For tRATs, I also use 4-2-1-0 with the 4-question IF-ATs, but the statement "I couldn't justify giving 1 mark…" made me think of a philosophical dilemma that I have with iRAT grading. For iRATs, I just give 1 point for each question. Thus my iRATs are out of 10 points while my tRATs are out of 40 points (but they get scaled back to 10).

So here's my dilemma: What to do about students who get a 0 on the iRAT? (This is closely related to how to award partial credit on exam questions, which is another big area of philosophical difference in education.) These students clearly did not do adequate preparation, often no preparation at all. However, I sometimes feel the need to differentiate between those who show up for the iRAT and those who skip, because the former at least demonstrate some mental effort. For instance, it has happened once or twice where someone shows up so late that they miss the iRAT entirely and just take the tRAT.

Ultimately, getting a 0 on the iRAT is so rare that I don't dwell on it. But the philosophical question of what warrants a score of 0 is interesting (for me, at least) to think about. So I'm curious if others give out 0s on the iRAT or do you give some base score (say, a 1) to denote present but unprepared students. Also, note that I am working exclusively with undergraduates at a public state university, if that provides some context.

On Jan 16, 2015, at 10:08 AM, Josie Fraser <[log in to unmask]> wrote:

We use 4 - 2 - 1 - 0
We have A-D (4 option) MCQs for our tRATs, so I couldn¹t justify giving 1
mark to the students who have exhausted all the options.
If you have A-E then I can see 4, 3, 2, 1 (0) making more sense.
I wonder whether one gets more discussion with the 4/2/1/0 option. The
fact that getting it right first time is worth double the points may
encourage students to spend more time thinking/discussing their preferred
response and coming to a proper consensus. But that is just a gut feeling
- I wonder if anyone has tried to see whether it actually makes any
difference? Does anyone know of data on this?
Josie ?

Dr Josie A Fraser
Senior Lecturer in Pharmacology, Bradford School of Pharmacy
Associate Dean for Learning & Teaching, Faculty of Life Sciences

School of Pharmacy
Faculty of Life Sciences
University of Bradford
Bradford
West Yorkshire
BD7 1DP

T: (+44)(0)1274 234663
E: [log in to unmask]

On 16/01/2015 14:05, "DrL" <[log in to unmask]> wrote:

Hi,

What is the most popular grading system for tRATs? One point off for
each wrong answer (4,3,2,1) or reduce by half for each wrong answer
(4,2,1,0)? Other methods? What are the pro and cons?

R Roy Lindquist, M.D.
University of Connecticut
School of Medicine

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