Tip: So you want grade differently...
Alternative grading philosophies aim to make assessment more holistic, equitable, and supportive of student learning and motivation.
As faculty, we pour hours into designing curriculum, preparing lectures, and supporting students - yet sometimes it feels like the grades we assign shape how students view our courses more than anything else. Most of us default to traditional point-based grading out of habit, lack of awareness of alternatives, or reluctance to shake things up. However, there are compelling reasons for faculty to re-examine their assumptions and learn about innovative grading models.
Alternative assessment practices offer new approaches that aim to motivate learning, reduce stress, increase transparency, and prioritize labor over competition. Last fall I shared some resources around three specific flavors of nontraditional assessment.
The common thread between these approaches is a shift away from grading on a curve or point system and towards qualitative evaluation based on effort and mastery of clearly defined course objectives.
Where to start?
Some questions to think about as you articulate your grading philosophy:
What are your core goals when grading student work? Do you aim to evaluate mastery of skills, effort and growth, or some combination?
What signals do you want students to receive from the grades you assign? Should grades be motivational as well as evaluative?
How much should grading drive what and how students learn versus their own interests and learning patterns?
To what extent should grading be standardized versus tailored to individual students' strengths and challenges?
How can grading balance clear expectations with flexibility for students facing setbacks or needing alternate ways to demonstrate learning?
What types of assignments and assessments allow you to grade in alignment with your values?
How should factors like participation, effort, attendance, and extra credit be incorporated into the grading scheme?
What changes could make grading feel more meaningful and sustainable for you as an educator?
It might help to reflect on your answers to these questions, considering how your background and teaching context(s) influence your grading priorities. Over the next few weeks, I plan to share more resources on various alternative grading models, and I welcome you to reflect on how these align or clash with your values. Let me know in the comments if you have any other questions to consider or alternative grading practices you'd like to learn about!
I use a grading strategy I call the "Fair F" where I give no less than half credit just for the effort, even if the quality of work is poor. If you think about it, all the other letter grades are generally worth 10% on a 100 point system (A = 90-100%, B=80-89%, etc.. But an F is worth 60% (0-59%). Thus anything less than 50% grade is going to unfairly drag down a student's grade average in the class.
I used to use a system based on GPA values (A=4, B=3, C=2, D=1, F=0) but this got tricky with differently weighted assignments and students just did not understand what letter grade a given number translated into (they were constantly asking me "what letter grade is that?") And if they got 2/4 points they would freak out, thinking they failed (50%) when I'd actually considered it C quality. Also difficult from a technical standpoint: the LMS ultimately use numbers to calculate grades, even if we display them as letters and the LMS also needs to have a non-standard grading scheme created to handle such a different approach to grading work.
I always find grading discussions so interesting across contexts. In the UK, we largely mark anonymously, using a set rubric and criteria (at my last university, we even had more restricted bands, you could give a 77 but not a 75 or 76) and all marking is moderated.
I've been working within this system to focus on future focused comments, with 3 main things to work on for next time.