NAME: ALVIN M.

YUSOP

YEAR & COURSE: BSED- II

Norm-Referenced Assessment
Norm-referenced assessment is a type of standardized test that compares students’ performances to
one another. Norm-referenced assessments compare a student’s performance to the course median.
The “norming process” refers to calculating norm-referenced scores and the “norming group” refers
to the group that a student is compared against while a professor assigns grades.

What is the value of a norm referenced assessment?

Norm-referenced assessments in higher education provide a critical benchmark for evaluating

student performance relative to a defined peer group. These assessments help educators identify
how individual students or cohorts perform compared to others, which can be valuable for
admissions decisions, curriculum design, and identifying areas for targeted interventions. A notable
statistic underscores their importance: a 2020 study found that over 70 percent of colleges and
universities in the United States use norm-referenced standardized tests, such as the SAT or ACT, as
part of their admissions process to ensure consistent evaluation criteria across diverse applicant
pools (National Center for Education Statistics, 2020). By offering a standardized metric, norm-
referenced assessments facilitate a fairer and more equitable evaluation process while providing
insights into the relative preparedness of students entering higher education.

What is the difference between a norm-referenced assessment and a criterion-referenced test?

While similar, a norm-referenced assessment and a criterion-referenced test have different goals. A
norm-referenced assessment is designed to compare a student’s performance to that of a peer group
(known as the “norm group”). Students are ranked on a continuum, showing where they stand
relative to their classmates. Results are usually reported as percentiles, standardized scores or z-
scores. An example is an SAT or ACT score where final grades reflect how students performed
compared to a representative group of test-takers. On the other hand, a criterion-referenced test
evaluates a student’s performance against a specific set of learning objectives or criteria. This test
helps determine whether a student has achieved mastery of particular skills or knowledge. Results
are reported as raw scores or levels of proficiency. An example of a criterion-referenced test is
licensing exams or placement tests that gauge whether students meet minimum competency
requirements.
What is norm-referenced assessment examples?

Norm-referenced assessment refers to an assessment that ranks students on a “bell curve” to

determine the highest and lowest performing students. This method is used to understand how
students’ scores compare to a predefined population with similar experience. The most common
norm-referenced test examples are below.

Standardized admissions tests including the Scholastic Assessment Test (SAT) and the American
College Testing (ACT).

Graduate Admissions Exams including the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) and the Law School
Admission Test (LSAT).

Professional Certification Exams including the National Council Licensure Examination (NCLEX) and
the United States Medical Licensing Examination (USMLE).

Placement and Language Proficiency Tests including the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL)
and International English Language Testing System (IELTS).

Definition: In norm-referenced systems students are evaluated in relationship to one another (e.g.,
the top 10% of students receive an A, the next 30% a B, etc.). This grading system rests on the
assumption that the level of student performance will not vary much from class to class.
 GRADING SYSTEMS

GRADING SYSTEMS

The two most common types of grading systems used at the university level are

norm-referenced and criterion-referenced. Many professors combine elements of

each of these systems for determining student grades by using a system of

anchoring or by presetting grading criterion which is later adjusted based on actual

student performance.

1. Norm-Referenced Systems:

Definition: In norm-referenced systems students are evaluated in relationship to one

another (e.g., the top 10% of students receive an A, the next 30% a B, etc.). This

grading system rests on the assumption that the level of student performance will

not vary much from class to class. In this system the instructor usually determines

the percentage of students assigned each grade, although this percentage may be

determined (or at least influenced) by departmental expectations and policy.

Advantages:

® Norm-referenced systems are very easy to use.

® They work well in situations requiring rigid differentiation among students where,

for example, program size restrictions may limit the number of students

advancing to higher level courses.

® They are generally appropriate in large courses that do not encourage

cooperation among students but generally stress individual achievement.

Disadvantages:

® One objection to norm-referenced systems is that an individual's grade is

determined not only by his/her achievements, but also by the achievements of

others. This may be true in a large non-selective lecture class, where we can be

fairly confident that the class is representative of the student population; but in

small classes (under 40) the group may not be a representative sample. One

student may get an A in a low-achieving section while a fellow student with the
same score in a higher-achieving section gets a B.

® A second objection to norm-referenced grading is that it promotes competition

rather than cooperation. When students are pitted against each other for the few

As to be given out, they're less likely to be helpful to each other.

