Publication Date

2021

Document Type

Dissertation/Thesis

First Advisor

Elish-Piper, Laurie

Degree Name

Ed.D. (Doctor of Education)

Legacy Department

Department of Curriculum and Instruction (CI)

Abstract

This study examined community college full-time faculty members’ perceptions of grading and reporting student learning via course grades using a mixed methods approach. The research questions that guided this study asked about the differences that exist in community college full-time faculty members’ perceptions of grading by different academic subdivision, by having or not having a degree in education, and by gender. Additionally, the study examined how perceptions of the purpose of grades differ among faculty members. The study also sought to find out which criteria were used to determine course grades and what experiences faculty members attribute to learning how to grade. For the study, a sample (N=133) of full-time faculty members participated in a one-shot survey, and the data were analyzed using inferential statistics. Subsequently, semi-structured interviews of full-time faculty members (N=8) were conducted to analyze the qualitative data. From the quantitative data, a difference was found in how faculty members grade based on academic subdivision. Additionally, there was a difference found in the purpose of grades based on the number of years the faculty member has been in the field of education. In the interviews, participants reported a wide variety of experiences regarding how they learned to grade, as well as a wide variety of components in their grades, which raised concerns regarding the consistency and accuracy of course grades.

Extent

142 pages

Language

eng

Publisher

Northern Illinois University

Rights Statement

In Copyright

Rights Statement 2

NIU theses are protected by copyright. They may be viewed from Huskie Commons for any purpose, but reproduction or distribution in any format is prohibited without the written permission of the authors.

Media Type

Text

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