Who Will Be Responsible for Grading and Grade Assignment for Students with Disabilities?
Just like planning and presenting instruction, grading in inclusive classrooms must be a collaborative
effort. That is, working together, general and special educators determine grades based on a holistic
evaluation of student performance and student progress. For example, the special educator might
provide documentation of improvement on IEP goals, whereas the general educator considers the
students’ performance compared to that of typical students. Both types of information are valuable in
reporting progress to students and families. Such information also facilitates the development of
instructional goals and plans.
Through the collaborative work of members of the IEP team, important issues can be considered, and
evaluation and grading strategies can be determined in advance. The following are suggestions for
IEP teams to consider in planning student programs and documenting student progress:
• Discuss the purposes of evaluation.
• Use a variety of evaluation techniques for documenting student progress.
• Use multiple measures in evaluating student progress.
• Align evaluation techniques with the desired outcomes.
• Consider alternative grading systems.
• Consider modifying existing grading practices.
• Maintain student confidentiality regarding accommodations and modifications in grading.
• Adhere to school and division policies and practices regarding grading.
Co-teachers must keep these considerations in mind throughout the school year. Although it may be
difficult to achieve consensus, dialogue will be beneficial in developing an appropriate program and
grading procedure for individual students with disabilities.
But how should co-teachers deal with day-to-day grading of student work? First, it is important, early
in the school year, to clarify each team member’s role and responsibility in grading students.
Depending on the level of collaboration between the general and special educators, both may
determine the grading criteria and grade class work and projects together. One experienced coteaching
team graded all assignments together at the beginning of the school year and collaborated on
grade assignment. This provided a valuable opportunity for the special educator to understand the
expectations for grade-level work. At the same time, the general educator had an opportunity to
observe the skill levels of all students. Later, they divided the class in half, with each teacher grading
students with and without disabilities. The co-teachers would confer if they had concerns about a
particular student they were grading.