ERIC Number: EJ1027872
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2014
Pages: 19
Abstractor: As Provided
Reference Count: 63
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1551-2169
Political Outcome Bias in Grading: Identifying Problems and Suggesting Solutions
Rom, Mark Carl; Musgrave, Paul
Journal of Political Science Education, v10 n2 p136-154 2014
Political bias in the academy is a topic of great controversy. Many conservatives have argued that liberals dominate American campuses and use their classrooms to indoctrinate students or to discriminate against those with differing political beliefs. Liberals have responded by calling studies that purport to demonstrate these claims as flawed or as attacks on academic freedom. Regardless of the magnitude of campus political bias, it is ill-advised for the scholarly community to argue that it is immune from bias because scholars simply are fair. This article focuses on one element of political bias: partisan "outcome" bias in grading. We proceed in several steps. First, we provide an overview of the problem of grading bias and the concerns about political bias. Next, we consider the attributes of political grading bias and the forms that it can take. We present the analytics of partisan outcome bias and logic of using "paired" assignments to eliminate outcome bias. We provide data and analysis concerning outcome bias from a course Rom has taught. We conclude with a discussion of the ethics of grading.
Descriptors: College Students, College Faculty, Grading, Ethics, Student Evaluation, Political Attitudes, Outcome Measures, Teacher Responsibility
Taylor & Francis, Ltd. 325 Chestnut Street Suite 800, Philadelphia, PA 19106. Tel: 800-354-1420; Fax: 215-625-2940; Web site: http://www.tandf.co.uk/journals
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Evaluative
Education Level: Higher Education; Postsecondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers: District of Columbia

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