Everywhere I go and everywhere I look, I see grading being discussed. I am currently attending a conference on PLC's and in 2 of the 3 sessions today grading came up and specifically "what does a grade mean?"
On the web, I go to one blog looking at what one person has posted about SBG and they link to three other blogs discussing SBG.
Again, my mind spins. Hopefully, I can grab a hold of it before it takes right off from my shoulders.
I have added some of the blogs to the right on here so that I can follow along with them.
Monday, August 9, 2010
I'm jumping in...
I have decided that I am going to do Standards Based Grading this year. I am teaching one class--Biology and am going down to teaching only 4 sections. I feel that this is something you just have to decide to do and then get to work. The majority of the work comes at the beginning before students walk in the door---deciding what I would like students to learn in my class by looking at what the district wants and what the state wants and what I feel is plausible. This is where it gets overwhelming. I am going to post the rough draft of my objectives (standards/learning targets/etc). I haven't discovered the perfect way to describe them yet. Always looking for examples of way to rephrase the standards so that they can be used effectively in SBG.
Biology Standards:
State Standards for Biology Emphasized by the District:
CELLS
The student will relate cellular structures to their functions
The student will compare and contrast the structures found in typical plant, animal, and bacterial cells.
The student will compare and contrast viruses with living cells.
The student will explain the role of the cell membrance as a highly selective barrier in diffusion, osmosis, and active transport.
The student will differentiate between the proceses of photosynthesis and respiration in terms of energy flow, reactants, and products.
DIVERSITY OF ORGANISMS
The student will relate the structure, complexity, and organization of organ systems to the methods of obtaining, transforming, releasing, and eliminating the matter and energy used to sustain the organism.
The student will recognize that organisms have both innate and learned behavioral responses to internal and external stimuli, includig trophic responses in plants.
The studnt will use scientific evidence, including the fossil record, homologous structures, empryological development or biochemical similarities to classify organisms in order to show probable evolutionary relationships and common ancestry.
INTERDEPENDENCE OF LIFE
The student will describe the factors related to matter and energy in an ecosystem that both influence fluctuations in population size and determine the carrying capacity of a population.
The student will explain how adaptations of species and co-evolution with other species are related to success in an ecosystem.
The student will predict and analyze how a change in an ecosystem, resulting from natural causes, changes in climate, human activity or introduction of invasive species, can affect both the number of organisms in a population and the biodiversity of species in the ecosystem.
HEREDITY
The student will define the relationship between DNA, genes, and chromosomes.
The student will describe the structure and function of DNA and distinguish between replication, transcription, and translation.
The student will describe how genetic information is transmitted from parents to offspring through the processes of meiosis and fertilization as they relate to chromosome recombination and sexual reproduction.
The student will use Mendel's laws of segregation and independent assortment to determine the genotype and phenotype of a monohybrid cross.
The student will differentiate between dominant, recessive, co-dominant, incompletely dominant, polygenic, and sex-linked traits.
BIOLOGICAL POPULATIONS CHANGE OVER TIME
The student will use the principles of natural selection to explain the differential survival of groups of organisms as a consequence of: the potential for a species to increase its numbers, the genetic variability of offspring due to mutation and recombination of genes, a finite supply of resources required for life, and the ensuing selection based on environmental factors of those offspring better able to survive and produce reproductively successful offspring.
The student will describe how genetic variation between populations is due to different selective pressures acting on each population, which can lead to a new species.
The student will use biological evolution to explain diversity of species.
The student will understand that the same processes that are responsible for biological evolution of plants and animals on Earth are also responsible for evolution for the evollution of the human species.
FLOW OF ENERGY AND MATTER
The student will explain the relationship between abiotic and biotic components of an ecosystem in terms of the cycling of water, carbon, oxygen, and nitrogen.
The student will know that all matter tends to become more disorganized over time, and that living systems require continuous input of energy in order to maintain their chemical and physical organizations and prevent death.
The student will understand that matter and energy flow through different levels of organization of living systems, from cells to communities, as well as between living systems and the physical environment as chemical elements are recombined in different ways. Each recombination results in both storage and dissipation of energy.
HUMAN ORGANISM
The student will understand and describe the basic anatomy and physiology of the nervous system and sense organs.
The student will describe how the functions of individual organ systems are integrated to maintain a homeostatic balance in the body.
Science Skill Standards:
State Science Skill Standards:
SCIENTIFIC WORLD VIEW
The student will be able to distinguish amoung hypothesis, theory, and law as scientific terms and how they are used to answer a specific question.
