Examining Elementary School Teachers' Views and Practices Related to Grading and Reporting of Students' Learning

Abstract

This paper presents the elementary school teachers’ views and practices related to grading and reporting of students’ learning. This study also examined the different challenges that are faced by teachers during grading practices and also explored the gaps that exist between teachers' views and practices regarding grading and reporting of students' learning. Qualitative research (phenomenological design) was employed to conduct the study. Data were collected in two phases; in phase one, open-ended questionnaires were used with 50 teachers, which comprised four general questions related to grading and reporting of students' learning. On the basis of the initial analysis of teachers' input, those ten teachers were selected for phase two of data collection activities which have maximum variations in their views. Data were collected through in-depth interviews and documents analysis in phase two of data collection. The major findings revealed that the traditional grading system is used in public schools and teachers consider only cognitive factors (achievement marks) and summative assessment scores while assigning grades to students' learning. The findings highlighted the difficulties like large class size, the restriction imposed by authority, consideration of different factors, etc., that teachers faced during their grading practices. It was further revealed that noticeable gaps exist between teachers’ views and their practices related to grading and reporting of students’ learning. For example, participant teachers insisted on considering both cognitive and non-cognitive factors, but their practices contradict their views since the grades were assigned only on the basis of Percentage marks and that too obtained during summative exams.