Teacher Judgment in Student Evaluation: A Comparison of Grading Methods

This validity study compares the Parent-Teacher Conference Guide grading system with another system based on teachers' experience. In addition to assigned third-quarter grades, teachers provide alternative ratings of effort and achievement and predict student scores on a standardized group achievement battery. Results indicate that: (a) teachers do discriminate between effort and achievement; (b) teachers can make better predictions toward external measures of achievement when they use a standard based on professional experience; and (c) the experience-based ratings offer a better fit with the concept of achievement as an interaction of effort and ability. These results offer encouraging support for the soundness of teacher judgment as a subjective, but necessary, component in any grading system.