Ideas for Alternative Grading Methods From a Math Teacher

Alternative Grading Methods-Many of us have grown up with the idea of a grade being and A, B, or C - or D, or F for that matter-or sometimes a percentage of one hundred. I remember getting an 89% on a sketchbook assignment back in a middle school art class. I remember being frustrated with my art teacher, and perseverating on the question, "what separates an 89 from a 90?" I didn't realize it at the time, but this was one of my first experiences with the use of an appropriate grading system used inappropriately. There are many different ways of 'grading' as such, and it behooves educators to explore systems outside of what may be seen as the norm.

What is the purpose of grading?When assigning a project, a teacher must decide what he or she wants the students to learn. In deciding on learning objectives, the teacher must then also decide how the objectives will be measured. Measuring the extent to which students meet learning objectives seems to be what grading is about. However, it can easily go from black and white; multiple-choice, for example to gray (sketchbook assignments, exploration activities, working with students with special needs…)

Why Typical Grading Procedures May Be Counterproductive. As a Special Needs Math teacher, I consider the black and white type grading, i.e., correct or incorrect, to be appropriate in many situations, such in drill and skill practice of times tables for example. However, when I teach my students more complex skills, such as adding fractions with unlike denominators, I find it highly counter- productive to mark problems either correct or incorrect. I have found that grading in percentage is only beneficial to me and my students if done once they have mastered the skill. The students I work with often have little confidence in themselves, and therefore do not learn best by seeing what they did wrong!

I usually work with students in a 1:1 situation, which is helpful in keeping them on track, but they do often find themselves stuck, and in need of some 'leading questions' with which I can 'lead' them to their answers. This sort of support decreases as they become more confident in their abilities. We may go for weeks with out actual grades on papers. I will however, put a big 'c' for correct next to problems once completed correctly, despite the amount of teacher help that went into making it correct. How do you give students a grade for work such as this?

Alternatives to Typical Grading. Rather than putting an actual letter or number grade at the top of my students' papers, I focus on each problem and what they have done to make it work. That is not to say that these students don't deserve a nice big 100% up in the right hand corner, but when compared to the 100% of a peer in the general education setting, are they equal? There is not a single-sided answer to this question, and it may not even be worth discussing, once the objective is brought back into view: Did the student learn the intended skill? An alternative to the typical report card grade in this instance may include a progress report. There are other systems and rubrics in which the students' effort and progress are indicated along with the indication of skill mastery (or non-mastery), however, it seems to me that a short narrative paragraph describing student progress is the most efficient and complete way to 'grade' a student, or in other words, describe progress on a given goal or objective.

Percentage grades work well in concrete, point for point, objective test-type settings. These types of grades can then be transformed into letter grades. Subjective questions/activities can sometimes be made to fit this type of grading system, despite it often not being entirely appropriate and may leave the student with a bitter taste in her mouth (stupid sketchbook!). Rubrics are often a better choice, especially for subjective or effort-based activities. I have found the progress report to be the most effective way to report on student learning, when working with special needs populations. It is one way to describe progress without dissipating student motivation that may have been built, despite the teacher's efforts, along the way!