What is grading?

By definition, a grade is a position in a scale of ranks or qualities.  Simply put, grading is assigning marks based on how well a student meets the learning objectives.  Assessment and grading go hand in hand.  Grading is a very important part of the learning process, when used properly, and has many purposes.

Purpose of Grading: 
  • Communicate the achievement status of students to their stakeholders
  • Provide information for student self-evaluation
  • Select, identify, or group students for certain educational programs
  • Provide incentives for students to learn
  • Document students’ performance to evaluate the effectiveness of instructional programs
  • Provide evidence of students’ lack of effort or inappropriate responsibility

These purposes provide feedback to the teacher, the student, the school, and the many stakeholders involved in a student’s education.  Grades are a measurement to gauge a student’s learning and mastery of a content area.  This measurement of learning is an important practice of that an effective teacher must utilize to improve instruction.

Grading beliefs

Grades should be used to communicate the academic progress of student learning. As a teacher, I want the grades that students earn to reflect what they have learned in my classroom. I want their grades to indicate what objectives and goals they have mastered, and which ones they need to continue to work towards.

Grades should be unambiguous. I will provide my students with clear and concise feedback that will support further learning and academic progress. 


In my classroom, I will…
  • Report students assessment grades no later than four days after the test has been completed. 
  • Keep students grades confidential and up to date. 
  • Report student’s grades to parents and students when they are requested. I will keep grades on a school website so that parents and students have constant access to the information they require. 
  • Use student grades to analyze what worked and did not work in my instruction and test creation and therefore make changes. 
  • Provide students with clear rubrics that I will use for grading and occasionally create these rubrics with student input
  • Make students aware at the beginning of the year of what type of grading system I will be using. I will do this by posting the scale in my room, including it in my syllabus and sending it home to parents. 
  • Answer all grading questions by students and parents within two days of the inquiry. 
  • Include clear and measurable feedback on assignments through the use of comments, totals, and helpful suggestions. 

In my classroom, I will not…

  • Grade students competitively against one another. In my classroom all students will be striving to build on their success instead of being measured against their classmates.
  • Use grades as a punishment. Instead I will use grades to communicate to students and parents about student achievement.
  • Grade each student in the same way across the board without remediation. 
  • Use a measure of student achievement at one moment in time as the only evidence of student learning. Students will be given multiple opportunities to show that they have mastered the objectives. 
  • Keep objectives and expectations secret from students and parents. 

Involvement, Timeliness & Communication Plan

When it comes to grading, it is the teacher’s job to make sure that assessments are scored properly.  As a teacher, I plan on making grading part of my daily schedule, because assessment will be part of my daily schedule.  I strongly believe that if I require students to work hard to get an assignment in a timely matter, I must return the courtesy.  My goal is return all graded assignments the following day.  There may be sometimes where this does not occur because life gets in the way, but this is a goal that I will strive for.  In addition to their progress reports, student grades will be available electronically to their principal, parents/guardian, and stakeholders who are actively involved in their education upon request.