CHAPTER Vv Grading and Reporting Systems Key Terms averaging method cumulative method grade grading system reporting system norm-referenced grading criterion-referenced grading table of equivalence Learning Outcomes At the end of this chapter, the students should be able to: 1. Identify the different components of grading in elementary and secondary levels; . Discuss the different reasons why grading is a difficult task for teachers; Identify the different functions of grading and reporting; Differentiate the different types of comparing grades; Give the advantages and disadvantages of the different types of reporting grades; Differentiate norm-referenced grading and criterion-referenced grading; . Identify the different guidelines in grading elementary and secondary students; 8. Identify the different guidelines for effective and fair grading; 9. Determine the different components of grading achievements of students; and 10. Compute the grades of students correctly and fairly. yaer ouIntroduction Grading is one of the many activities of a classroom teacher to professionally judge the achievements of the students. This involves the collection and evaluation of proofs regarding the performance or achievement of the learners within a specified period of time. Through this process, different types of descriptive information and ways of measuring the performance of the students that summarize their accomplishments are converted to grades or marks. Grading and reporting the progress of the students are two of the most difficult tasks of teachers because there are so many factors and decisions to be considered. In this chapter, we shall consider the different methods of grading, the different purposes of grading, symbols used in reporting grades, and guidelines for effective and fair grading. Grading is the process of judging the quality of the performance of a student. The reasons why teachers find grading demanding are: (1) they have insufficient, formal instruction in grading; (2) they have to make judgment based on incomplete evidence; (3) they have conflicting classroom roles; and (4) there is no single universally accepted grading system. Grade is a symbol used to represent the achievement or progress of a student. Purposes of Grading and Reporting Systems Grading and reporting systems serve many purposes, but no single method serves all the purposes well. They are used to: communicate the achievement of the students; provide students information to improve their self-evaluation; provide incentives for students to learn; select or group students for a certain educational path or progress; evaluate the effectiveness of the program; inform the teacher about what students have and have not learned; and motivate and encourage good work by students (Erickson and Strommer, 1991). Different schools have different grading and reporting systems. They are designed to serve many purposes in the educational system. Linn (2009) provided the following purposes of grading and reporting systems. 1. Instructional Uses 2. Reports to Parents/Guardians 3. Administrative and Guidance Uses ‘Types of Grading System Another most important function of a classroom teacher is to assign grade to the students. What shall be the basis that the teacher will use to assign grades? It is very important for a classroom teacher to discuss to the students and their parents the type of grading system he will utilize at the beginning of the term or school year. In this section, we shall discuss the general approaches of assigning grades. This approach will depend on the grading system of any educational institution, most especially in the tertiary level. There are two most common types of grading system used at different colleges and universities in the Philippines. These are the norm-referenced grading system and the criterion-referenced grading system.90 ASSESSMENT OF LEARNING II Norm-referenced Grading System In using norm-referenced grading system, a student performance is evaluated relative to the performance of other students within the group. The performance of a student will depend on to the performance of other students in the class. This grading system is also known as “grading on the curve.” The teacher will be the one to set how many percent of the students in the class assigned each grade if it is not stated in the grading policy of the institution, otherwise, follow what is stated in the grading policy. Percentile rank and stanines are some examples of norm-referenced grading. Advantages 1. _ Itis very easy to use. 2. It works well for the courses with retention policies and it limits only few students to advance to the next level of the course. It is useful if the focus is the individual achievement of the students. It is appropriate to a large group of students, that is, more than 40. It does not encourage cooperation among the students. Pee The teacher easily identifies learning criteria—the percentage of students who received highest grade or lowest grade. Disadvantages 1, The performance of a student is not only determined by his achievement, but also the achievement of the other students. 2. It promotes competition among the students rather than cooperation. 3. It cannot be used when the class size is smaller than 40. 