I have been required to norm student marks and in a class of 800+ students, that allowed us to develop new material every year without worrying about difficulty levels fluctuating.

Students didn't like it though. Their marks feel random to them. All I could suggest to them was that we had created conditions very similar to business where our outcomes are dependent on external events.

Personally I prefer the classical British system: First = original Upper Second = Competent Lower Second = Pedestrian Third = Thin but Showing some awareness of issues.

The reliability of these gradings is high. It is also extremely difficult to lift one's own performance from one level to another so students don't get wildly fluctuating grades.

Hope this helps.