Grading Policy in the Education System - Essay Example

Grades are usually assigned in the form of letters ranging from A, B, C, D, and letter F which signifies a failure. They can also be assigned in the form of ranges between 5.0 and 1.0 as well as a fraction of the total number allowed. An example is 43 out of 85 that is the total number allowed. Grades can also be in descriptive forms denoted by such terms as excellent, needs improvement, satisfactory and great.  Either, they can be expressed as a percentage and grade point average (GPA) usually used by some post-secondary institutions.

In GPA grading, the number of grade points that a student earns during the entire learning process is given as a fraction of the total number of credits. Research has found that most instructors do construct systems that they use in evaluating their students. These systems are in an organized manner but sometimes are found to be unsatisfactory (Maria 57).  This paper looks at the various systems that should be used in grading students, their importance, and how students should generally be assessed.

Since time immemorial, there has been the problem of grade inflation with available data revealing that the public and privately owned schools graded similarly till recently when the private schools decided to issue higher grades than the public schools. Critics argue that the inflation of grades is majorly confined to certain institutions. Schools with higher GPAs have a higher change rate and vice versa. In the recent past, students have protested against the grades awarded to them with the majority wanting them to be revised upwards.

Scholars have employed the usage of the Lake Wobegon Effect, where grades assigned to students are generally above average, to study this phenomenon but still, there are others like Professor Christopher who has made proposals in discouragement of grade inflation. His proposal is still under scrutiny by the committee in charge of education policies. The grading issue has elicited various debates with critics claiming that it does not reflect the actual performance of students. Others argue that it is an important tool in the education sector as it gives a reflection of the performances of students during the entire learning period (Francis & Christopher 98).

A thorough analysis reveals that it is significant and enables instructors to develop their assessment methods that eventually bring beneficial changes to the education sector on its instructions. Through grading, feedback is provided to both students and instructors. The grading systems are also advantageous in situations where there are rigid programs. These rigid programs are not commonly found in the education curriculum thus the grading system helps in their assimilation into the curriculum.

Either, it enables instructors to develop activity lists that students are required to participate in. This is done in an objective manner according to students’ abilities and they are given opportunities to select the activities they think they can easily participate in. It allows students to assess their own performance and progress which prepares them to become longtime learners (Epstein 113).  Grading is, therefore, an important tool that should be used in the education sector.

There are five major grading systems that should be used in any education sector. These are standard-based grading, rank-based grading, Grade Point Average (GPA), weighted GPA, and incomplete grading (Epstein 91).  The standard-based grading compares students in accordance with set standards on the things they are expected to know and be able to do. Students are graded based on whether they exceed the set standards, meet them, or below these standards. Either, students are not compared against each other thus are generally able to pass the set standards.

This grading system should be applied in situations where the items the students are being graded on are not within the curriculum such as inquiry-based learning. Rank grading uses a curve that groups students’ performance on the basis of moderated evaluation criteria. It directly places students into the competition and the topmost grades are usually given to students whose performances exceed the set mean performance. The GPA grading criteria should be used when the average grades of the students over the entire period are supposed to be reflected.

It gives the numbers of enrolled credits and allows for the averaging of grades. The weighted average should be used when the skills required are to be reflected at different levels. It is also used to discourage students from selecting courses that they can easily get ‘A’s as the most difficult courses are given very high numerical grades.  In conclusion, therefore, grading is an important tool that should be incorporated in the education system innovatively to conform to it.

The grading system should be able to communicate meanings on the performance of the students to those who use them. They should not only rely on the assessment of the efforts, attendance, and participation frequencies of students but also give their performance on quizzes, exams, and other learning measurements and tools. They should also be relevant, based on sufficient statistical data analysis, be impartial and compare each student against the same predetermined criterion such that when extra credits and retakes are to be offered, it should be to all students and not just a select few.