Mastery Grading versus Point Based Grading in a Mathematics Classroom
For many years now I have been using mastery based testing when teaching Calculus. This is a method of assessment which gives credit only for mastery of a certain topic, hence no partial credit is given. However, multiple opportunities are given to the student to demonstrate mastery on a particular topic. There are many benefits to this type of assessment system, both for the teacher and the student. Students are able to learn at their own pace, while teachers have a much better understanding of what their students actually understand at the end of the semester. While I have been using this method in a mathematics classroom, I believe it can be useful for many other disciplines as well, especially STEM disciplines. I will discuss the details of how this assessment is implemented in my classroom, as well as some results I and my colleagues have obtained about the effectiveness of the method to student learning.