*Intriguing
website where Marzano answer a series of questions on standards-based
grading. He offers his thoughts and
insights.
Wednesday, May 30, 2012
Interesting Read
*This is a quick, easy, and interesting read on Popham’s perspectives of
high-stakes testing in the classroom as well as standardized tests in the
classroom. He offers a unique look and
challenges you to think outside of the box.
Always Formative
*A great blog
with useful resources on how to get started with standards-based grading in
your classroom. This blog also contains
links to other great sites with good information.
The Standards-Based School- 5 Easy Steps
*Great blog for resources and ideas
on how to implement standards-based grading into
a classroom. Another wonderful aspect is
that the comments on the blog are also
very beneficial.
How to Develop Standards-Based Report Cards
*This is a thorough book
co-written by Bailey and Guskey with guidelines and helpful instructions on how
to develop standards-based report cards.
Before the authors go into how to write, they first give background
information as to why there is a need for standards-based report cards rather
than traditional report cards.
Grading Exceptional Learning
*This is a very helpful article that is a wonderful resource for teachers on
how to grade students with disabilities and/or English Language Learners. It provides five different
steps/strategies. What is also great about this article is that
it provides different myths about grading exceptional students.
Here is the link to the article
http://www.ascd.org/publications/educational-leadership/feb10/vol67/num05/Grading-Exceptional-Learners.aspx
Standard-Based Report Card Cartoon
*This
is a cartoon with some light humor and truth about the problems with our current
grading system.
Example of Standards Based Report Card
*This is an
example video that is directed to parents explaining how their child’s report
is going to change as well as why it is going to change. It goes into great detail on what exactly the
parents should expect and how it will help them.
High school's thoughts on the problems with standards-based grading
*This is an
interesting take from the perspective of a high school student on
standards-based grading. He gives his
reasons for not liking it and backs it up with logical thinking. I am curious to know what other's thoughts are in response to this particular high school student.
Great Perspectives
The teacher and the administrator sat
side-by-side in the teacher’s classroom for a post-observation reflective
conference. To engage the teacher in reflective thinking, the administrator
asked the teacher a question about a student they had recently discussed. “So
how is Jeremy doing in your English class?” The teacher opened her grade book,
ran her finger down the page to Jeremy’s name, moved her finger across the
page, and replied, “He has an 83.5 average in my class.” Pausing for a moment,
the administrator quietly said, “Close your eyes for a moment and picture
Jeremy. Tell me what you know about where Jeremy is in mastering the standards
addressed in the current unit of study.” Sheepishly the teacher smiled and
said, “I’m not really sure.” (Oliver,
2011)
http://www.justaskpublications.com/jfta/2011_1_jfta.htm
*This is an amazing article that answers so many of the frequently asked
questions about standards-based grading.
It opens with a catchy story and concludes with thought provoking
questions that encourage you to take a look at your own practice.
Standards-Based Grading Resources
*This is a
teacher created wiki space that offers links to other great websites and
articles supporting standards-based grading.
It also contains two great videos that speak to the issues of late work
and grading homework. I highly encourage
you to watch these videos with an open mind.
New York Times Article
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/25/education/25cards.html
*This is an interesting article taken from a suburban elementary school in
Pelham, NY. Prospect Hill Elementary made
the change from traditional grades (A, B, C, etc.) to standards-based grading. The article presents the push back from the
parents and the struggles the teachers and administers had to overcome.
Great Resource
*This is an amazing resource for teachers just starting to implement
standards-based grading into their classroom or even for teachers who have
already been practicing this type of assessment. Marzano goes in depth on how to design and
set up standards-based grading and makes it extremely flexible to virtually fit
into any classroom.
Marzano, R.J.
(2010). Formative assessment and
standards-based grading: classroom strategies that
work. Blooming, IN: Marzano Research Laboratory.
Tuesday, May 29, 2012
Challenges of Standards-Based Grading
Here is the link to Guskey's article on the "cons" of standards-based grading.
*This is a beautifully written document that looks at the negative impacts
of standards-based grading. It lists
four specific reasons as to why it would be difficult to switch to this type of
system as well as challenges it presents.
Pros and Cons of Standards-Based Teaching
Here is the link to the article written by Carol Ann Tomlinson http://esblogin.k12albemarle.org/attachments/7b8c23a2-1dd0-4aab-943f-d417df093124.pdf
*This is a very matter of fact article that explains the connection between differentiation
and standards-based teaching. It gives
an interesting perspective on the harmful effects that standards-based teaching
has on students as well as the positives.
Why Standards-Based Grading?
*This is a great
short video that focuses on why we
need to make the switch to standards-based grading. It gives a wonderful analogy of a football player and
how he is being “graded”. Again, this
video also drives the point of parents understanding their child’s grade and what that means.
What is Standards-based grading?
*This is a quick four and a half minute video that goes
over the basics of what standards-based grading is. It gives great examples as well as
non-examples and even goes into detail about how GPA is calculated. Another great aspect is that it focuses on
student’s understanding of their own grades and parent involvement.
Patricia Scriffiny shows us the positives
http://tccl.rit.albany.edu/knilt/images/4/40/Standards_based_grading.pdf
This is the link to get to the article written by Patricia Scriffiny. This article is another example of the pros of standards-based grading. The article list seven various reasons as to why it is so beneficial to incorporate standards-based grading into the classrooms. It gives concrete examples and is very straight forward.
This is the link to get to the article written by Patricia Scriffiny. This article is another example of the pros of standards-based grading. The article list seven various reasons as to why it is so beneficial to incorporate standards-based grading into the classrooms. It gives concrete examples and is very straight forward.
*This is an amazing book that gives 15 great solutions on how to help solve
the problem of inconsistent grading. It
is a quick, intriguing read that was just updated in 2011. It is current and the ideas given are
realistic and are broken down into four different catagories. I would recommend this book to all teachers
and administrators.
Letter to Educators
Dear Educators,
As we all know,
grades are here to serve a variety of purposes. The problem
with this is that the way they are being reported, not everyone is getting the
whole story. When a parent opens their child’s report card
and sees a B in math (on a traditional-based report card), they are more than
likely pleased. However, “if a student’s mastery is inconsistent,
then a summary grade is difficult to determine and will lack the detail needed
to understand the student’s real achievement; that is, their strengths and
weaknesses” (O’Connor, 2011, p.62). As a result, the parents will not know this
and therefore will not work on that specific skill with their child, leaving
the student even more behind the following year.
The solution to
this problem is standards-based grades. This is when a teacher
will “base grades on published school/district/state standards, and report them
for each standard to create a more complete profile of individual students’
strengths and weaknesses” (O’Connor, 2011, p.58). This allows not only the parents to see what
exact skill their child may be lacking in/excelling in, but also the following years’
teacher as well as administrators. It is a clear measurement
of progress made/not made by each student.
In this blog, I will examine the pros and cons of standards-based
grading.
Thank
you
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