Running Total vs Cumulative Total in Overall Grade
Running Total shows the student’s current performance based on posted grades.
Cumulative Total shows the student’s accumulation of points or weights based on the posted grades.
For example,
A student submits Assignment 1 and receives a perfect score. The assignment is worth 5% of the total grade.
If Running Total is checked: The student sees their Overall Grade is 100%. | If Cumulative Total is checked: The student sees their Overall Grade is 5%. |
Considerations when deciding whether to use Running or Cumulative Total:
The student in the above example may get a false sense of security seeing 100%, when actually, the assignment itself is worth only 5% and they still must complete 95% of the course work. Additionally, their grades will likely drop with each successive submission.
Alternatively, the student who sees 5% as their cumulative total grade needs to grasp that they have achieved full marks for the one assessment, hence a full 5% is awarded. Their grades will increase over time with each successive submission.
Either way you decide to go, you must explain this to your students to ensure they understand your grading approach.