imposed rewards or censures can
dampen children's enthusiasm for learning -- whether they're D- or A-students.” I think this
raises an interesting point because are students really learning for their own knowledge or just to
compete with other students when using a norm referenced method. “Norm referenced grading
tends to undermine the learning and effort of pupils who repeatedly score near the bottom of the
class, since they continually receive poor grades.” (Airasian, 2005) I feel it is unfair to have
students whose grade truly reflects a higher than failing grade based off a total points or
weighted percentage method end up with a failing grade overall.
I feel all three different methods of grading are valid, they are all research based methods
which each have varying degrees of validity. I feel as though the validity is directly related to
what you are trying to convey to your learners. I feel what classroom setting you decide to use
norm referenced grading could determine the validity of the method. According to the
University of Missouri’s Office of Human Resources (2011), “In a large non selective lecture
class, you can be fairly confident that the class is representative of the student population, but in
small classes (under 40) the group may not be a representative sample. One student may get an A
in a low-achieving section while a fellow student with the same score in a higher-achieving
section gets a B.”
I feel the validity of a norm referenced grading method can be harder for a student to pin
point where their weaknesses are according to assignments given. If a teacher uses total points it
would be clear to a student where their weakness is because their scores would be lower for
those particular assignments. For a weighted percent method students would need to find the
percentage representing each category of assignments for them to see where their deficits are.
As stated by Alghamdi (2010) in reference to norm referenced grading, “it is considered less
precise diagnostic-indicator for a student (learner) to pinpoint to him particular weaknesses on
which he must concentrate to improve his standing in a course.”
When considering the effects on motivation I feel when students know how much
something will be worth they will put more effort into that assignment. I think it is also a good
idea to have students understand that assignments worth fewer points will add up and could have
a major impact on their grade. In norm referenced grading, “if a teacher’s curve gives too many
high grades to mediocre pupils, pupils will not respect it. If it is too difficult even for bright,
hardworking pupils to get an A, they will give up.” (Airasian, 2005)
Our textbook states, “Competitive, norm referenced approaches that make a pupil’s
success or failure dependent on the performance of classmates can also reduce pupil
consideration and interdependence, because success for one pupil reduces the chance of success
for other pupils.” (Airasian, 2005) I feel this is not a good climate to have in a classroom
especially when it is the deciding factor in a student’s grade. I feel it is good to have health
competition and that can be enough to spark an interest in students to want to do better. I feel
that having students compete for something so important as a final grade is very risky.
Reflection
I would not make any changes to student’s grades in any of the three categories. When
you look at the spread of grades in each category, each student (with the exception of Harry)
would have the same letter grade based off my grade scale. Harry’s letter grade would be one
grade higher using the norm referenced grading. What I feel needs to be kept in mind with
Harry’s situation is that his only low score was his test. When using the norm referenced model
the students’ composite scores were determined using a fixed percentage method. This meant
that his test score had the same weight as all of the other types of assignments. There could be
many different reasons for Harry’s low test score when knowing that all assignments prior to the
test were much higher when looking at the percentages of each category.
I feel when you start to make different assumptions then you would need to do this for all
students. As a high school teacher some of us have over 100 students, I have 61 students and to
personally question why they earned each grade they did is almost impossible. Also I feel as a
high school teacher I am preparing about 75% of my students for some type of post-secondary
education and in post-secondary education most attitudes towards grades are basically, “the
numbers do not lie.” Your score is what your scores is and whatever the reason for a low score
on any assessment does not matter, what matters is your grade.
Our books makes an interesting statement about the difficulty of grading, “The special
helping relationship that teachers have with their pupils makes it difficult for teachers to judge
them on a solely objective or dispassionate basis. This is especially so for grading, because the
judgments’ made about pupils are public, taken very seriously, have real consequences for
pupils, and can influence the pupil’s educational, occupational, or home status.” (Airasian,
2005)
I feel a teacher must be confident in their grading system and must be able to defend why
and how they determine their final grades. I personally use a total points system and I feel my
points do not lie. I truly feel in my class if a student is making their best effort their grade will
reflect their effort. My system is designed so that a student who is putting in their best effort, but
is just not good at math will still be able to be successful according to grades. Basically they will
not fail the class if they are putting in full effort. I do not use any student’s personal
circumstances (unless stated by IEP) to change their grade. I totally live by the philosophy that
students earn their grade.
References
Airasian, P. W. (2005). Classroom Assessment: Concepts and Applications. New York:
McGraw Hill.
Alghamdi, S. A. (2010). Adaptive System for Assigning Reliable Students’ Letter Grades – A
Computer Code. Intelligent Information Management, 2, 569-585.
Ferguson, S. (2004). How Grades Fail Our Kids. Maclean's, 117(2), 28-34.
Office of Human Resources, University of Minnesota. (2011). Grading Systems: Norm
Referenced Systems. Retrieved from:
http://www1.umn.edu/ohr/teachlearn/resources/grading/index.html