UW's  FACULTY  RESOURCE  ON  GRADING  (frog)
The goal of the Faculty Resources on Grading (FROG) site is to bring relevant information together for the difficult and emotionally-laden task of assigning grades to student performance in University of Washington courses. This site was inspired and sponsored by the Faculty Council on Academic Standards and developed and maintained by the Office of Educational Assessment.

FROG covers a wide range of topics related to grading, including UW policies, procedures and forms, alternative grading practices, departmental grade averages, academic conduct issues, and student disability issues. This site is not intended to dictate any specific grading methodology. Rather, it openly advocates the need for a variety of grading styles to fit the range of courses provided on our diverse campus. Further, its intention is to encourage faculty to think critically about their own grading practices, to develop grading practices that lead to greater learning, and to openly discuss issues related to grading.
 

WE  ALSO  DISCUSSED:
Among the things highlighted in our 22 October 2002 discussion:

Must we "test" students?

• It's certainly possible to design a course without in-class, time-pressured tests.
• Since instructors are charged with assigning grades, some graded exercises and assignments are necessary.

It's UW policy to grade on mastery of material, not on behavior.

• If a student is disruptive, deal with the disruption, but don't reduce the student's grade.
• If a student plagiarizes, do not accept the plagiarized work, but don't refuse to give a grade for the course or automatically fail the student from the course.
• Most surprising to some in Geography 599:  do not grade attendance.  If active, in-class participation supports the course objectives, then it is fine to grade on participation.
• "But doesn't a student have to be attending the session to participate?"  Yes, but it should be possible to earn full participation credit even if a few sessions are missed. (Also, you probably want to set the standard for full credit low enough that you are encouraging students to competitively dominate in class).
• "What about students whose personalities, cultural backgrounds, or even disabilities make it difficult to participate in oral discussions?"  It's a very good idea to allow some alternative modes of participation.  One 599 participant noted that she's allowed students to write questions or suggestions to her at the end of class, as a way of thinking through questions and helping the instructor assess student learning (which are key reasons for encouraging participation in class).