Student-Defined Indicators of Fairness and Transparency in Grading Practices
Keywords:
Fairness, Transparency, Grading Practices, Qualitative Research, Student Perceptions, Assessment Literacy, Higher Education, IranAbstract
The study aimed to identify student-defined indicators of fairness and transparency in grading practices
among university students. A qualitative, phenomenological approach was employed, using semistructured interviews with 22 university students from diverse fields of study in Tehran. Participants
were selected via purposive sampling until theoretical saturation was achieved. Interviews, lasting
between 35 and 60 minutes, were audio-recorded, transcribed verbatim, and analyzed through thematic
analysis using NVivo software, following Braun and Clarke’s systematic approach to coding and theme
generation. Three main themes emerged from student interviews: perceived fairness, transparency in the
grading process, and trust in the grading system. Perceived fairness included consistency of grading,
justification of scores, opportunities for appeal, recognition of student effort, and considerations of
equity. Transparency indicators emphasized clarity of grading criteria, timely communication of grading
policies, accessible grading information, feedback mechanisms, transparent regrading procedures, and
student involvement in assessment design. Trust was associated with teacher professionalism, student
voice and agency, historical reliability, confidentiality, alignment of grading with learning goals, and
responsiveness to mistakes. The study highlights students’ nuanced expectations of fairness and
transparency, demonstrating that students strongly value consistency, clarity, meaningful feedback, and
the opportunity to engage actively with grading processes. Trust in grading was significantly related to
perceived professionalism, transparency, and equity. Incorporating student-defined indicators into
grading practices can enhance student motivation, engagement, and educational outcomes. Institutions
are recommended to involve students in co-constructing assessment criteria, maintain clear and
consistent grading procedures, and ensure robust mechanisms for feedback and appeals.
Downloads
References
Andrade, H. L. (2005). Teaching with rubrics: The good, the bad, and the ugly. College Teaching, 53(1), 27-31.
https://doi.org/10.3200/CTCH.53.1.27-31
Betebenner, D. W., & Linn, R. L. (2005). Consistency of student mastery classification across tests with varied standards and criterionreferenced interpretations. Educational Measurement: Issues and Practice, 24(2), 24-34. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1745-3992.2005.00009.x
Bloxham, S., den-Outer, B., Hudson, J., & Price, M. (2016). Let’s stop the pretence of consistent marking: Exploring the multiple limitations
of assessment criteria. Assessment & Evaluation in Higher Education, 41(3), 466-481. https://doi.org/10.1080/02602938.2015.1024607
Boud, D. (2015). Feedback: Ensuring that it leads to enhanced learning. The Clinical Teacher, 12(1), 3-7. https://doi.org/10.1111/tct.12345
Boud, D., & Falchikov, N. (2007). Rethinking assessment in higher education: Learning for the longer term. London: Routledge.
Boud, D., & Molloy, E. (2013). Rethinking models of feedback for learning: The challenge of design. Assessment & Evaluation in Higher
Education, 38(6), 698-712. https://doi.org/10.1080/02602938.2012.691462
Braun, V., & Clarke, V. (2006). Using thematic analysis in psychology. Qualitative Research in Psychology, 3(2), 77-101.
https://doi.org/10.1191/1478088706qp063oa
Brookhart, S. M. (2013). How to create and use rubrics for formative assessment and grading. Alexandria, VA: ASCD.
Brown, G. T. L. (2011). Teachers’ conceptions of assessment: Comparing practice and theory. Assessment in Education: Principles, Policy
& Practice, 18(1), 5-25. https://doi.org/10.1080/0969594X.2010.513678
Carless, D. (2015). Exploring learning-oriented assessment processes. Higher Education, 69(6), 963-976. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10734-
014-9816-z
Carless, D., & Boud, D. (2018). The development of student feedback literacy: Enabling uptake of feedback. Assessment & Evaluation in
Higher Education, 43(8), 1315-1325. https://doi.org/10.1080/02602938.2018.1463354
Creswell, J. W., & Poth, C. N. (2018). Qualitative inquiry and research design: Choosing among five approaches (4th ed.). Thousand Oaks,
CA: Sage.
Elwood, J., & Klenowski, V. (2002). Creating communities of shared practice: The challenges of assessment use in learning and teaching.
Assessment & Evaluation in Higher Education, 27(3), 243-256. https://doi.org/10.1080/02602930220128706
Feldman, J. (2018). Grading for equity: What it is, why it matters, and how it can transform schools and classrooms. Corwin.
Gordon, M. (2019). Assessing fairness in grading: An empirical study. Assessment & Evaluation in Higher Education, 44(2), 175-189.
https://doi.org/10.1080/02602938.2018.1487021
Guskey, T. R. (2015). On your mark: Challenging the conventions of grading and reporting. Bloomington, IN: Solution Tree Press.
Hosseini, S. M., & Mohammadi, F. (2021). Assessment practices in Iranian higher education: Challenges and prospects. Studies in
Educational Evaluation, 68, 100966. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.stueduc.2020.100966
Nieminen, J. H., & Lahtero, T. J. (2020). Students as partners in assessment: Developing student agency in self-assessment. Assessment &
Evaluation in Higher Education, 45(7), 1044-1057. https://doi.org/10.1080/02602938.2019.1704023
Sadler, D. R. (2009). Indeterminacy in the use of preset criteria for assessment and grading. Assessment & Evaluation in Higher Education,
34(2), 159-179. https://doi.org/10.1080/02602930801956059
Salehi, H., & Bahrami, S. (2019). Quality assurance in Iranian higher education: A review of policies and practices. Quality in Higher
Education, 25(2), 195-211. https://doi.org/10.1080/13538322.2019.1646970
Smith, C., Worsfold, K., Davies, L., Fisher, R., & McPhail, R. (2013). Assessment literacy and student learning: The case for explicitly
developing students’ ‘assessment literacy.’ Teaching in Higher Education, 18(2), 205-218. https://doi.org/10.1080/13562517.2012.696539
Tierney, R. D. (2014). Fairness in educational assessment. In J. A. McMillan (Ed.), SAGE handbook of research on classroom assessment
(pp. 155-174). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
Volume 2, Issue 4
9
Tierney, R. D., Simon, M., & Charland, J. (2011). Being fair: Teachers’ interpretations of fairness in classroom assessment. Teaching and
Teacher Education, 27(6), 960-969. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tate.2011.03.006
Winstone, N. E., Nash, R. A., Rowntree, J., & Parker, M. (2017). ‘It’d be useful, but I wouldn’t use it’: Barriers to university students’
feedback seeking and recipience. Studies in Higher Education, 42(11), 2026-2041. https://doi.org/10.1080/03075079.2015.1130032
Downloads
Published
Submitted
Revised
Accepted
Issue
Section
License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
