100% - The Perfect Score! - A+

(La version francaise se trouve ICI)


*This week I won`t be talking specifically about my work with the JET Programme. Although, the matter of subjectivity with perfect scores was not really an issue when I was teaching science. Now that I teach English, I need to deal with that sneaky lady: subjectivity.*

Is a perfect score something that we should give out often, once in a while or never at all? Of course, if it’s a math or science test with multiple choice answers and the student gets them all right, then, obviously, he gets a perfect score. But I mean when there is any hint of subjectivity in the evaluation; is it ok to give a perfect score for something that exceeds our expectations?

I guess we need to start by wondering why we evaluate. Is it to give a constructive retroaction to the student in a way that helps him learn more and get better with time? Is it so we can measure his performance and compare it with those of the other students in his class, his school, his province (prefecture, state), his country… his planet? Is it to give his parents a feedback on how he is doing at school? Is it to give universities a measurement of the student’s value and his abilities to perform in a specific undergraduate programme? Is it to give everyone a sense that something as been learned and to say: “See!? We didn’t only waste time in the last month. I made a measurement of the learning done and translated it into a number (or a letter)”.

Depending on where you work and on your personal perception of education, the truth might be any, some or all of them.

Let’s be a bit utopian and pretend that the evaluation’s purpose is to help the student progress by showing him his strong and week points and by motivating him to persevere. I think that giving a perfect score can be interpreted differently by different students:

Some might think that they’ve reached perfection.

-“Ha! Ha! Right! Perfection… pfft!”

After all it IS a “perfect score” so they might not work as hard next time, thinking that they already know all they will ever need to know.  (Actually, I would really be surprised that many students would think that way, especially A⁺ students …)

Some other students might see a perfect score as a well deserved reward for working very hard (it can be dangerous if the student actually DIDN’T work very hard and got a perfect score). It might give them a feeling that the world is just and hard work pays off in the long run (ideally, there should be a choir of angels singing at this moment).

But let’s not forget our good old friend; the Pygmalion effect. By perceiving the student as a great achiever, he (or she, as is often the case in more “subjective subjects” (by the way, school is structured in a way that facilitates the success of girls and most boys actually struggle in that environment… maybe I’ll elaborate more in another post))… sorry about that… So, as I was saying… uh, go check the Pygmalion effect on Wikipedia ( :p ).

I think giving a perfect score can be a good thing. If the student really deserves it of course. If perfect scores are handed out like candies, it just becomes a joke and the course looses credibility.

- “So. You ask. If a student does an amazing work and really stands above the other students in the class, he should get a perfect score but if he does the same work and 6 other students in his class do an equally amazing job, then none of them should get a perfect score?”

Uh… I guess I would answer; -“it depends”.

It depends on the class dynamic, the course itself, the age and maturity of the students, how incredible their work really is…

So here comes “subjectivity” once again: she’s never really clear, we need to interpret the signals. Even if there is technically no obvious right or wrong answer, we better choose the right one or she’ll get mad and bring it back every time she can.

I think a good way to keep “subjectivity” at a distance is to have very well defined objectives. It’s even better if the students understand clearly what is expected of them. That way, by becoming a bit more “analytical”, we should be able to give each student his deserved appreciation. After all, isn’t the world supposed to be explained by elegant equations eventually? (For more theoretical physics...)

Without a clear syllabus, a course could become like a “wine appreciation” course where the only objective is to “learn (!) to appreciate wine”.

- “Here. What do you think of this wine?”

-“Oh! I really appreciate it!”

-“Good work. You get A⁺.”

What’s your interpretation of a “perfect score”? Do you ever give any?

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A little side note to finish: I remember that my art teacher in my first year of junior high school (secondary) said that she would never give a perfect score because a work of art can never be "perfect". It is simply too subjective. 

My sister had the same teacher when she began high school 6 years later and I`m pretty sure she got a couple of 100% scores from that same teacher.  I guess that "subjectivity" is almost synonym to "opinion", so it is not surprising that people change their way of thinking.

In her defense, my sister is truly a phenomenal artist. You can see some of her work HERE.