The Joys of Making Grade Sheets

If there’s one thing I’m thankful to God (and Bill Gates) for, it’s Microsoft Excel.

As mentioned in my previous post, the first grading period has just ended, which can only mean one thing: computation of grades.  Our school set the deadline for the submission of grades tomorrow (September 1^st), and I’m trying to compute as fast and as carefully (and as mercifully) as I can.  And Microsoft Excel is seriously making the load lighter for me.  I can only imagine the sheer torture of having to compute grades manually using a calculator—or worse, plain old pen and paper.  This gives me newfound respect to all the teachers who compute grades the old-fashioned way, and not with the help of technology.

However, I’m a 21^st century teacher, which means I don’t have to risk having Carpal Tunnel Syndrome, Repetitive Strain Injury, or even Computer Vision Syndrome trying to do the computations manually.  Added to that, I don’t have to do so much Math—not that I hate Math (I love Math, but it’s unrequited).  You see, they say a stereotypical English major excels in the four macro skills of communication but sucks (for lack of a better word at the moment) in Math.  I know this isn’t true to all English majors, but ladies and gentlemen, I regret to inform you (quite shamefully) that Math is my kryptonite.  This is why Microsoft Excel is such a huge blessing to me.

If you aren’t updated with the country’s K-12 Curriculum, you might not know that the Department of Education (DepEd) implemented a new grading system this year that involves a lot of major changes over the previous grading systems.  For starters, the highest grade is no longer 95%, but 100%.  Secondly, the quarterly examination only makes up 20% of the overall grade, which is a huge contrast to past decades wherein the quarterly examination comprised a huge chunk of the overall grade (which is why students would work harder to get higher scores in the hopes of making up for low scores in quizzes, assignments, etc.).

Figure 1. Weight of Components for Grades 1-10

WRITTEN WORK, PERFORMANCE TASK, QUARTERLY TEST

Last year, DepEd tried the KPUP (Knowledge, Process, Understanding, Performance) grading system, which I heard was a big, big challenge to the teachers.  This year, however, the grading system only involves three major components: Written Work (WW), Performance Task (PT), and Quarterly Test (QT).  The percentage each component has would depend on the subject (see table below), although regardless of subject, QT is always 20%.  In the case of English and Values Education, WW is 30%, PT is 50%, and QT is 20%.  A lot of emphasis is put on the child’s performance, which means this year’s grading system is more performance-based and output-based (not that this is much different from previous years).

Figure 2.  New DepEd Grading Equivalent (Transmutation Table)

Written Work comprises any activity, seatwork, quiz, or homework that is, well, written.  Performance Task assesses a child’s performance in class that isn’t written, such as making a collage, presenting a speech choir, doing a role play, etc.  The Quarterly Test, of course, is self-explanatory.

SAMPLE COMPUTATIONS

Another thing you should know is that teachers are instructed to compute the raw scores of the students and not transmute it in advance.  Once the overall score has been computed, it is then transmuted according to DepEd’s Transmutation Table.  Both public and private schools must follow this method of grading.  Below are some examples of how the grades are to be computed:

A. Written Work

Let's say for example, I give four quizzes for the entire quarter and each quiz is worth 20 points.  That's a total of 80 points now.  

Then the students have a total of 10 seatworks: two are worth 20 points each, three are worth 15 points each, two are worth 10 points each, and three are worth 5 points each.  That's a total of 120 points.  

Then, over the quarter, the students are given 7 homework assignments: one is worth 50 points, another is worth 30 points, two are worth 20 points each, one is worth 15 points, and two are worth 10 points each.  Find the total sum of 80, 120, and 155, and you get 355.  

Then let's say, for the sake of having an example, a student (let's name him Eli) gets at total of 67/80 for the quizzes, 101/120 for the seatworks, and 138/155 for the assignments.  He get's a sum total of 306/355 for his raw score under WW.

Figure 3. Sample Computation of Written Work (Raw Scores)

After adding all that, that's where more of the Math comes in (mostly dividing and multiplying).  First of all, Eli's raw total score of 306 should be divided by the total marks of 355.  That gives him a partial mark of 0.86 (round off to the second place).  After that, multiply the number to 100, and that gets him 86/100.  Once you have that number, multiply it by the WW percentage of the subject [see figure 1].  Since I'm teaching English and Values Education, WW comprises 30% of the total grade.

