UNIVERSITY OF CALOOCAN CITY

Biglang Awa St., Corner Catleya St., EDSA, Caloocan City

COLLEGE OF EDUCATION

ASSESSMENT IN LEARNING II
SUBJECT CODE: MS 114
TOPIC OR LESSON 9: Grading and Reporting
WEEK: 11
SUB-TOPIC/S:
1.1. Functions of Grading and Reporting Systems
1.2. Types of Grading and Reporting Systems

OVERVIEW OF THE TOPIC

One of the more frustrating aspects of teaching is that of grading and reporting student progress since
there are so many factors to consider and so many decisions to be made. This chapter attempts to
simplify this task and to minimize some of the complexities by describing the various types of grading
and reporting systems and providing guidelines for their effective use.

LEARNING
OUTCOMES

Students are expected to differentiate the types of grading and reporting system and to comprehensively
discuss its function and the purposes it serve on the education itself.

LEARNING
OBJECTIVES
At the end of the lesson, students should be able to:

a. Discourse grading and reporting system – its functions and types.

b. Differentiate each type of grading and reporting system – traditional letter-grade system, pass-fail
system, checklist of objectives, letters to parents/ guardians, portfolios, and parent-teacher conferences in
terms of its uses and functions.

ENGAGE

Explain the following thoroughly.

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A. Different Stages in Implementing Portfolio Assessment
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B. Assessing and Evaluating the Portfolios

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EXPLORE
Share your own perspective about the implication of the quote below to your students and to you,
as teacher.

“Grades are first and foremost communication; they are information, nothing more. The moment we
make them something more, we corrupt their constructive use”- Rick Wormeli

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EXPLAIN

The purpose of a grading system is to give feedback to students so they can take charge of their
learning and to provide information to all who support these students—teachers, special educators,
parents, and others. The purpose of a reporting system is to communicate the students’ achievement to
families, post-secondary institutions, and employers. These systems must, above all, communicate clear
information about the skills a student has mastered or the areas where they need more support or practice.
When schools use grades to reward or punish students, or to sort students into levels, imbalances in power
and privilege will be magnified and the purposes of the grading and reporting systems will not be
achieved. This guide is intended to highlight the central practices that schools can use to ensure that their
grading and reporting systems help them build a nurturing, equitable, creative, and dynamic culture of
learning.

DEFINITION OF TERMS

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Grading System:
The system that schools have developed in guiding how teachers will assess and grade student
work.

Reporting System:
The system that a school has developed for the organization of assignment scores in grade books
(either online or paper), and the determination of final grades for report cards and transcripts.

FUNCTIONS OF GRADING AND REPORTING SYSTEM

Grading and reporting systems have some very important functions in the educative process.
Some of these important functions are enumerated below:

a. Enhancing students’ learning through: clarifying instructional objectives for them, showing students’
strengths and weaknesses, providing information on personal-social development, enhancing students’
motivation (e.g., short-term goals) and indicating where teaching might be modified. These can be
achieved through day-to-day tests and feedback and integrated periodic tests.

b. Reports to parents/guardians. Grading and reporting systems also inform parents and guardians of
students on the progress of their wards. Likewise, grades and reports communicate objectives to parents,
so they can help promote learning and likewise, communicate how well objectives were met, so parents
can have better plans for their children.

c. Administrative and guidance uses. The administrative and guidance purpose of grading and reporting
consist in: (1) helping to decide promotion, graduation, honors, and athletic eligibility; (2) reporting
achievement to other schools or to employers; and (3) providing input for realistic educational, vocational
and personal counselling.

These three main purposes of grading and reporting by no means exhaust all possible uses of the
activity. The main point, however, is that grades and report cards should promote and enhance learning
rather than frustrate and discourage students. In many schools, report cards are given to students and then
parents are asked to sign these report cards. It may be a good practice to call for parent-teacher
conferences at this time in order that the report cards will effectively function as motivation for further
learning.

TYPES OF GRADING AND REPORTING SYSTEMS

In practice, we find a number of ways in which grades are made and reported. Normally, the type
of grading used depends on the extent to which more descriptive and informative summaries are required
by school authorities or by the stakeholders in general. Thus, the major types of grading and marking
found in practice include:

 TRADITIONAL LETTER-GRADE SYSTEM

In the traditional letter grade system, students' performances are summarized by means of letters.
Thus, A stands for excellent, C stands for average, D stands for needing improvement and an F as a
failure. The traditional letter grade system is easy to understand but it is of limited value when used as a
sole report because they end up being a combination of achievement, effort, work habits, behavior. As
such, they become difficult to interpret and they do not indicate patterns of strengths and weaknesses.

 PASS-FAIL
The pass or fail system utilizes a dichotomous grade system. Either a student has complied and
reached certain standards, in which case he passes or he failed to do so and he gets a failing mark. This is

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popular in some courses in college. In fact, the pass-fail system should be kept to a minimum because it
does not provide much information, students tend to work to the minimum, and in mastery learning
course, no grades reflected until "mastery" threshold is reached.

