Grading student performance in classes is sometimes one of the less delightful aspects of teaching.
However, it is also one of the more significant roles that teachers have in the ongoing educational system. Grades serve a variety of purposes, including performance assessment, motivation and administrative management.
Performance Assessment
One of the simplest purposes of grading is performance assessment. Grades serve as a formal tool to assess a student’s academic performance in class. Once teachers assign grades, students receive reports showing their grades for each class. This offer students formal feedback on the teacher’s view of their performance based on the established grading criteria for the course. By offering grade assessments, educators give students a chance to look for additional information or help and to make adjustments to performance moving forward.
Motivation
Beyond being an informative assessment tool, grades can encourage students to behave more effectively in the learning process. On tests, for instance, ambitious students will typically put more time and effort into studying and learning because the results will be graded. A teacher’s grading criteria usually serve as communication of the behaviors and results the teacher views as critical to student success. When students receive high marks, they often feel positive reinforcement and strive to repeat. Low grades can serve as a forewarning for under-performing students.
Framed Learning Objectives
Grades also allow teachers to formulate and communicate learning objectives for a class. Grading criteria are normally determined prior to the start of a class. Requirements are usually communicated to students or parents in the case of younger students. Criteria used for grading provide insight into the learning objectives and expectations for the class. Some teachers weight grades to place special emphasis on tests, homework, projects or other activities. Heavy test grade influence, for instance, exhibits a teacher’s belief that results-based performance is a motivator of student learning because students must study and demonstrate competency on class content.
Administrative Management
Grades serve a broader purpose in different facets of school administration. Colleges, for instance, use high school transcripts and grades to assess an applicant’s qualifications for entrance. Junior high and high schools evaluate grades to establish whether students can compete in sports and extra-curricular activities. This helps keep academics and activities in balance. Grades also provide one metric for evaluation of student performance at grade levels or in certain topics.