Grade Robots

I have spent many, many hours trying to develop the perfect grading system. In all my research I have broken the issue down to a few key questions. I have wrestled with these questions, losing some rounds and winning others, for years. I cannot say I have successfully addressed them, nor have I come up with the perfect solution to my dilemma, but I am choosing to share them with you now so that we may ponder together as a community of math educators in a world of math-phobes.


What should be "counted" toward a student's letter grade?
This covers a number of issues commonly discussed by teachers such as whether to give points for participation/attendance, grading homework for correctness vs. effort/completion, and whether to give points for homework at all. Before addressing this issue, I have decided it is most important to address the larger issue of the letter grade itself.

What does your letter grade represent?
Most teachers, I assume, would quickly respond with something along the lines of "the student's degree of content mastery" (and might even add the flippant, "duh") . But when you consider the types of extras that are added into a student's grade that are not reflective of content mastery (participation, attendance, effort, etc.) it begs the question, what is your letter grade really saying? Does it say the goal is learning? Or does it simply say if it looks like you're trying hard enough, that's good enough for me?

The Cynic vs. the Optimist
We all have that story of the student who tried with all his/her might to pass, and just barely squeaked by. Maybe this student received effort points because their determination was so strong it was hard to see them fail in spite of it all. Is it fair this student fail after having given it 110%? What will it do to the child? Will they give up because no amount of trying produced success? Feeling responsible for the future success (or lack thereof) of a student is a huge burden to bear... then multiply that by five or ten per semester (just to be conservative). I have an ulcer just thinking about it.

On the flip side, there are those students who make the hair on the backs of our necks stand up at the mere idea they will not only pass, but get a C when they did "nothing" all semester long. For some, the issue is the student clearly is not living up to his/her full potential... but for others it is the fact that we have had to put up with the obnoxious and rude behaviors of the intelli-lazy (brilliant but lazy, in case my word play was distasteful). These behaviors include talking or sleeping during class, using electronics, not taking notes or doing homework, and doodling/drawing, among others. Does this student deserve a C when they put no effort into earning that grade?

"Please, sir, may I have some extra credit?"
Most students fall somewhere in between the above extremes. We all know the way students try to game the system. It's only natural. We humans are built to constantly conduct cost-benefit analyses all the time. Why would I retake that test if I could simply turn in some missing homework I copied off my friend? They understand enough about the points and percentage system to know when to try more and when we have created the mathematical necessity for them to give up (but that is a topic for another post). By the time I see them in high school, they have had 10+ years of training to become the grade robots I meet. You know what I'm talking about. For example, [using your best robot voice, read the following questions] "Will that be on the test?", "How many points is it worth?", "What grade do I have?", "Can I turn that in late?", "Is there any extra credit?".... and on and on.

A Grading Manifesto
With as much time, energy and discussion as I have invested in the topic, I have decided it is time to write a grading manifesto. I must take a stand on how I feel about each of these issues and what I plan to do about them. But where do I stand? For now, I have one simple philosophy: Your grade reflects how much you know. Notice I did not say how much you learned. That was intentional. How, when and where you acquired that knowledge is irrelevant to me. Your letter grade should tell everyone that sees it how much _______ (fill in Algebra II, Geometry, Algebra I, etc.) you know. If you don't know it, I cannot give you a grade that says you do. If you don't need me to teach it to you, that gives me time to go help someone else. And why don't you help someone, too! If you are somewhere in between, I will not negotiate your grade for Kleenex (I have been offered this before). However, I also understand you may not be able to demonstrate your learning at the time I give the assessment, so I will let you show me in your own time.

So what does this look like? Here are my rules:

1. You may retest any quiz to improve your grade.
2. I do not offer extra credit. (see #1)
3. Homework is practice, which is helpful for learning. It doesn't count toward your grade. If you do not see the need or benefit of doing it, it may show itself on your next quiz.
4. Grades are calculated as a GPA. Graded work (quizzes and projects, if I give any) are given a 0-4 score. These are averaged to produce your letter grade just like the GPA on their transcripts is, with a slight variation in the scale.

Am I right to grade the way I do? I don't think there are absolutes when it comes to grading, so no one can answer that question with certainty. This is what best matches my philosophy on grading. It may not match yours, which I understand. Feel free, if you're out there and still reading, to post a response. I'm curious to hear what your philosophy is!