Figure 4.  Sample Computation of Written Work (How to get the WW Raw Score)

 B. Performance Task

Now let's proceed to the second part of the computations, which is the PT.

Let's say there are five activities in the entire quarter: a schematic diagram worth 10 points, a drawing worth 20 points, a collage worth 25 points, poetry reading worth 35 points, and a role play worth 50 points.  That's a total of 140 points.  

Then for the recitation, 100 points goes to individual reporting on a preassigned topic, 40 points goes to an oral exam, and 20 points goes to class participation.  That's a total of 160 points.

Finally, the students are assigned to make a scrapbook worth 100 points as their project.

Add the scores for the activities, recitation, and projects, and you get 400 points.

Then let's say, for argument's sake, Eli gets 128/140 for the activities, 154/160 for the recitation, and 95/100 for his final project.  He gets a total raw score of 374/400.  

Figure 5.  Sample Computation of Perfromance Task (Raw Scores)

Once you have that number, do the same thing you did with the WW [see figure 6].

Figure 6. Sample Computation of Performance Task (How to get the PT Raw Score)

C. Quarterly Test

Now for the third, penultimate part of the computations: the QT.  This is probably the easiest to compute since there's only one QT for the entire quarter.

Figure 7. Sample Computation for the Quarterly Test (Raw Score)

D.  Final Grade

Once you have the scores for the three major components (WW, PT, and QT), add them up to get the total score.  In the case of our star pupil, Eli, his WW was 25.80, his PT was 47, and his QT was 16.60.  Add all that and he has a total score of 89.40.  But that's not his final grade yet.

After all the computations, we transmute that total score of 89.40% according to DepEd's Transmutation Table [see figure 2].  Since 89.40 falls within the bracket of 88.80 - 90.39, Eli's final transmuted grade now becomes a whopping 93% -- that's an increase of about 4 marks!  This is the grade that will appear on Eli's report card.

Figure 8.  Sample Computation for the Final Grade

As you can see, DepEd's Transmutation Table can really do wonders in pulling up a student's grades.  But that doesn't mean the students should rely on this fact and thus grow complacent.  A student would still need to work hard and study diligently to get better grades.  After all, Galatians 6:9 tells us this: "And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up."

We teachers must do our best to help our kids do their best, not only in academics, but also in all aspects of life.  If we want our kids to learn to be diligent and perseverant, we teachers must model these character traits to them.  

Remember: we lead by example, not only by our words.

- Teacher Theigh

Why I Chose to Teach

One of the most frequently asked questions I receive is this: “Why did you become a teacher?”  When I was in my senior year of high school, I asked the same question to my new English teacher.  She replied matter-of-factly, “Because I like to talk.”  I like to talk, too, but this isn’t the reason I decided to become one.  The simple answer to this is that I love to teach. 

From a Biblical perspective, Romans 12:6-7 explains it quite straightforwardly: “We have different gifts, according to the grace given to each of us. If your gift is prophesying, then prophesy in accordance with your faith; if it is serving, then serve; if it is teaching, then teach.”  This is one of the verses that helped me discern whether or not God was indeed calling me to be a teacher. 

The beautiful thing about teaching is, not only is it a spiritual gift, but it’s also a form of ministry.  You don’t have to be a Values or Christian Education teacher to teach your students about God.  God is in English, Science, Math, and any subject you can possibly think of.  He rightfully governs the universe and everything in it, and it’s only right that we should learn all about our amazing Creator.

In my senior high school yearbook, each graduating student had to mention his or her ambition or life goal.  A lot of my classmates answered this question succinctly, in the briefest way possibly (e.g. “I want to become an engineer”).  However, I’m not one for brevity, which is why mine was by far the lengthiest and most verbose.  To be honest, I’m surprised the school even allowed my entire answer to be printed out on the yearbook; I’d assumed they’d edit it and trim it down.  They didn’t.  This is what I had written, and this is what was printed right beneath my graduation photo:

“As a child, I often shifted from one dream ambition to the next, depending on what my whim presently suited me.  This, I am sure, is a phase all of us have gone through at some point during our fickle childhood.  As the years progressed, I had dreamt of becoming a doctor, a nurse, a chef, a pilot, a flight attendant, and even a soldier (my mom had not been in favor of the last one).  But when it came right down to it, I had a feeling God was calling me to be something else: a teacher.  Many say this is because my mother and her mother are both teachers, perhaps making a subconscious influence on me.  Writing is also another passion of mine, which is why, besides being a teacher, I also want to become a novelist someday—if the good LORD wills it.”

