Introduction Video
Over my history of teaching, I’ve found grading to be a complex topic. Grades seem to be what every student — rightfully and understandably — focuses on. Grades are an imperfect tool to measure how well students are performing in a class, and are a means for different agencies to quickly assess the intellectual ability of a student. I have experienced so much strife among students over the insignificant details on a grade when that emotional energy could be placed elsewhere. So, I’ve decided to switch all of my grading in every class to specifications grading.
What is Specifications Grading?
Specifications grading is a complement to mastery learning because grades are structured on competencies achieved rather than on points earned, meaning that mastery is the key to success. The goals of a specifications grading system include many things, but I like to focus on the following:
- Uphold high academic standards,
- Reflect student learning outcomes,
- Motivate students to learn,
- Motivate students to excel,
- Discourage cheating,
- Reduce student stress,
- Make students feel responsible for their grades,
- Minimize conflict between faculty and students,
- Save faculty time,
- Give students feedback they will use,
- Make expectations clear,
- Foster higher-order cognitive development and creativity,
- Assess authentically,
- Achieve high interrater agreement,
- Be simple
Why use Specifications Grading?
The “real world” outside of academia does not operate on a grading system (most of the time). In general, when you perform a job or contract, you will be assess based on a pass/fail type system. Did you do the job? Did it do the thing it was intended to do? Did each subcomponent of a task reach a threshold of professionalism?
How does this apply to my course?
You’ll notice that your grade is going to be a summation of P/F items. Each class I teach is slightly different on the exact specifications, but the following are generally applicable:
Calculating a Letter Grade
As each course still requires me to submit a letter grade, each P/F item will be tallied as the conclusion of the course. Some items will have multiple P/F components, and will account for a higher percentage of your grade. I follow the general guidelines for percentages for a letter grade (90% an A, 80% a B, etc).
The Grades you Can Receive
For each pass/fail item, you can get one of three scores. This is to reflect the grading scale you will find in various professional school/areas where the scale is “unsatisfactory/satisfactory/excellent (or honors).” Note that the rough percentage scale is generalized, and can change for specific activities:
| Pass Items Earned | Percentage Equivalent | Comments |
| 1 | 90-100% | work is done, excellent, with possibly a few minor errors |
| 0.75 | 60-89.9% | done, but needs a bit of work to reach the full credit standard |
| 0 | <59.9% | done, but with major errors or not done at all. View this as not meeting appropriate standards |
Pre/Post Lecture Assessment
These will generally be on a fully P/F basis, and each assessment will be worth 1% of your grade. These add up fast!
Homework Assignments
These will typically have a sum of P/F items. For instance, if a homework assignment has 5 P/F items, you need to pass each of the items to get a 5/5 on the homework. You can get 3/5 on the assignment if you completely miss 2 parts of the assignment.
Exams / Projects
Similar to homework assignments, exams and projects will be a summation of P/F items, but tends to be in the 6 to 10 P/F items range.