0 Draft: Essay #2 Evaluating Articles about Changing the Grading System By Jim Madden[This first draft needs a little introduction to tell readers how hard it
Note that
this writer analyzed article-by-article. You can also have one
paragraph per point: logic, statistic use, named interview sources...]
In the first article Marzano put forth some reasons that grading in the classroom should be changed. The first of these deal with the factors that make up the grade. "Teachers consider factors other than academic achievement when they assign grades"(Marzano 3). A study was cited within the article where teachers were asked what they considered when assigning grades to students. Many teachers used effort, behavior, cooperation, and attendance along with academics. Not all teachers used all of the criteria. The second factor deals with how much the assessment effects the grade. "Teachers weight assessments differently" (Marzano 3). Another study had team teachers grade the same students separately. They were surprised to find differences, but discovered that they placed different emphasis on different assessments. The third factor dealt with teachers not interpreting the same grade in the same way. "Teachers misinterpret single scores on classroom assessments" (Marzano 3). Some tests have more than one type of question within the same test. For example a test might contain a simple answer type of question and an essay question. The simple answer measures memory where as the essay measures free thinking. If a test contained 10 simple answer questions at one point each and one essay question at 10 points a score of 12 may be obtained in a number of ways. The fourth factor is that our grading system is old. "Today's system of classroom grading is at least 100 years old" (Marzano 13). There is a need for a common vocabulary about grades. Throughout the article the author cites primary sources to defend his statements. Much of his work, however, is based on small studies. He does indicate that the grading system that we use now has no research to back it up. Some of the figures were not discussed in depth. He never made any suggestions for improvement, but rather saved that subject for later articles.
[Article 2] "Let's End the Grading Game" deals with the problem from a slightly different point of view. The Edwards believe that grades have questionable benefits. Various uses for grades were examined and rejected. Uses such as predictors of academic success were deemed less important than predictors of occupational success. "There is little justification for continuing them just as a service to universities" (Edwards 260). The authors also put forth a number of negative effects of grading. They cite research, which indicates that grades kill creativity, reduce intrinsic motivation and diminish responsibility. The authors consistently back up their statements with primary sources from research studies. They offer no diagrams to illustrate their points. This fact however does not seem to detract from the article. They also offer a solution to the problem of grades. They suggest that if grades were abolished, "students work would be evaluated in a more authentic way through portfolios, displays, research projects" (Edwards 262).
[Article 3] In the article, "Our Grading System Throws Kids a Curve, Roth takes the position that a teacher best give not a number of high grades. Such a move might stall a teacher's move up the career ladder. Teachers need to decide whether to encourage cooperative learning or to stick to the bell shaped learning curve and have students compete for a grade. In this article the author does not cite any works or studies to back up his statements. He presents a well- developed step-by-step argument to support his position. The article seemed almost to be a venting of his anger because of what happened to his colleague. Yet his venting was controlled and logical.
WORKS CITED: Culbertson, Linda; Jalongo, Mary. "But What's Wrong with Letter Grades?" Childhood Education 75 (1999): 130-135. Edwards, Clifford; Edwards, Laurie. "Let's End The Grading Game" The Clearing House 72 (1999): 260-263. Marzano, Robert. Transforming Classroom Grading Virginia: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development, 2000. Roth, William. "Our Grading System Throws Kids a Curve." The Education Digest 65 (2000): 27-31.