# @edutopia on Instagram

- **Type:** Image
- **Original URL:** https://www.instagram.com/p/CIy27UQF-k6
- **Gondola URL:** https://gondola.cc/posts/20304078-edutopia-instagram
- **Thumbnail:** https://img.gondola.cc/tr:w-,h-,fo-auto/thumbnails/cfd68db48d.jpg
- **Posted:** 2020-12-14T22:18:38.000+00:00
- **Account Owner:** Edutopia (@edutopia) — https://gondola.cc/edutopia

## Caption

A simple step might help undercut the pernicious effect of grading bias, a new study found: Articulate your standards clearly before you begin grading, and refer to the standards regularly during the assessment process.

In 2020, more than 1,500 teachers were recruited and asked to grade a writing sample from a fictional second-grade student. All of the sample stories were identical—but in one set, the student mentions a family member named Dashawn, while the other set references a sibling named Connor.

Teachers were 13 percent more likely to give the Connor papers a passing grade, revealing the invisible advantages that many students unknowingly benefit from. When grading criteria are vague, implicit stereotypes can insidiously “fill in the blanks,” explains the study’s author. But when teachers have an explicit set of criteria to evaluate the writing—asking whether the student “provides a well-elaborated recount of an event,” for example—the difference in grades is nearly eliminated.

To see the research, go here: https://edut.to/37BKBi4

Follow #EDUResearchHighlights2020 as we highlight 10 of the most significant educational studies from 2020—covering topics from virtual learning to the reading wars and the decline of standardized tests.

This is #4 in our 2020 roundup. For more information and a clickable link to the research study check out our link in bio.

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## Tags

eduresearchhighlights2020, 4

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