The student will be able to explain how scientific and technological innovations as well as new evidence can challenge portions of or entire accepted theories and models including by not limited to cell theory, atomic theory, theory of evolution, plate tectonic plate theory, germ theory of disease, and big bang theory.
The student will recognize that in order to be valid, scientific knowledge must meet certain criteria including that it: be consistent with experimental, observational, and inferential evidence about nature, follow rules of logic and reporting both methods and procedures, and be falsifiable and open to criticisms.
SCIENTIFIC INQUIRY
The student will design and complete a scientific experiment using scientific methods by determining a testable question, making a hypothesis, designing a scientific investigation, with appropriate controls, analyzing data, making conclusions based on evidence and comparing conclusions to the original hypotesis and prior knowledge.
The student will distinguish between qualitative and quantitative data.
The student will apply mathematics and models to analyze data and support conclusions.
The student will identify possible sources of error and their effects on results.
SCIENTIFIC ENTERPRISE
The student will provide an example of a need or problem identified by science and solves by engineering or technology.
The student will provide an example of how technology facilitates new discoveries and the development of scientific knowledge.
HISTORIC PERSPECTIVE
The student will be able to trace the development of scientific advancement, invention, or theory and its impact on society.
The student will compare and contrast the differences between scientific theories and theories from other bodies of knowledge, and the importance of each in a science discussion.
Housenga Science Skill Standards:
The student will demonstrate the ability to create a quality science sketch
The student will demonstrate the ability to follow scientific procedures
The student will demonstrate safe lab prcedures
The student will collect multiple types of data accurately
The student will correctly use the metric system to make measurements
The student will correctly use lab equpiment
The student will work collaboratively with other students to gather data, analyze data, share information, and complete lab procedures.
Biology Standards:
State Standards for Biology Emphasized by the District:
CELLS
The student will relate cellular structures to their functions
The student will compare and contrast the structures found in typical plant, animal, and bacterial cells.
The student will compare and contrast viruses with living cells.
The student will explain the role of the cell membrance as a highly selective barrier in diffusion, osmosis, and active transport.
The student will differentiate between the proceses of photosynthesis and respiration in terms of energy flow, reactants, and products.
DIVERSITY OF ORGANISMS
The student will relate the structure, complexity, and organization of organ systems to the methods of obtaining, transforming, releasing, and eliminating the matter and energy used to sustain the organism.
The student will recognize that organisms have both innate and learned behavioral responses to internal and external stimuli, includig trophic responses in plants.
The studnt will use scientific evidence, including the fossil record, homologous structures, empryological development or biochemical similarities to classify organisms in order to show probable evolutionary relationships and common ancestry.
INTERDEPENDENCE OF LIFE
The student will describe the factors related to matter and energy in an ecosystem that both influence fluctuations in population size and determine the carrying capacity of a population.
The student will explain how adaptations of species and co-evolution with other species are related to success in an ecosystem.
The student will predict and analyze how a change in an ecosystem, resulting from natural causes, changes in climate, human activity or introduction of invasive species, can affect both the number of organisms in a population and the biodiversity of species in the ecosystem.
HEREDITY
The student will define the relationship between DNA, genes, and chromosomes.
The student will describe the structure and function of DNA and distinguish between replication, transcription, and translation.
The student will describe how genetic information is transmitted from parents to offspring through the processes of meiosis and fertilization as they relate to chromosome recombination and sexual reproduction.
The student will use Mendel's laws of segregation and independent assortment to determine the genotype and phenotype of a monohybrid cross.
The student will differentiate between dominant, recessive, co-dominant, incompletely dominant, polygenic, and sex-linked traits.
BIOLOGICAL POPULATIONS CHANGE OVER TIME
The student will use the principles of natural selection to explain the differential survival of groups of organisms as a consequence of: the potential for a species to increase its numbers, the genetic variability of offspring due to mutation and recombination of genes, a finite supply of resources required for life, and the ensuing selection based on environmental factors of those offspring better able to survive and produce reproductively successful offspring.
The student will describe how genetic variation between populations is due to different selective pressures acting on each population, which can lead to a new species.
The student will use biological evolution to explain diversity of species.
The student will understand that the same processes that are responsible for biological evolution of plants and animals on Earth are also responsible for evolution for the evollution of the human species.
FLOW OF ENERGY AND MATTER
The student will explain the relationship between abiotic and biotic components of an ecosystem in terms of the cycling of water, carbon, oxygen, and nitrogen.
