assignments are broken down into individually graded items. any item to be graded will be scored on the 4-point scale shown below (zero based).
| 0 | nothing of value was submitted |
| 1 | solution submitted, but clearly not correct |
| 2 | solution is only partially correct |
| 3 | perfect solution, meets every requirement and expectation |
a score of 0, 1, and 3 are clearly identifiable; anything not clearly identifiable is scored a 2. if i feel a particular item is more important and therefore should carry more weight, i may use a multiplicative factor (n) to change the possible scores for that item to be 0, n, 2n, and 3n.
the reason for using discrete values is to avoid arguments over unimportant issues, to remove (as much as possible) the subjectivity in grading, to allow (as much as possible) room for unit/automatic testing systems, and to reduce the turnaround time for receiving a grade. furthermore, this scoring can often be more telling than some arbitrary number of points.
i convert an individual item score to a letter grade as follows: 0 maps to an F, 1 to D-, 2 to C (average), and 3 to A. for a final grade for an assignment, i use the following chart with T is the total points available divided by 18.
| (16T,17T] | A- | (17T,18T] | A | ||||
| (13T,14T] | B- | (14T,15T] | B | (15T,16T] | B+ | ||
| (10T,11T] | C- | (11T,12T] | C | (12T,13T] | C+ | ||
| (4T,6T] | D- | (6T,8T] | D | (8T,10T] | D+ | ||
| [0T,4T] | F |
note: there will be no rounding up when determining your final score. for example, receiving a 16 out of 18 will always be a B+ and never an A-. i do reserve the right to award a higher grade than strictly earned; outstanding attendance and class participation figure prominently in such decisions.
exams and final course grade will be scored similarly.
i have based my grading philosophy on an article by Dr. William J. Rapaport (linked below).
| total score: | |||
| a | < x ≤ | ||
| a- | < x ≤ | ||
| b+ | < x ≤ | ||
| b | < x ≤ | ||
| b- | < x ≤ | ||
| c+ | < x ≤ | ||
| c | < x ≤ | ||
| c- | < x ≤ | ||
| d+ | < x ≤ | ||
| d | < x ≤ | ||
| d- | < x ≤ | ||
| f | ≤ x ≤ | ||