4. —Notall students can pass the given subject or course. Criterion-referenced Grading System In this type of grading system, the student performance is evaluated against a certain criteria or standard. The student must get a grade higher than or equal to a given standard to pass a certain test. For example, the students must spell 90% of 50 words correctly to pass the spelling test. The criteria or standard is absolute in this grading system and it is also possible that all students may receive the highest possible grade or all of them may pass the said test, subject, or course. It is also possible that all students may receive a failing grade if they will not reach the standard set by the teacher. Advantages 1. The performance of the students will not be affected by the performance of the whole class. 2. It promotes cooperation among the students. All students may pass the subject or course when they meet the standard set by the teacher. v0CHAPTER V ~ GRADING AND REPORTING SYSTEMS {91 Disadvantages 1. _ Itis difficult to set a reasonable standard if it is not stated in the grading policies of the institution. 2. All students may not pass the subject or course when they do not meet the standard set by the teacher or the institution. Types of Reporting System ‘There is no single way of reporting the level of achievement of the students. Different colleges and universities utilize different symbols to describe and report the level of performance or achievement of their students. This will depend on the grading policies of the said institution. These can be numbers, percentages, letter grade equivalents, and descriptions. The succeeding table presents an example of reporting grades for tertiary level. ‘Percentages | Numbers ‘Descriptions 98-100 1.00 A+ Outstanding/Excellent 95-97 1.25 A Outstanding/Excellent 92-94 1.50 A Very good 89-91 1.15 B+ Very good 86 - 88 2.00 B Good 83-85 2.25 B- Good 80 - 82 2.50 ch Fair 71-79 nos C+ Fair 15-76 3.00 c Passed below 75 5.00 D Failed Grading System of Public Elementary and Secondary Schools In case of Basic Education, the grading system being used is based on DepEd Order Number 33, series 2004, replacing the DECS Order No. 70, series 1998. The new grading system of DepEd is about giving grades that are mainly based on the students’ performance. The features of the new grading system are the following: 1. The lowest grade or the minimum performance standard for the students in public elementary and secondary schools is set at 75%. The lowest failing grade that may appear in the report card is set at 65%. 2. The same standard shall apply to students in the Bridge Program. 3. In assessing the learning outcomes, the construction of test items consists of basic terms (factual information) 60%, moderately difficult or more advanced questions 30%, and higher order thinking skills (items for distinguishing honor students) 10%. Questions in each category should have different weights. Test and non-test items should cover only materials actually taken up in the class.ASSESSMENT OF LEARNING II Grading system by subject shall follow the guidelines in Enclosure 1 and Enclosure 2 of DepEd Order 33, series 2004. Transmutation tables shall not be used in the computation of grades. Test scores shall be recorded as raw scores, totaled at the end of each grading period, and then computed as percentage [(student’s score + highest possible score) x 100%). This is also known as the Table of Equivalence. The final grade shall be determined by averaging the marks for the four quarters, In the case of secondary level, averaging across quarters shall be by subject only, Promotion at the secondary level shall be by subject. A student shall be retained in the year level if he/she incurs failures of three units or more during the regular school year and is unable to make up for the failed subjects during the summer sessions. Retained students need to repeat only those subjects that they failed. Guidelines for Rating Elementary Pupils The guidelines for rating the performance of elementary pupils are based on the Enclosure 1 of DepEd Order No. 33, s. 2004. The percentage distribution of weights for elementary pupils are periodic test (25%) and other measures of achievement (75%) as shown in the given table below. Subject Area/] English | es ‘Component | .& Filipino Heat | i i rt | mv] rw| mo | xs | eer | music| arr | PE I-vi | Ivevt | tv-vE. | rv-vi | 1v-vt Periodic Test 1 | 25% | 25% | 25% | 25% 25% | 25% | 25% | 25% | 25% Quizzes/ Unit Test 15% | 15% | 15%} 15% 15% | 15% | 15% | 15% | 15% Class imteraction/ | 20% | 15% | 20% | 20% 20% | 10% | 10% | 10% | 10% Participation Homework/ Assignment | 5% | 5% | 5% 5% 5% | 5% 5%. | 5% | 5% Projects 10% | 10% | 15% | 15% 10% | 25% | 10% | 20% | 10% In-Formal/ | Formal 10% ‘Themes Experiments 15% Other Performance | 15% | 10% | 15% | 15% 15% | 15% OutputsCHAPTER V ~ GRADING AND REPORTING SYSTEMS {93 Classroom “Musical Activities Art 20% Activities 30% +Sports/ dances & Others *Cultural 30% 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% Source: Enclosure 1 DepEd Order No. 33, s. 2004 Note: The subject MAKABAYAN IV-VI are graded in the Report Card (Form 138) as one subject area. However, each subject needs individual rating. Sample Computation for Rating in Math VI To compute the rating of each student in Math VI class in a grading period, get the average of all the’ ratings entered in the class record under each measure of achievement, then multiply the corresponding weight as shown in the table below. Quizzes 14.25 Class 25% 93 x 0.25 23.25 Participation Assignment 5% 88 x 0.05 44 Projects 15% 90 x 0.15 13.5 Problem Sets/ 15% 94 x 0.15 14.1 Activities Periodic test 25% 