The student will know that all matter tends to become more disorganized over time, and that living systems require continuous input of energy in order to maintain their chemical and physical organizations and prevent death.
The student will understand that matter and energy flow through different levels of organization of living systems, from cells to communities, as well as between living systems and the physical environment as chemical elements are recombined in different ways. Each recombination results in both storage and dissipation of energy.
HUMAN ORGANISM
The student will understand and describe the basic anatomy and physiology of the nervous system and sense organs.
The student will describe how the functions of individual organ systems are integrated to maintain a homeostatic balance in the body.
Science Skill Standards:
State Science Skill Standards:
SCIENTIFIC WORLD VIEW
The student will be able to distinguish amoung hypothesis, theory, and law as scientific terms and how they are used to answer a specific question.
The student will be able to explain how scientific and technological innovations as well as new evidence can challenge portions of or entire accepted theories and models including by not limited to cell theory, atomic theory, theory of evolution, plate tectonic plate theory, germ theory of disease, and big bang theory.
The student will recognize that in order to be valid, scientific knowledge must meet certain criteria including that it: be consistent with experimental, observational, and inferential evidence about nature, follow rules of logic and reporting both methods and procedures, and be falsifiable and open to criticisms.
SCIENTIFIC INQUIRY
The student will design and complete a scientific experiment using scientific methods by determining a testable question, making a hypothesis, designing a scientific investigation, with appropriate controls, analyzing data, making conclusions based on evidence and comparing conclusions to the original hypotesis and prior knowledge.
The student will distinguish between qualitative and quantitative data.
The student will apply mathematics and models to analyze data and support conclusions.
The student will identify possible sources of error and their effects on results.
SCIENTIFIC ENTERPRISE
The student will provide an example of a need or problem identified by science and solves by engineering or technology.
The student will provide an example of how technology facilitates new discoveries and the development of scientific knowledge.
HISTORIC PERSPECTIVE
The student will be able to trace the development of scientific advancement, invention, or theory and its impact on society.
The student will compare and contrast the differences between scientific theories and theories from other bodies of knowledge, and the importance of each in a science discussion.
Housenga Science Skill Standards:
The student will demonstrate the ability to create a quality science sketch
The student will demonstrate the ability to follow scientific procedures
The student will demonstrate safe lab prcedures
The student will collect multiple types of data accurately
The student will correctly use the metric system to make measurements
The student will correctly use lab equpiment
The student will work collaboratively with other students to gather data, analyze data, share information, and complete lab procedures.
Friday, July 30, 2010
Some of the Many Questions I Had/Have Answered
I had many questions that needed answering. This blog post answered many of them--like won't kids all come clammering to make stuff up at the end of the semester? Aren't I creating a lot more work for myself?
Standards-Based Grading: Mythbusters Edition
From What It's Like On The Inside Blog
29 January 2008
Seven Reasons for Standards-Based Grading by Educational Leadership
Seven Reasons for Standards-Based Grading
From Educational Leadership
Patricia L. Scriffiny
If your grading system doesn't guide students toward excellence, it's time for something completely different.
Each week brings some new idea that teachers are supposed to implement, while still preparing lessons, grading papers, and keeping their classrooms in some semblance of order. Amid all these challenges, a call to change grading policies can seem particularly unrealistic.
One grading practice that is gaining popularity is standards-based grading, which involves measuring students' proficiency on well-defined course objectives (Tomlinson & McTighe, 2006). Although many districts adopt standards-based grading in addition to traditional grades, standards-based grading can and should replace traditional point-based grades.
My school, Montrose High School, is located in a small but rapidly growing rural community in southwestern Colorado. We serve a community that is primarily white but that has a significant Latino population. After spending the last three years implementing standards-based grading in my high school math classroom, I have discovered seven solid reasons for replacing point-based grades with a standards-based system.
Reason 1: Grades Should Have Meaning
Each letter grade that a student earns at the high school level is connected to a graduation credit, and many classes reflect only one step in a sequence of learning. So what does each grade indicate to students, parents, and teachers of later courses in the sequence? When I first considered this question, I realized I had no answers. When I was pressed to describe the qualitative difference between an A, B, C, D, or F, my answers were vague. So, I developed a much more focused idea of what I want my grades to mean:
* An A means the student has completed proficient work on all course objectives and advanced work on some objectives.
* A B means the student has completed proficient work on all course objectives.
