On Grading | Clarifying Policies
Last semester I wrote a post about the expectations that students have regarding grades. The long and the short of it was that students often feel like if they do everything asked of them, and they do it really well, then they should get an ‘A’. Up until now my syllabuses have basically explained that if you do as much, you’ll likely earn a ‘B’ in the course. I explain that in order to get an ‘A’ you have to do truly outstanding work.
Simply saying that the work should be outstanding, though, is vague and not very helpful. It’s likely less helpful with students who are routinely told how smart they are by university administration, therefore assuming that they are instantly capable of outstanding work. For example, at a welcome back faculty breakfast last week and at the freshman convocation, multiple administrative faculty praised the incoming class of 2019 for having the highest collective test scores in our school’s history. I don’t recall the exact number, but average GPAs were above 3.5 and average SATs were in the 1200 range. And while that’s really nice, and it does suggest an ability to follow guidelines and to follow through on projects, it does not necessarily mean high cognitive ability. As a 2012 study showed, even though students test scores in a study group increased, students’ ability to engage in abstract critical thought did not. In other words, you don’t have to be able to think critically or logically to pass those tests, you just have to understand how the tests work and what’s expected of you.
For me, this suggests that while we know our students can follow rules and guidelines, they haven’t yet been tested on their abstract thinking skills. So what often happens is I’ll get some students each semester who are great at following guidelines, but have trouble pushing beyond. You teach to the test and you’re gonna get people who are really good at taking tests. And while not every aspect of primary and secondary education is focused on testing, it seems that enough is to leave me with plenty of students who are utterly shocked to get a ‘B’. In lieu of this, I’ve added some new language to the grading section on my syllabuses:
It is a common misconception that earning a ‘B’ is close to earning an ‘A’. In reality, an ‘A’ grade is often closer to a ‘C’ than it is to a ‘B’. The mark of ‘A’ suggests that you took a significant risk in completing the assignment, and that the risk paid off. If you are able to follow instructions in a clear and interesting way, you will likely be able to earn a ‘B’. If you bring a perspective that is uniquely your own, is well-sourced, makes your audience question something they thought they knew, and you do so in a way that is ethically sound and engaging, you have earned an ‘A’.
Today, in my special topics course, I had my students tell their life story. One of them I’ve had in class before and he routinely takes risks. Some of them work, but many don’t. He raises his hand to answer questions that he’s not sure about, and he chooses projects that seem to be too big to tackle. At times they are, but at other times they push him to do some really cool stuff. As he told his story today, he remarked that his time in high school changed him and now, as a senior looking back on his college experience, he feels changed again. I don’t think that all students go through those changes, but some do. And they tend to be the ones that routinely get Cs and As, but rarely Bs.