95 x 0.25 23.75 Total 100% 93.25% Hence, the grade of a certain student in Math VI for a grading period is 93.25% or 93%. Guidelines for Rating Secondary Students The guidelines for rating the performance of secondary students are based on the Enclosure 2 of DepEd Order No. 33, s. 2004. The percentage distributions of weight for secondary students are shown in the given table below.ASSESSMENT OF LEARNING II > : Pas Technology ] Music, [ Edukasyon . a and Axts, sa . _ {Filipino | English |Science| Math | Araling | Livelihood | PE and |Pagpapahalaga| Periodic test 25% 25% | 25% | 15% 20% 25% 25% 25% Quizzes > | 10% | 10% | 15% | 20% 10% 10% : Unit test 7 c ~ | 15% 7 7 : 7 Participation Performance | 50% | 40% | 35% | 30% | 20% 15% 15% 40% lOurput/ Project 25% | 25% | 20% | 25% | 20% 25% 25% 25% Assignment 3 ~ | 10% | - = 7 = Behavior : : 5 3 - - 10% Total 1oo% | 100% | 100% | 100%| 100% 100% | 100% 100% Source: Enclosure 2 to DepEd Order No. 33, s. 2004. Components of the Student's Grade Below are the different components needed for the computation of grades of the students for secondary level in each subject area from Enclosure 2 of DepEd Order No, 33, s. 2004. 1. Periodic test. Summative assessment of student's learning at the end of the quarter. Quiz. Summative assessment of student's learning at the end of the lesson; quizzes given for formative purposes are not considered in the computation of the student's grade but as basis for making decision whether to proceed to the next lesson or to reteach. Unit Test. Summative assessment of student's learning at the end of the unit. Participation/Performance. Student's involvement in the learning process individually and/or in group; students demonstration of a skill or process (e.g, role play, theatrical performance, music, dance, choral reading, speech delivery, experiment, etc.) . Project/Output. Product of a skill or process (e.g., book report, book/movie review, journal, research, etc.) Assignment. Work usually done outside the classroom in preparation for the next lesson and may involve an application or extension of student learning. Behavior. Observable manifestation of student's feelings, thoughts, or attitude; grade is reflected in Edukasyon sa Pagpapahalaga although every subject teacher is expected to contribute to the assessment of the student’s behavior. Methods of Computing Final Grade ‘There are two common methods of computing the final grade. These are the averaging method and cumulative method. The computation of the final grade will depend on the grading policy of the school, or colleges and universities. In the case of public elementary and secondary schools, averaging method is utilized as defined in the DepEd Order No. 33, s. 2004.CHAPTER V ~ GRADING AND REPORTING SYSTEMS Averaging method. In this method, the weights of the grade in each grading period are equal. The formula is: Final grade = Fitst Grading grade + Second Grading grade + Third Grading grade + Fourth Grading grade 4 Example: The grade of Benjamin in Mathematics IV is shown below. Find the final grade. rae hae 7 Fourth Final » Subje | Grading Grading Grade Grade Grade Mahhemaurs 89 92 94 96 92.75 Final grade = First Grading grade + Second Grading grade Thi Gdn grade + Fourth Grading grade Final grade = 89+ 92 + 94 + 96 + 94 +96 Final grade = 321 Final grade = 92.75 Cumulative method. In this method, the final grade gives a higher weight on the present grade than the previous grade. The percentage of the present and previous grades will depend on the policy of the school, most especially in the private schools as defined by the manual of private schools or as defined in their grading policies. Example of cumulative method is the sum of 3 of the Third Grading grade and 2 of the Fourth Grading grade. The formula is: Final Grade = }(TGG) + 3(FGG) Example: The grade of Ryan Christopher in Mathematics IV is distributed in the table below. Compute the final grade using the cumulative method. 2 Fourth Final - Subject — Grading - Grade : Grade Mathematics 96 95.33 Iv Final Grade = }(TGG) + 2(FGG) Final Grade = 4(94) + 2096) - _94 , 962 Final Grade = & 4 °8x2 Final Grade = 31.33 + 64 Final Grade = 95.33ASSESSMENT OF LEARNING II =. Grading System for Pupils/Students Under K-12 Curriculum The grading system for pupils/students in the K-12 Curriculum is based on DepEd Order Number 73, series 2012 known as the “Guidelines on the Assessment and Rating of Learning Outcomes Under the K to 12 Basic Education Curriculum Enclosure No. 1”, This is applicable only for pupils/students enrolled in Grade I and Grade VII, beginning in SY 2012-2013. The assessment of the performance of the learners under K-12 Curriculum shall be holistic, with emphasis on the formative or developmental purpose of quality, assuring student learning. It is also standards-based for the teacher has to make sure that he will teach the learners based on the standards given and the students have to meet or even exceed them. In this case, the students’ attainment of the standard is very important in terms of the content and performance of the learners for this is the evidence of learning. Levels of Assessment Formative assessment will be used to measure the attainment of the learning outcomes as defined in the learning standards which ensure quality of learning. They shall be the focus of the summative assessments and shall be the basis for grading at the end of instruction. There are four levels of learning outcomes: knowledge level which has a percentage weight of 15%; process or skill level ~ 25%; understanding(s) level - 30%: and products/ performances level — 30%, with a total of 100%. 