Transmutation Table: Is it really essential?

by: J. Policarpio

What is a Transmutation Table?

According to my Professor in a Computer Class during my College Days in one prominent university in Manila where I cross-enrolled that particular subject, '...there is no such thing as Transmutation Table, even if you search the internet...'. He said this to our class more  or less a decade ago. He is a foreigner.

So, what is a Transmutation Table? Here is one example of a transmutation table that I've downloaded from the internet, (it's already in the internet!)

Transmutation Table
Source: http://synoptics1.blogspot.com/2010/09/midterm-exam-grades.html

In Philippine Education,
Transmutation Table is an essential tool for Assessment of Student's Performance wherein a particular score (called the Raw Score) of a certain student in his/her output is assigned to a Percentage Grade.

Transmuted Grade is a percentage equivalent grade assigned to a raw score which is based on a certain baseline grade corresponding to a zero raw score.

Say for example, for a 50-item test, if a student  got a perfect score of 50, then his/her grade is 100. If he got 25 out of 50, then his/her grade is 80 and if he got 0 out of 50, he/she still have a grade of 70. (Refer to the table above). For this case, this grading system is said to be, base 70, since the lowest grade assigned to zero raw score is 70.

Transmuted vs Percentage Grade: Compared

Is it the same with Percentage Grade?

Percentage Grade is a percentage equivalent grade of a certain raw score based on its total number of items.

Generally, or should I say the common way of doing this is by converting a raw score to a percentage score which can be done by simple mathematics. I think, this is the right way of doing it. So for the same 50-item test, a perfect raw score of 50 has an equivalent percentage grade of 100. But if a student got 25 out of 50, then his/her percentage grade should be 50 and it follows that if he/she got zero raw score then his/her percentage grade is also zero!

Why Use a Transmutation Table?

The passing grade is the culprit. We have a mindset that a student should have a percentage grade of 75% for him/her to pass the given output and consequently the course after the term or the School Year. If you will use the percentage grade, mostly of your students will be getting a grade below the passing mark, which is 75%. To avoid doing adjustments at the end of the term or the school year, a Transmutation Table saves the day!

Can we avoid using a Transmutation Table?

I think, yes. And that is for fairness sake. We should be impartial in giving grades and it should be supported by mathematics. While transmutation table follows certain formulas, but it is based on a certain baseline grade which I think not a good practice. If a student got a Raw Score of zero, why give him/her a percentage grade of 70? Is it more logical that his/her grade is also zero?

With Curricular Reform in Philippine Education as we embrace the K-12 Curriculum, Transmutation Table of Grades is becoming obsolete. The new curriculum prescribed base 0 grading system as well as the use of authentic assessment and the use of rubrics. (DepEd Order No 73, s2012. Enclosure 4)

Reflections

Let's try to reflect why a certain student got a failing mark in a certain output.

First, the main reason of course is he/she didn't understands the lesson. He didn't study for his/her exam.

Second, the probability that he/she didn't listen to your discussion or maybe he/she was absent during that day of discussion.

And third which I think the most important consideration is the exam itself. Is your exam valid (or undergone the process of validation)? Have you consider the level of difficulty in preparing your exam? Is it parallel to your discussion or you've just recycled it from your past test papers? Have you allotted the prescribed percentage of items per level of difficulty?




References:
Sample Image of a Transmutation Table.  https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirq77c6dOvju88FxsAbpa5DSYaYxZAsc8hmOhi4J-G1hULQfLNsLIXSM9L36NQ4R6F7riQJanTwx_Tsxy8_gtc-x6hjiNxp5jEUfvO2KaeaR7lWKEMS2TlE561wXTab2GVyfjqnSG25hY/s1600/transmutation+synoptics+1.jpg 
Midterm Exam Grade. http://synoptics1.blogspot.com/2010/09/midterm-exam-grades.html
DepEd Order No. 73, s2012 Enclosure No 4, pp 15-19. http://www.gov.ph/downloads/2012/09sep/20120905-DepEd-DO-0073-BSA.pdf