When teaching culinary- it's hard to say "well that's only a B"- because it's very hard to define right and wrong sometimes. We have developed a system at our school that uses a 5 point grading system for EACH ITEM (some classes- each student may be required to produce upto 9 items a day, on their own- all which require individual grades) It's also hard because what may be too salty to me, may be perfect to someone else. I may prefer simple plate presentations, whereas other instructors prefer more elaborate plate presentations. Something such as the latter is up to the instructor to determine what the standard for the class to be. As for individual "cooking" evaluation- we have develped and are continually developing a "cleary exceeds expectations" grading system (the 1-5, 5 being the best) for example: Beef Stew: • Stew meat is cut (1” cubes) uniformly and trimmed of most visible fat • Meat is evenly caramelized and well seasoned • Meat is absolutely tender, but has maintained its shape • Sauce is deep brown, rich and flavorful • Stew has been seasoned properly • Stew has been thoroughly degreased • Potatoes, carrots and celery are cut precisely into ½” dice (cubes), are cooked tender and have maintained their shape • Good ratio of sauce (2 parts) and meat and garnish (1 part) • Peas are green and not brown • Sachet has been removed • Piping hot each 1-2 items wrong is up to 1 point off- Recieving a 1 on a dish requires that the dish should be made up at a "skills lab". Students are given the requirements of each dish and then repeated during demo. We have determined this to be a fair and practical way to grade students. (and successful)