GRADING SYSTEM and the

GRADING SYSTEM of the

DEPARTMENT of EDUCATION
Learning Outcomes

 Distinguish between norm-referenced and criterion-

referenced grading; cumulative and averaging grading
system

 Compute grades of students in various grade levels

observing DepEd guidelines
 Introduction
 A ssessmen t o f s tudent performa nce i s essenti al l y know i ng how the stud ent i s progressi ng i n a course

(and, i nc i de ntal l y , how a teacher i s a l so performi ng w i th respect to the teach i ng proce ss).

S tep s of A ss ess ment

1. Te sti ng

2. D eci si on

3. Gradi ng

 Gradi ng sy stems had been evol ved i n di fferen t scho ol s systems a l l over the w orl d

 A me ri can s ys tem (A ,B ,B +,B -,C ,C -,D ) seven poi nt system

 P hi l i ppi ne C ol l eges and uni versi ti es (1 ,1 .25,1.50,1.75,2.0,2.5,3.0 and 4 .0 )ei ght poi nt system

 B asi c E duc ati o n 80% o r 75%

8.1 Norm-Referenced
Grading
Norm-referenced grading refers to a grading system where a student’s grade is placed in

relation to the performance of a group. Thus, in this system, a grade of 80% of the class(or

group). At first glance, there appears to be no problem with this type of grading system as it

simply describes the performance of a student with reference to a particular group of learners.

Example: Consider the following two sets of scores in an English 1 class for two sections of

ten students each:

A ={ 30,40,50,55,60,65,70,75,80,85}

B ={60,65,70,75,80,85,90,90,95,100}
 In norm-referenced grading, the  The underlying assumption in norm-
students while they may work referenced grading is that students have
individually, are actually in competition abilities (as reflected in their raw
to achieve a standard of performance scores) that obey the normal
that will classify them into the desired distribution. The objective is to find out
grade range. the best performers in this group.

 1.0 (Excellent) = Top 15% of class  Norm-referenced systems are most often
used for screening selected student
 1.50 (Good) = Next 15% of class
populations in conditions where it is
 2.0 (Average, Fair) = Next 45% of class known that not all students can advance
due to limitations such as available
 3.0 (Poor, Pass) = Next 15% of class
places, jobs, or other controlling factors.
 5.0 (Failure) =Bottom 10% of class
  . in a test is 70 with a standard
 Example: In a class of 100 students, the mean score
deviation of 5. Construct a norm-referenced grading table that would have seven-grade
scales and such that students scoring between plus or minus one standard deviation from
the mean receives an average grade.

Solution : The following intervals of raw scores to grade equivalents are computed:

Raw Score Grade Percentage

Equivalent
Below 55 Fail 1%
55-60 Marginal Pass 4%
61-65 Pass 11%
66-75 Average 68%
76-80 Above Average 11%
81-85 Very Good 4%
Above 85 Excellent 1%
 8.2 Criterion-Referenced Grading
are based on a fixed criterion measure. There is a fixed target and the students

must achieve that target in order to obtain a passing grade in a course regardless

of how the other students in he class perform. The scale does not change

regardless of the quality, or lack thereof, of the students.

1.0 (Excellent) = 98-100 or 85-100
1.5 (Good) = 88-97 Or 80-84
2.0 (Fair) = 75-87 Or 70-79
3.0 (Poor/ Pass) = 65-74 Or 60-69
5.0 (Failure) = below 65 Or below 60
 Criterion-referenced systems are often used in situations where the teachers are agreed
on the meaning of a “standard of performance” in a subject but the quality of the students
is unknown or uneven; where the work involves student collaboration or teamwork, and
where there is no external driving factor such as needing to systematically reduce a pool
of eligible students.

 Criterion-referenced grading system, students can help a fellow student in a group work
without necessarily worrying about lowering his grade in that course.

 Since the criterion measure used in criterion-referenced grading is a measure that

ultimately rests with the teacher, it is logical to ask: What prevents teachers who use
criterion-referenced grading from setting the performance criteria so low that everyone
can pass with ease?
 8.6 Cumulative and Averaging Systems of
Grading
In the Philippines, there are two types of grading systems used: the averaging and the cumulative grading systems.

In the averaging systems, the grade of the student on a particular grading period equals the average of the grades

obtained in the prior grading periods and the current grading period.

E x a m p l e : S t u d e n t ’s g r a d e s a r e :

80-Prelim

90-Midterm

85-Final 80+90+85

3 = 85 is the final grade for the semester

The Department of Education makes use of the averaging grading system.

In the cumulative grading system, the grade of the student in a grading period equals his current grading period

equals his current grading period grade which is assumed to have the c u m u l a t i v e e ff e c t s o f t h e p r e v i o u s g r a d i n g

periods.

Example: 80-Prelim

90- Midterm grade

8 0 - Te n t a t i v e F i n a l G r a d e

Final

Grade= 1/3 of Midterm

G r a d e + 2 / 3 o f Te n t a t i v e F i n a l G r a d e

1/3 of 90 + 2/3 of 80 30 + 53.33 = 83

 8.7 Policy Guidelines on Classroom Assessment for the
K to 12 Basic Education , DepEd Order No. 8, s. 2015

Weight of the Components for the Different Grade Levels and Subjects

The students grade is a function of three components: 1) written work 2) performance tasks

and 3) quarterly assessment. The percentages vary across clusters of subjects. Languages,

Araling Panlipunan (AP) and Eduskasyon sa Pagpapakatao (EsP) belong to one cluster and

have the same grade percentages for written work, performance tasks and quarterly

assessment. Science and Math are another cluster with the same component percentages.

Music, Arts, Physical Education and Health (MAPEH) make up third cluster with same

component percentages.
Table 7 presents the weights of the components for SHS subjects which are
grouped into 1) core subjects, 2) all other subjects (applied and specialization)
and work immersion of the academic track, and 3) all other subject ( applied and
specialization) and work immersion/research/exhibit/performance.
8.8 Steps in Grade Computation
 For MAPEH, individual grades are given to each area, namely, Music, Arts, Physical Education
and Health. The quarterly grade for MAPEH is the average of the quarterly grades in four areas.

Quarterly Grade = QG for Music + QG for Arts + QG for PE + QG for Health

(QG) for MAPEH

8.9 Grade Computation

For Kindergarten

There are no numerical grades in Kindergarten. Descriptions of the learners’ progress in the
various learning areas are represented using checklist and student portfolio. These are presented
to the parents at the end of each quarter for discussion. Additional guidelines on the Kindergarten
program will be issued.
For Grades 1-10

Final Grade by Learning Area = 1 s t QG + 2 n d QG + 3 r d QG + 4 t h QG

General Average = Sum of Final Grades of All Learning Areas

Total number of Learning Areas in a grade level

The Final Grade in each learning area and the General Average are reported as whole number.
Table 10 shows an example of the Final Grades of the different learning areas and General
Average of a Grade 4 student.
For Grades 11 and 12

The two quarters determine the Final Grade in a semester. Table 11 shows an example in Grade
11, second semester for the Accounting Business and Management (ABM) strand.
C. How is the learner’s progress reported?

The summary of learner progress is shows quarterly to parents and guardians through a parent-
teacher conference, in which the report card is discussed. The grading scale, with its
corresponding descriptors, is in the Table 12. Remarks are given at the end of the grade level.