 CHECKLIST OF OBJECTIVES
In this system, the objectives of the course are enumerated. After such objective, the students'
level of achievement is indicated: Outstanding, Very Good, Good, Fair or Poor. This is a very detailed
reporting system and tends to be more informative for the parents and pupils at the same time. It is,
however, also very time consuming to prepare. There is also the potential problem of keeping the list
manageable and understandable.

 LETTERS TO PARENTS/GUARDIANS
Letters to parents and guardians are useful supplement to grades. However, they have limited
value as sole report because they are very time consuming to prepare, the accounts of weakness are often
misinterpreted by parents and guardians, and they are not characterized as systematic or cumulative.

 PORTFOLIOS
As already explained, a portfolio is a set of purposefully selected work, with commentary by
student and teacher. Portfolios are useful for showing students' strengths and weaknesses, illustrating
range of students' work, showing progress over time or stages of a project, teaching students about
objectives/standards they are to meet.

 PARENT-TEACHER CONFERENCES
Parent-teacher conferences are mainly used in elementary schools. This requires that parents of
pupils come for a conference with the teacher to discuss the pupils' progress. Portfolios, when available,
are useful basis for discussion. Such conferences are useful for a two-way flow of information and
cooperation from the parents. They are, however, of limited value as a report because most parents do not
come for such conferences.

ELABORA
TE
Write an essay about your own understanding on the different functions of grading and reporting
systems. Your essay must include the following:

- Defining what grading and reporting systems are

- The three main functions of grading and reporting system
- Your contribution as teacher to make these functions work
- Its impact to the growth, development and progress of your students

EVALUAT
E

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Using a graphic organizer, compare and contrast the six (6) types of grading and reporting systems.
You may also add example situations on how these types of grading and reporting systems can be
done.

SCOR
RUBRIC FOR EVALUATION E
3– The explanation is 2 – The explanation 1– The explanation is 0.5 – The 0–
RELEVAN

directly relevant to is relevant to the quite relevant to the explanation is not Has no
the topic. Every detail topic. Most of the topic. Only few of the clear and has a very explanation
CE

points toward the details contribute to details contribute to rough transition of

topic. the development of the development of the idea. The details are
the topic. topic. not relevant to the
topic.
3– The explanation 2– The explanation 1– The explanation 0.5 – The 0–
EVIDEN

ARGUM

shows at least 9 shows at least 6 to 8 shows at 3 to 5 explanation shows at Has no

CE/

correct/valid correct/valid correct/valid evidences most 2 correct/valid explanation

evidences to support evidences to support to support his/her evidences to support
his/her answer. his/her answer. answer. his/her answer.

2– The explanation is 1.5 – The 1– The explanation is 0.5 – The 0–

CLARITY

clear, has a very good explanation is clear, somewhat clear and explanation is not Has no
flow of discussion, has a good transition, has a rough transition clear and has a very explanation
every detail is most of the details from one idea to rough transition of
connected to each are connected to each another. ideas.
other. other.
2– The explanation 1.5 – The 1– The explanation 1.5 – The 0–
TECHNI-
CALITY

has no error in explanation has 1 to has 3 to 4 errors in explanation has at Has no

grammar, spelling, 2 errors in grammar, grammar, spelling, and least 5 errors in explanation
and punctuations. spelling, and punctuations. grammar, spelling,
punctuations. and punctuations.

OVERALL SCORE:

REFERENC
ES
Rosita L. Navarro, Ph.D., Rosita De Guzman-Santos, Ph.D (2013) Authentic Assessment of Student Learning
Outcomes- Assessment of Learning 2 (2nd Edition)

Rosita De Guzman-Santos, Ph.D. (2007) Advanced Methods in Educational Assessment and Evaluation-
Assessment of Learning 2

ADDITIONAL
MATERIALS

The Grading System We need To Have

https://www.google.com/search?
q=quotes+about+grading+system&tbm=isch&source=iu&ictx=1&fir=8WDCWkdzh4byzM
%252CeytgNTEK7QjGHM%252C_&vet=1&usg=AI4_-
kQoR17SUIKuNoZ1dqPsCQmN18jdyg&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwinxrWMjtbxAhVKdXAKHZzlC4k
Q9QF6BAgJEAE&biw=1366&bih=625#imgrc=1iqzMiuV4QauiM&imgdii=8WDCWkdzh4byzM

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Grading and Reporting for Educational Equity
https://www.greatschoolspartnership.org/proficiency-based-learning/grading-reporting/

Types of Grading and Reporting Systems

https://prezi.com/4t330n9d4pzl/72-types-of-grading-and-grading-system/?
frame=69c4b67d6a37dfd0132bb47f6d0e0b0aed630124

PREPARED BY:

Ms. Desiree S. Isidro Ms. Liezl Baja Ms. Monique Patal

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