A Guide to Grading Exams
I wrote the following post many years ago, but as the school semester moves toward a close, I thought I'd raid the archive and post it here.
It’s
that time of year again. Students have taken their finals, and now it
is time to grade them. It is something professors have been looking
forward to all semester. Exactness in grading is a well-honed skill,
taking considerable expertise and years of practice to master. The
purpose of this post is to serve as a guide to young professors about
how to perfect their grading skills and as a way for students to learn
the mysterious science of how their grades are determined.
Grading begins with the stack of exams, shown in Figure 1 below.
Figure 1
The
next step is to use the most precise grading method possible. There
never is 100% accuracy in grading essay exams, as subjective elements
can never be eradicated from the process. Numerous methods have been
proposed throughout history, but there is one method that has clearly
been proven superior to the others. See Figure 2 below.
Figure 2
The
key to this method is a good toss. Without a good toss, it is difficult
to get a good spread for the grading curve. It is also important to get
the toss correct on the first try. Exams can get crumpled if tossed too
much. They begin to look as though the professor actually read them,
and this is definitely to be avoided. Additional tosses are also
inefficient and expend needless time and energy. Note the toss in Figure
3 below. This is an example of a toss of considerable skill — obviously
the result of years of practice.
Figure 3
Note
in Figure 3 above that the exams are evenly spread out, enabling
application of the curve. Here, however, is where the experts diverge.
Some contend that the curve ought to be applied as in Figure 4 below,
with the exams at the bottom of the staircase to receive a lower grade
than the ones higher up on the staircase.
Figure 4
According
to this theory, quality is understood as a function of being toward the
top, and thus the best exams clearly are to be found in this position.
Others, however, propose an alternative theory (Figure 5 below).
Figure 5
They
contend that that the exams at the bottom deserve higher grades than
the ones at the top. While many professors still practice the
top-higher-grade approach, the
leading authorities
subscribe to the bottom-higher-grade theory, despite its
counterintuitive appearance. The rationale for this view is that the
exams that fall lower on the staircase have more heft and have traveled
farther. The greater distance traveled indicates greater knowledge of
the subject matter. The bottom higher-grade approach is clearly the most
logical and best-justified approach.
Even with the grade curve
lines established, grading is far from completed. Several exams teeter
between levels. The key is to measure the extent of what is referred to
as “exam protrusion.” Exams that have small portions extending below the
grade line should receive a minus; exams with protrusions above the
grade lines receive a plus.
But what about exams that are right in
the middle of a line. In Figure 6 below, this exam teeters between the A
and B line. Should it receive and A- or a B+?
Figure 6
This
is a difficult question, but I believe it is clearly an A-. The exam is
already bending toward the next stair, and in the bottom-higher-grade
approach, it is leaning toward the A-. Therefore, this student deserves
the A- since momentum is clearly in that direction.
Finally, there
are some finer points about grading that only true masters have
understood. Consider the exam in Figure 7 below. Although it appears on
the C stair and seems to be protruding onto the B stair, at first
glance, one would think it should receive a grade of C+. But not so. A
careful examination reveals that the exam is crumpled. Clearly this is
an indication of a sloppy exam performance, and the grade must reflect
this fact. The appropriate grade is C-.
Figure 7
One
final example, consider in Figure 8 below the circled exam that is is
very far away from the others at the bottom of the staircase. Is this an
A+?
Figure 8
Novices
would think so, as the exam has separated itself a considerable
distance from the rest of the pack. However, the correct grade for this
exam is a B. The exam has traveled too far away from the pack, and will
lead to extra effort on the part of the grader to retrieve the exam.
Therefore, the exam must be penalized for this obvious flaw.
As
you can see, grading takes considerable time and effort. But students
can be assured that modern grading techniques will produce the most
precise and accurate grading possible, assuming professors have achieved
mastery of the necessary grading skills.
DISCLAIMER FOR THE GULLIBLE: This post is a joke. Though i think to where im from..ts exactly what tutors do.
Imagine there are two people on a flat 
