GRADING GROUP WORK: WHY SOME METHODS ARE JUST BETTER

There are many ways to grade group work at school. Read why some methods result in negative outcomes and others result in accurate grading that encourages each member to collaborate well with the group.

“As it seems, most teachers consider student input about how other group members were working as a potential factor to change some people’s grades.” graphic designed by Elliott Cisco

The Dilemma

From a teacher’s perspective, figuring out how to grade a group project where multiple students are involved can be a challenging task. Surely you need to incorporate the final product, and each group member’s efforts, and also make sure it won’t take forever to grade (you value your free time after all). How do we even weave this all together?

One easy method is to just look at the final product, grade it, and give every group member the same grade. This method is okay if given the perfect conditions... but for several it is just not good in general.

Another method is to grade each student individually based on their individual work alone. This method requires potentially a lot more work for the teacher, but it’s much much better when it comes to encouraging everyone to collaborate, making everyone feel valued, and giving everyone a grade that is within their control. How does this system accomplish this?

Well, because one’s grade is based only on what they do themselves, there’s no point in doing nothing and trying to let other people do the work for you. Because what you do also cannot affect other people’s grades, someone who is really excited about the project but knows their work won’t get as high of a grade can still feel good about their contribution knowing that they didn’t hurt other people in the group. This also means that the grade you get isn’t out of your control because other people’s work (or lack of work) doesn’t affect you.

But one problem with this system is that it doesn’t even include the final product. Sure, maybe the students worked on things, but did they even collaborate well and make something coherent? 

The Reality

When it comes to it, summarizing complex goals and things into one big number usually doesn’t work for the purposes it is intended for. Just like how an IQ score is not necessarily indicative of intelligence, a grade cannot be perfectly indicative of a student’s excellence, nor their other traits.

With the system we have now however,  amendments and changes can still be made to better improve its accuracy (especially considering your grade can completely change your future in some cases).

When it comes to group work, the “best” way it can be graded can differ on scenario, but usually a system that incorporates individual work, student input (about how other group members are acting), and the final product in some way is the most accurate. Ultimately, the teacher has the executive power to right the wrongs in the way they see fit; even with a “bad” grading system for group work, a good teacher will reach out to those who speak out and resolve the issue.

From a small survey sent to teachers only about group work at Clear Creek Amana High School with 11 responders, we can see that (from the limited amount of data from the survey) that most teachers here are pretty good when it comes to group work.

How do you grade group work? (Check all that apply) 

(0) Grade based on final product only

(2 || ) Grade based on individual work only

(2 || ) Grade based on mostly individual and some final

(9 ||||||||| ) Grade is based on final product but can be modified based off of student input

(1 | ) Group work is not graded

As it seems, most teachers consider student input about how other group members were working as a potential factor to change some people’s grades. So if you’re a student and there’s something about a group project you want a teacher to know, reach out to them! Hopefully you’ll be able to resolve any potential issues.