1. Knowledge level refers to the substantive content of the curriculum, the facts and information that the student acquires. 2. Process level refers to the cognitive operations that the student performs on facts and information for the purpose of constructing meanings or understandings. 3. Understanding level refers to thie enduring big ideas, principles, and generalizations inherent to the discipline, which may be assessed using the facets of understanding or other indicators of understanding which may be specific to the discipline. 4. Products/Performances level refers to real life application of understanding as evidenced by the student's performance of authentic tasks. Levels of Proficiency The performance of the students shall be described in their report card, based on the following levels of proficiency. 1. Beginning (B). The student at this level struggles with his/her understanding; Prerequisite and fundamental knowledge and or skills have not been acquired or developed adequately to aid understanding. 2. Developing (D). The student at this level possesses the minimum knowledge and skills and core understandings, but needs help throughout the performance of authentic tasks.CHAPTER V~ GRADING AND REPORTING SYSTEMS (97 3. Approaching Proficiency (AP). The student at this level has developed the fundamental knowledge and skills and core understanding and, with little guidance from the teacher and/or with some assistance from peers, can transfer these understandings through authentic performance tasks. 4. Proficient (P). The studentat this level has developed the: fundamental knowledge and skills and core understandings, and can transfer them independently through authentic performance tasks. 5. Advanced (A). The student at this level exceeds the core requirements in terms of knowledge, skills, and understandings, and can transfer them automatically and flexibly through authentic performance tasks. In order to determine the level of proficiency of the students, numerical value is important. To get it, compute first the sum of all the results of the student’s performance on the various levels of assessment. After which, the following shall appear in the report card. “Numerical Value 74% and below Beginning (B) 75-79% Developing (D) 80-84% Approaching Proficiency (AP) 85-89% Proficient (P) 90% and above Advanced (A) Averaging Method This shall be used in the computation of the final grade. It is the average of the four quarters ratings and is expressed in terms of proficiency level. Promotion and Retention The promotion and retention of students shall be by subject. A student whose proficiency level is Beginning (B) at the end of each quarter shall be required for a remedial class after class hours so he can catch up on the next grading period. When a student remains at the proficiency level at the end of the school year, he stall be required to take the summer class, Guidelines for Effective and Fair Grading Miller, Linn & Gronlund (2009) suggested the following guidelines for effective and fair grading and this can be adopted in the Philippine educational system, most specially in the Higher Education Institutions (HEIs). : 1. Describe the grading procedures to the students at the beginning of instruction. 2. Make clear to the students that the course grade will be based on achievement only. 3. Explain how other elements will be reported such as efforts, work habits, and personal-social characteristics.98 ) ASSESSMENT OF LEARNING II 4. Relate the grading procedures to the intended learning outcomes (instructional goals and objectives). 5. Obtain valid evidence as basis for reporting grades (e.g., tests, assessments, reports, or ratings). Take precautions to prevent cheating on tests and assessments. Return and review all tests and assessment results as soon as possible. Properly weigh the various types of achievement included in the grade. Do not lower an achievement grade for tardiness, weak effort, or misbehavior. Be fair. Avoid bias, and when in doubt, review the pieces of evidence, such as scores in the boarder line. If still in doubt, assign the higher grade. Serene Table of Equivalence Table of Equivalence is utilized in the computation of percentage of the scores in each subject. Take note that this is mandated only for elementary and secondary public schools based on DepEd Order No. 33, s. 2004. The formula in the computation for table of equivalence is: p=(73)x 100% where, TS — total score TI — total number of items P — percentage If the number of items is not found in the table, use the formula to compute the percentage, To facilitate the computation, you can utilize the excel program. Example of Table of Equivalence for 50-items, 40-items, 30-items, 20-items, and 10-itemsCHAPTER V~ GRADING AND REPORTING SYSTEMS a 13 26 13 3 13 43 13 65 14 28 4 35 14 47 14 70 15 30 15 38 15 50 15 5 16 32 16 40 16 33, 16 80 17 34 n 3 7 57 17 85 18 36 18 45 18 60 18 90 19 38 19 48 19 63 19 95 20 40 20 50 20 67 20 100 21 42 21 53 21 70 2 44 2 55 2 B 2B 46 23 58 2B 7 24 48 24 60 4 80 25 50 25 63 25 3 26 32 26 65 26 87 27 54 27 68 27 90 28 56 28 70 28 93 29 58 29 2B 29 7 30 60 30 75 30 100 3 62 31 8 32 64 32 80 3 66 33 83 4 68 4 85 35 | 70 35 88 36 R 36 90 37 4 37 83 38 76 38 95 39 78 39 % 40 80 40 100 41 82 2 84 | 43 86 44 88 45 90 46 92 47 94 48 96. 49 98 50 100