Group drama marks and an appeal to the principal
A JCE Drama class of 36 has just finished a devised practical: six groups of six, each performing an eight-minute piece on water scarcity using one prescribed dramatic technique. The teacher assessed only the final performance and awarded every member of each group the same mark; Group 3 all received 18/25. Mpho wrote Group 3's script and directed the rehearsals but was admitted to hospital with malaria and missed the performance. Kagiso attended three of twelve rehearsals, knew little of the script and stood at the back of the stage. Two parents have now written to the principal. The head of department has asked the teacher to justify the marks and to show how the assessment meets the syllabus requirement that learners be assessed on their individual contribution to the devising process and to the performance. The teacher kept no rehearsal records, no rubric and no video. The appeal must be answered within a week.
1. Diagnose the assessment problems in this marking practice, using the language of validity, reliability, fairness and evidence.
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Construct underrepresentation. The syllabus construct has two parts, devising and performance. Marking only the performance leaves roughly half the intended learning invisible. Mpho's scriptwriting and direction, which is the strongest evidence in the group, could not be captured at all.
No individual accountability. A single group score assumes every member contributed equally. It cannot distinguish a learner who wrote, directed and rehearsed from one who attended three times, and it rewards free-riding while penalising conscientious learners. Group marks are defensible only for a genuinely shared outcome with an individual component alongside.
Reliability. There was one observation, by one assessor, on one afternoon, with no rubric and no recording. Performance is ephemeral; without descriptors and a record, the same performance would probably not receive the same mark on a second viewing, and different assessors would diverge widely.
Fairness and natural justice. Kagiso's low contribution and Mpho's absence both attract the same treatment: a group mark that is neither earned nor evidenced. No learner has had an opportunity to be assessed on missing criteria, and the two parents are being answered with assertion rather than evidence.
Evidence trail. Without a rubric, rehearsal log or video, the teacher cannot successfully defend or moderate the marks. The honest response to the HOD is that the marks for the process component are unsubstantiated and must be re-gathered, not merely explained.
2. Redesign the assessment plan for a devised drama practical of this kind, giving weightings, criteria and the evidence you would collect.
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Weightings. 40% devising process, 40% individual performance in the final piece, 20% individual evaluation of the devising choices (written or oral). This matches the two-part syllabus construct and gives every learner a route to demonstrate learning even if they freeze on the night.
Process criteria. Evidence of research and idea generation; contribution to shaping the scene; willingness to take and give direction; reliability across rehearsals. Use a four-point descriptor scale, and keep dated evidence: rehearsal logs signed by the group, annotated script drafts, a group contract with agreed roles, and short teacher observation notes focusing on three named learners per rehearsal on a rotating cycle.
Performance criteria. Characterisation and intention; vocal control (audibility, pace, clarity); physical control and use of space; responsiveness to partners and to the audience. Descriptors written before rehearsals begin and shared with learners, so the target is transparent.
Recording. Video the final performance with consent, and if possible the dress rehearsal. Video is the moderation artefact; it also lets a second marker sample and standardise.
Individual assurance inside a group task. A short individual viva or 'director's pitch' of two to three minutes per learner, explaining one choice they made and why. This is where a learner who contributed offstage becomes visible.
Administration. Marks recorded criterion by criterion per learner, not as a total per group. Two teachers or the HOD second-mark a sample of six learners. The rubric is issued at the start of the unit, not discovered at the end.
3. How would you now decide the result of Mpho and of Kagiso, and how would you explain the outcome to the parents?
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Mpho. Substantial evidence exists for the process component: the script, director's notebook, group testimony, and any rehearsal footage. Assess those criteria fully. For performance criteria, record 'not yet assessed' rather than zero, and offer a scheduled individual assessment within school policy: perform a short extract from the script, or direct a short scene with a small panel, or give a recorded oral defence of directorial decisions against the performance rubric. If illness continues, follow the school's policy on compassionate and medically certified absence and record an authorised absence code, not a fail. Do not award performance marks that were never observed, even generously; unearned marks are as unfair as unearned zeros.
Kagiso. The marks must reflect the evidence. Attendance records show three of twelve rehearsals; observation shows minimal performance contribution. Assign criterion-level marks accordingly and document the reasoning against the descriptors. Then offer the same documented re-engagement route as any learner: a short individual task or a catch-up rehearsal block if policy permits. The consequence should be a low mark that is explained and evidenced, not a punitive one.
Communicating with parents. Write separate letters, not a comparison. State the criteria, show the rubric and the evidence for that learner, explain what was and was not observed, and set out the reassessment opportunity and the formal appeal route. Keep other learners nameless. To the HOD and principal, table the rubric, the evidence portfolio and the revised assessment plan, and acknowledge plainly that the original group-only marking was not defensible.