Article ID | Journal | Published Year | Pages | File Type |
---|---|---|---|---|
372724 | Studies in Educational Evaluation | 2011 | 12 Pages |
In Germany, the Abitur grades awarded at the end of upper secondary education are critical in the allocation of sought-after university places. Drawing on a representative sample of 3526 grade 13 Abitur students in the German state of Baden-Württemberg, this article examines whether and to what extent grading is affected by the mean achievement of the school serving as frame of reference (“group-referenced grading”), and to what extent this influence differs for coursework and examination grades in mathematics and English as a foreign language. Overall, the results indicate that the higher level of standardization of the central Abitur examinations makes examination grades less susceptible to frame-of-reference effects than are coursework grades.
► The comparability of teacher-assigned grades is thought to be limited. ► There is evidence for reference group effects in grading. ► Grades from central exams are less susceptible for such frame of reference effects.