Ngoni Chipere
A longitudinal quantitative study was carried out at an online campus in the Anglophone Caribbean to investigate possible linkages between grade increase and coursework-only final assessments. Linear mixed-effects modelling of the relationship between the final mark and two fixed effects, assessment type and year, revealed a 9% advantage of assessment by coursework exclusively over assessment incorporating examinations. The modelling also revealed an unaccounted 1% annual rise in marks, amounting to a projected 15% increase over the 15 years from 2008 to 2023. The findings appear to favour grade inflation theory over grade improvement theory, raising questions about the growing prevalence of coursework-only final assessments.