University of Isfahan Applied Research on English Language 2252-0198 9 4 2020 11 01 The Relationship between Graded and Tested Achievement: Do Gender and Proficiency Level Make a Difference? 477 502 24913 10.22108/are.2020.120578.1516 EN Majid Nowruzi PhD Candidate, Department of English Language and Literature, Arak University, Arak, Iran Majid Amerian Associate Professor, Department of English Language and Literature, Arak University, Arak, Iran Hooshang Yazdani Assistant Professor, Department of English Language and Literature, Arak University, Arak, Iran Alimohammad Mohammadi Assistant Professor, Department of English Language and Literature, Arak University, Arak, Iran Journal Article 2019 12 23 Grades represent one of the most common sources of evidence of student achievement in classrooms, though their relationship with test scores has remained understudied, particularly in settings such as in Iran, where English is taught as a foreign language. The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between graded and tested achievement with respect to gender and proficiency level differences. Teacher-assigned grades and standardized achievement test scores of 693 Iranian learners of English taught by 15 teachers were examined. Primary analyses focused on the validity of teacher grades and the subsequent Pearson correlation coefficients revealed that grades associated positively with externally-validated test scores obtained from reliable tests, an indication of the validity of teacher grading. Additionally, the results of independent-samples t-tests showed that female students outperformed male students on achievement tests, but with fluctuations across proficiency levels. Higher proficiency levels gave male participants an advantage over female participants in achievement tests. Moreover, male teachers were found to grade female participants more accurately than their female counterparts. Implications are discussed for informing teachers about the validation of their grading practices, as well as for teacher education programs and teachers’ professional development. https://are.ui.ac.ir/article_24913_0a87da71837450a4da372e588309c1ce.pdf