UpDate - Vol. 11, No. 13, Page 2
December 5, 1991
Faculty Senate votes to retain plus/minus grading system

     The Faculty Senate debated the subject of equity in grading
late Monday afternoon, then voted overwhelmingly to retain the
plus/minus grading system, under which faculty members choose any
of 12 grades in evaluating a student's academic performance.
     In a vote estimated at 60-6, the senators approved a proposal
made by Frank Murray, H. Rodney Sharp Professor of Educational
Studies and dean of the College of Education, that emphasizes the
use of judgment by individual faculty members in assigning grades.
     The newly adopted policy states:
     "The senate reaffirms the existence of the
12-point grading system, with the understanding
that the faculty may use as many points as in their
academic judgment are appropriate for the purposes
of evaluating their students' academic
achievement."
     The 12-point grading system includes two "A" grades ("A" and
"A-"), three "B," "C" and "D" grades, including pluses and minuses,
and an "F."
     After the senate meeting, Murray said, "Some subjects lend
themselves to plus/minus, so (the policy) has a lot of flexibility
to it." However, several senators and University administrators
said the "new" policy is not really new. Instead, they said, the
policy represents a clarification of existing University
regulations.
     "In effect, the vote means there is no change in the
University grading system," Margaret Andersen, associate provost
for academic affairs, said. "The plus/minus system is still the
policy of the University. The resolution reaffirms faculty members'
authority in grading situations."
     In considering the plus/minus system, the senators frequently
debated the meanings of the words "optional" and "mandatory," and
asked University officials for their views on the use of plus/minus
grading.
     Andersen responded to questions by saying, "The purpose of
plus/minus was to give professors more choices. It is not an
optional policy, but it does increase the options available to
faculty members." She said faculty members may choose to assign
some grades and not others.
     Before the senate meeting, University Provost R. Byron Pipes
told senators, "The provost's office does not support, nor oppose,
the plus/minus grading system. We will enforce whatever policy the
Faculty Senate accepts.
     "Faculty have the authority and responsibility to measure
student performance," he added. "The students have a right to a
uniform and consistently applied grading system."
     Faculty Senate President Robert Taggart said the plus/minus
system is in the first of a four-year trial period. Unless the
senate accepts a new resolution, he said, the policy will remain in
effect until 1995, when it will be reevaluated.
     The senate voted on the plus/minus system after Sen. Nancy
Signorielli proposed, at the Nov. 4 meeting, that the issue be
reconsidered. The plus/minus grading system was originally approved
by the senate in 1985, for use in graduate student grading.
     The senators considered two proposals that would have
eliminated the plus/minus system entirely. The senate's Executive
Committee suggested dropping the system as of September 1992, while
the Delaware Undergraduate Student Congress (DUSC) proposed
eliminating the system immediately. The latter suggestion was put
to a vote, but less than 10 senators voted in favor of it.
     In other business, the senate approved a change in the
Bachelor of Arts in Educational Studies (BAES) program. Beginning
next fall, the Department of Educational Studies will offer
students seven concentrations: special education; English as a
second language/bilingualism; school psychology; school counseling;
measurement, statistics and evaluations; educational psychology;
and general.
     Each BAES major will be required to select a concentration by
the end of his or her sophomore year. Admission to all
concentrations will be contingent upon having a 2.5 or higher grade
point average overall and in the major.
     The senate approved a departmental name change, from the
Department of Sociology to the Department of Sociology and Criminal
Justice.
     The senate observed a moment of silence for the late David M.
Nelson.
                                        - Stephen M. Steenkamer