GRADING

After testing, the instructor has the obligation of
attaching a mastery level of competency to the students
performance score. This ultimately takes the form of a letter or
numerical grade. In general, students and faculty appear to be
in favour of numerically quantifiable differences in grading,
such as A+, A, A-. The meaning of a grade varies widely. A
grade is not necessarily perceived the same by the grade giver,
the grade receiver, or the grade user. It appears almost
conclusively that grades are a context-dependent phenomenon.

Many authors have pointed out that grading, measurement and
evaluation are not synonymous. Measurement is the process of
quantifying or attaching a suitable number to data collected as
part of an evaluation program. Evaluation, on the other hand,
includes both quantitative and qualitative descriptions of
behaviour plus some value judgement. Rather than equating these
terms it might be more productive to visualize a hierarchical
structure with measurement embodied in examinations, examinations
embodied in assessment, and assessment embodied in evaluation.

TYPES OF LEARNING AND EVALUATION

Theories of learning deal with the way in which an organism
learns, while theories of teaching deal with the way in which a
person influences an organism to learn. Both theories of
learning and theories of teaching are probably inter-dependent.

What is of importance is the relationship between the
learning task and teaching methods. Learning is not a unitary
concept, but rather should be conceptualized as a hierarchy
involving eight different, and progressively more complex types
of learning. Outcomes of each of kind of learning lower in the
hierarchy is considered to be a prerequisite to each of the
higher types of learning. Planning for effective learning and
the inclusion of meaningful evaluation requires recognition of
these hierarchies of learning.

A different but complimentary approach emphasizes learning
as a more cognitive process, recognizing the value of advanced
organizers and prior knowledge. Both views of learning stress
the importance of meaningfulness, familiarity and feedback (i.e.
evaluation) on learning.

EVALUATION AND INSTRUCTIONAL OBJECTIVES

An instructional objective is a statement of instructional
intent that typically describes what learners will be able to do
after instruction that they couldn't do before instruction. The
philosophy behind instructional objectives is student oriented;
that is, the quality of instruction is evaluated in terms of its
effect on the learner. Objectives are stated in terms of what
the student will be able to do after instruction rather than in
terms of what the teacher will do during instruction. In this
sense they are very much related to the issue of student
evaluation.