Split the Grading Difference

Ethical Educator

Scenario:

The 9th-grade English teacher at the district’s high school has a policy of lowering any late assignments by a full letter grade.

One student discovers at midyear that a paper of his has suffered this penalty. The student is certain he submitted the paper, and peers say they saw him deliver it on time.

The teacher acknowledges “the possibility of human error on either side” and decides to “split the difference,” lowering the grade by half the usual amount, to a B-minus instead of a C.

Is this a fair resolution, and is the teacher’s policy appropriate?