I come from a family of teachers.  As mentioned above, both my maternal grandmother and my mother are teachers, which makes me a third-generation educator.  On my father’s side of the family, I have relatives who are or were teachers, too.  A lot of people say that I chose to become a teacher because my mother is one.  In some ways, I suppose they’re right.  But I became a teacher because I want to impact lives for God’s glory, inspire positive change, and do my part in helping my country be a better place.  I know this all sounds idealistic, but I still firmly believe it’s not altogether impossible.

My first teaching experience can be traced all the way back to when I was about nine or ten years old.  Nearly every summer, when I was a child, my family and I would visit my mother’s hometown in Leyte.  At the church there, there was an outreach program called Vacation Church School (also called Daily Vacation Bible School in other church organizations).  This program encourages Christians to volunteer to share the Gospel to children in remote areas and I was interested to join, so I did.  I started out as an assistant teacher and taught children who were not much younger than I was.  While teaching a dozen or so hyperactive kids was exhausting, it was also a very fulfilling experience, and every summer I would be eager to volunteer yet again.

When I was in high school, my school had a different and unique way of celebrating Teachers’ Day.  Aside from the usual presentation tributes for the teachers, the high school students were given the opportunity to teach the elementary students for a day.  This means that a few days prior to Teachers’ Day, the high school students would be given a lesson outline to be discussed. 

When I was a freshman, I was assigned to teach first graders.  In my second year, I taught the second graders.  During my junior and senior years, I taught Grade 3 and Grade 4 students respectively.  Each year, I was assigned to teach English.  I had no complaints because it was, and still very much is, a subject I love.  Even though my teaching stints only occurred once a year, these experiences continued to intensify my passion for teaching.

By my senior year, I was sure of what I wanted to study in college.  Whereas some of my classmates were still struggling to think of what they wanted to be when they grew up, I already had my sights set on a specific university and degree program.  Even then, I knew I wanted to teach English to high school students.  But this decision was not made without months and months of steadfast prayer.  I believe there was a reason God placed in my heart a strong desire to teach.

I graduated cum laude with a degree in Bachelor of Secondary Education, with a major in English, last March 2014.  I was also awarded Fiction Writer of the Year.  When I look back at my high school yearbook and think of all my old high school classmates, I can count on one hand those whose ambitions became a reality.  I think I’m extremely blessed that my hope to be a teacher and a writer were allowed by God to happen.  This solidified my belief that this really is God’s will for me, and I am grateful He allowed me to pursue these passions.

When I was starting college, I had made plans to teach immediately after graduating, but such wasn’t the case.  I had a few offers from a number of schools, but my mother discouraged me from accepting any of them and told me to focus on preparing for my board exam instead.  After seeking God’s guidance on this matter, I took my mother’s advice. However, I decided to continue working in the review center where I was teaching (I started teaching there during my second semester of college, but that’s a story for another blog post) because the load was light and the schedules were very flexible. 

Five months after I graduated, I took the Licensure Examination for Teachers on August 2014 and passed.  After about a year and a half of working at the review center, I quit on May and applied for a teaching position at my high school alma mater.  I am currently teaching English to Grades 7, 8, 9 and 10, as well as Values Education to Grades 5,7, 8 and 9.  The first quarter of the school year has just ended, and so much has already happened.  It’s flooring to believe that it’s only been three months since I started teaching here.  I’m excited for what God has in store for the rest of the school year.

One of the ironies I have encountered so far is my tenth grade class.  They were the students I taught all those years ago during Teachers’ Day.  They don’t remember me teaching them before, but I do remember them.

            For over a year now, I’ve been meaning to make a blog chronicling my journey as a teacher, but I never could find the time to sit down and write until now.  Well, technically, I don’t really have time to sit down and write now either, but here I am anyway.  This entry is the first in what I hope will be dozens of more blog posts to come.  So here’s to a blessed and fruitful school year.

            God bless you!

– Teacher Theigh