Challenging the Conventions of Grading and Reporting
Create and sustain a learning environment where students thrive and stakeholders are accurately informed of student progress. Clarify the purpose of grades, craft a vision statement aligned with this purpose, and discover research-based strategies to implement effective grading and reporting practices. Identify policies and practices that render grading inaccurate, and understand the role grades play in students’ future success and opportunities.
- Question traditional grading and reporting practices, and seek more accurate practices
- Identify the purpose of grading, and ensure school and classroom visions, practices, and policies support it
- Implement research-based grading and reporting practices that promote accurate, useful accounts of student learning
- Understand why traditional practices, such as grading on the curve and offering plus or minus grades, don’t fully report student academic performance
- Examine grading and reporting policies, and make sure they support students, parents, and other stakeholders
About the Author:
Thomas R. Guskey, PhD, is a senior research scholar at the University of Louisville and professor emeritus in the College of Education at the University of Kentucky. A graduate of the University of Chicago, he began his career in education as a middle school teacher and later served as a school administrator in the Chicago Public Schools.
