Help! My Students Hate Their Grades

On November 18, 2013, in Being a GA/TA, Dilemmas, Monday Motivation, Tools, by gregorynpaziuk

No matter the context, handing back graded assignments is the surest way to bring the temperature down in any room. Often, in spite of your commentary or review, there are students who just can’t accept the mark they’ve received. (That’s why there’s a whole wikiHow on “How to Get a Professor to Change Your Grade”). And while it can be difficult to deal with a challenge to your teaching practices from a stressed out student worried about how your test will affect their GPA, it’s not fair to just dismiss their concerns, nor is it fair to cave to every demand.

Here are some tips on how to navigate the dreaded grade challenge:

  • Take a breather and reconvene tomorrow. That goes for both you and the student. Make it clear that you will see any student seeking clarification on the grade they received only after that student has taken 24 hours to review the grade and your comments. This is the surest way for level heads to prevail. Rob Weir (2011) also suggests requiring students to bring detailed notes about their assignment and how it can be improved if they would like to discuss their grade.
  • Don’t offer extra credits you haven’t planned for. Weir (2011) also cautions against offering extra-credit assignments that will only add to your work load. These types of measures also tend to lead to widespread challenges, as the deal you make with one dissatisfied student is sure to appeal to a number of others. Before you return an assignment, develop a plan for how you will handle appeals for extra credit. Rather than offer extra marks or alter the grade distribution, consider forming support groups for students who acknowledge that they need to improve on future assignments.
  • Keep detailed records. Very recently a friend told me about a frustrating experience she had in one of her courses. Despite receiving average grades throughout the term, her final mark at the end of the term was a narrow fail. Reviewing the grades she had received on individual assignments, she found that there was no mathematical way she could have received that final grade. When this was brought to the instructor’s attention, the grade was promptly changed. The moral of this story is that your students will keep track of their marks, and so should you. Stanford University’s Teaching Commons explains that, “Such records will make it easier for you to justify and/or reevaluate a student’s final grade if necessary.”
  • Know the policy. The University of Windsor has specific guidelines for appealing grades, but many supervisors prefer to settle grading disputes for GA/TAs before the matter is formally appealed. Discuss grading disputes with your supervisor so that you know what recourse you can offer students that are still unsatisfied with their marks after you’ve met and discussed them.
  • Remember you’re human, too. This can really mean two things:
    • First, it’s possible you made a mistake. Clerical errors have been known to happen to even accomplished academics, and once in a while students end up with grades they don’t deserve due to miscalculations. Never take for granted that the grade you’ve assigned is the grade you intended.
    • Second, be compassionate. As GA/TAs we have the benefit of being student teachers and thus being able to sympathize with student problems. No matter how frustrating or challenging a dispute may be, try to remember the enormous pressure students are under. Remind students that grade is a reflection on one example of their work, not a comment on their ability or potential.
  • Stay firm. While it’s important to be compassionate, it’s equally important to uphold the academic standards of the course. Let sympathy and compassion dictate the way you approach a dispute, not the way you grade. Whatever reevaluation you perform should be based on the merit of the work.

References

Weir, R. (2011). Sympathy, no surrender. InsideHigherEd. Retrieved from http://www.insidehighered.com/advice/2011/11/11/essay-how-deal-complaints-about-grades-papers

Stanford University. (n.d.). Strategies for fair and conflict-free grading. Stanford teaching commons. Retrieved from https://teachingcommons.stanford.edu/resources/teaching/evaluating-students/assessing-student-learning/strategies-fair-and-conflict-free

 

2 Responses to Help! My Students Hate Their Grades

  1. […] forget to check your math. We’ve said it before, and we’ll say it again: mistakes do happen. When compiling grades, always check your math at least fifty times, give or […]

  2. […] Help! My Students Hate Their Grades […]

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