This study on grading was based on a mixed-method design. Assessment and evaluation have been used synonymously with grading, and have a deeply seated significance in the matters of curriculum, learning outcomes, and instructional strategies, to name a few. A point of convergence in the literature is that grade is an indication of student’s mastery, that is, what student knows, understands and can do. In the process of programmatic assessment, the department of graduate education increased its grading scale. The before and after data, which was the student's grade, was evaluated to determine if the increase in grading scale (treatment) had an impact on the frequency of students who earned high scores in a particular course. The result shows that the treatment did not have an impact on the number of students that earned A. In a further analysis, it was evident that students in the graduate program advanced their effort and employed a greater level of rigor in addressing course assignments after the grading scale was increased. What was also established from this study is that the use of a rubric as a grading tool fostered transparency.    

 

Key words: Grading, assessment, evaluation, rubric, adult learner.