Possible modification:

When using a norm-referenced system in a small class, the allocation of grades can

be modified according to the caliber of students in the class. One method of

modifying a norm-referenced system is anchoring. Jacobs and Chase in Developing

and Using Tests Effectively: A Guide for Faculty, 1992, describe the following ways to

use an anchor:

"If instructors have taught a class several times and have used the same or an

equivalent exam, then the distribution of test scores accumulated over many classes

can serve as the anchor. The present class is compared with this cumulative

distribution to judge the ability level of the group and the appropriate allocation of

grades. Anchoring also works well in multi-section courses where the same text,

same syllabus, and same examinations are used. The common examination can be

used to reveal whether and how the class groups differ in achievement and the grade

in the individual sections can be adjusted accordingly... If an instructor is teaching a

class for the first time and has no other scores for comparison, a relevant and well-constructed
teacher-made pretest may be used as an anchor."

Modifying the norm-referenced system by anchoring also helps mitigate feelings of

competition among students as they are not as directly in competition with each

other.

Before Deciding on a Norm-Reference System, Consider:

® What is the expected class size? If it is smaller than 40, do not use a norm referenced system
unless we use anchoring to modify the system.

® Is it important for students to work cooperatively in this class (e.g., do we ask

them to form study groups, or work on projects as a group)? If the answer is

yes, a norm-referenced system is not appropriate for the class.

2. Criterion-Referenced System

Definition: In criterion-referenced systems students are evaluated against an

absolute scale (e.g. 95-100 = A, 88-94 = B, etc.). Normally the criteria are a set

number of points or a percentage of the total. Since the standard is absolute, it is

possible that all students could get As or all students could get Ds.

Advantages:

® Students are not competing with each other and are thus more likely to actively

help each other learn. A student's grade is not influenced by the caliber of the

class.

Disadvantages:

® It is difficult to set reasonable criteria for the students without a fair amount of

teaching experience. Most experienced faculty set these criteria based on their

knowledge of how students usually perform (thus making it fairly similar to the

norm referenced system).

Possible modifications:

® Instructors sometimes choose to maintain some flexibility in their criteria by

telling the class in advance that the criteria may be lowered if it seems

appropriate, e.g., the 95% cut off for an A may be lowered to 93%. This way if a

first exam was more difficult for students than the instructor imagined, s/he can

lower the grading criteria rather than trying to compensate for the difficulty of

the first exam with an easy second exam. Raising the criteria because too many

students achieved As, however, is never advisable.

® Another way of doing criterion-referenced grading is by listing objectives and

assigning grades based on the extent the student achieved the class objectives

(e.g., A = Student has achieved all major and minor objectives of the course. B =

Student has achieved all major objectives and several minor objectives, etc.).

Before Deciding on a Criterion-Reference System, Consider:

® How will we determine reasonable criteria for students? When teaching the class

for the first time, maintain some flexibility.

3
3. Other Systems: Some alternate systems of grading include contract grading, peer

grading, and self-evaluation by students.

® In contract grading instructors list activities students can participate in or

objectives they can achieve, usually attaching a specified number of points for

each activity (e.g. book report = 30 points, term paper = 60 points). Students

select the activities and/or objectives that will give them the grade they want

and a contract is signed. It is advisable to have qualitative criteria stated in the

contract in addition to listing the activities.

® In some classes, a portion of a student's grade is determined by peers'

evaluation of his/her performance. If students are told what to look for and how

to grade, they generally can do a good job. Agreement between peer and

instructor rating is about 80%. Peer grading is often used in composition classes

and speech classes. It can also be a useful source of information for evaluating

group work; knowing that group members have the opportunity to evaluate each

other’s work can go a long way in motivating peers to pull their weight on a

project and to reassure group members that their contributions will be

recognized. If used, peer evaluation should always be done anonymously.

® Students can also be asked to assess their own work in the class and their

assessment can be a portion of the final grade. This method has educational

value as learning to assess one's own progress contributes to the university's

goal of preparing our students to be life-long learners. A research analysis found

that the percentages of self-assessors whose grades agree with those of faculty

graders vary from 33% to 99%. Experienced students tend to rate themselves

quite similarly to the faculty while less experienced students generally give

themselves higher grades than a faculty grader. Students in science classes also

produced self-assessments that closely matched faculty assessment. Not

surprisingly, student and instructor assessments are more likely to agree if the

criteria for assessment have been clearly articulated. Without these shared

understandings, students, for example, don’t know whether to assess themselves

on the amount of work they put into a course, on the improvement they’ve seen

in certain skills, or on their final level of achievement. If self-assessment is used,

the instructor and student should meet to discuss the student's achievement

before the self-evaluation is made.