Innovative Grading Strategies: How Specifications Grading Can Empower Active Learning and Industry Preparedness

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Keywords: Active Learning, Industry Preparedness, Innovative Grading

Abstract: Being able to quantify learning and have students apply themselves sustainably are goals many instructors can relate to and aspire for in the classroom. Innovative grading strategies, like specifications grading, provide a vehicle to help empower mutually beneficial experiences. Specifications grading focuses on progress rather than perfection and students self-monitor their academic/course progress. The evidence behind specifications grading is clear: it motivates student learning, strengthens rigor to our curriculum, mitigates end of semester grade panic, saves faculty time with grading, and prepares our college students for their transition to the workforce by helping them become self-aware, self-motivated, and self-regulated learners.