The perennial debate about differential grading—is it good or bad?—is
beginning to move in a new direction—what causes it? This study, based on
responses provided by a random sampling of ABCA members, examines
one of the causes: varying evaluative criteria. The study reports that busi
ness communication instructors identify a variety of criteria for grading
but tend to use a consistent terminology when analyzing student writing.
This consistent terminology does not, however, guarantee a consistent
evaluation.
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References
1.
Joel Bowman , "Problems of the Grading Differential," The Journal of Business Communication, Vol. 11, No. 1, Fall, 1973, pp. 21-30.
2.
Richard A. Hatch and Beverly Stokes, "A Letter to the Editor," The Journal of Business Communication, Vol. 13, No. 1, Fall, 1975, p. 55.
3.
Dorothy C. Wilkinson , "Evidence That Others Do Not Agree With Your Grading of Letters," ABCA Bulletin, Vol. 42, No. 3, September, 1979, p. 30. For information about the beginning of the above-mentioned study, see Dorothy C. Wilkinson, "Do Other Teachers and Your Students Agree With Your Grading of Letters?" ABCA Bulletin, Vol. 42, No. 1, March, 1979, pp. 10-16.
4.
Hatch and Stokes, p. 55.
5.
Wilkinson, p. 30.
6.
Robert D. Gieselman , Letter to the Editor, The ABCA Bulletin, Vol. 43, No. 1, March, 1980.
7.
Ibid.
8.
Funding for this study came from a grant provided by the College of Commerce Research Committee at The University of Alabama.