* A C means the student has completed proficient work on the most important objectives, although not on all objectives. The student can continue to the next course.
* A D means the student has completed proficient work on at least one-half of the course objectives but is missing some important objectives and is at significant risk of failing the next course in the sequence. The student should repeat the course if it is a prerequisite for another course.
* An F means the student has completed proficient work on fewer than one-half of the course objectives and cannot successfully complete the next course in sequence.
Reason 2: We Need to Challenge the Status Quo
Many notions I had at the beginning of my career about grading didn't stand up to real scrutiny. The thorny issue of homework is one example of how the status quo needed to change. I once thought it was essential to award points to students simply for completing homework. I didn't believe students would do homework unless it was graded. And yet, in my classroom, students who were clearly learning sometimes earned low grades because of missing work. Conversely, some students actually learned very little but were good at “playing school.” Despite dismal test scores, these students earned decent grades by turning in homework and doing extra credit. They would often go on to struggle in later courses, while their parents watched and worried.
Over the past three years, I have radically changed how I formally assess homework—I don't. Of course, it is essential for students to do homework that is tied closely to learning objectives and for students to see those connections (Marzano, Pickering, & Pollock, 2001). Systematic and extensive feedback on assignments sends students the message that they can and should do homework as practice. A typical homework assignment for my students consists of a small collection of problems, each of which is linked to a learning objective. At first, I make those connections for my students, but eventually they make them on their own.
When I assign homework, I discuss with my students where and how it applies to their assessments. My goal is to get students to constantly ask themselves, “Do I know this? Can I do this?” To my surprise, my homework completion rates have remained steady over the past three years. Some students don't do all of the homework that I assign, but they know that they are accountable for mastering the standard connected to it. Of course, not every student who needs to practice always does so, but I am amazed and encouraged that students ask me for extra practice fairly regularly.
Reason 3: We Can Control Grading Practices
One of the biggest sources of frustration in schools today is the sense that we are at the mercy of factors we teachers cannot control. We cannot control student socioeconomic levels, school funding, our salaries, our teaching assignments, increasing class sizes, difficult parents, or a host of other important issues. However, we can control how we assess students.
When I approached my principal and district officials with the idea of using an experimental grading system, I received support and encouragement from all of them. In addition, a number of colleagues have been intrigued and want to make standards-based grading work in their classrooms.
If a teacher must use a point system to satisfy an administrative mandate or to use a particular grade book, that teacher can still use a standards-based system. The crucial idea is to use a system that is not based on the inappropriate use of averages. The system must not allow students to mask their level of understanding with their attendance, their level of effort, or other peripheral issues.
I have found that avoiding point values that might appear in a traditional percentage-based system is helpful because parents and students can get confused if they see numbers that look like what they've seen in the past but refer to a different scale. Teachers who have to assign points can avoid this confusion by using completely different numbers. A point value in the range of 1 to 10, for example, would not have the strong associations of a point value of 85, and thus would not be as easily misinterpreted.
Reason 4: Standards-Based Grading Reduces Meaningless Paperwork
Since I adopted standards-based grading, my load of meaningless paperwork has been drastically reduced, which provides time for more important considerations. Standards-based grading enables me to get the most from every piece of paper students turn in.
Writing feedback only on selected homework problems saves my time when marking papers while still giving me a sense of where students are in their learning. These homework assignments and other formative assessments help me judge the progress of the group as a whole before deciding how to proceed.
I don't assess student mastery of any objective until I am confident that a reasonable number of students will score proficiently, and that makes each assessment mean much more. Students who are still struggling after a significant portion of the class has demonstrated mastery can retest individually. The bottom line is that when I review any set of papers, I walk away knowing a great deal more about what my students know than I ever did before.
Reason 5: It Helps Teachers Adjust Instruction
Imagine two different grade books for the same set of students, as shown in Figure 1. Which one of the two better illustrates what students know and what they still need to learn?
Figure 1. Comparing Traditional and Standards-Based Grade Books
Traditional Grade Book
Name
Homework Average
Quiz 1
Chapter 1 Test
John
90
65
70
Bill
50
75
78
Susan
110
50
62
Felicia
10
90
85
Amanda
95
100
90
Standards-Based Grade Book
Name
Objective 1: Write an alternate ending for a story
Objective 2: Identify the elements of a story
Objective 3: Compare and contrast two stories
John
Partially proficient
Proficient
Partially proficient
Bill
Proficient
Proficient
Partially proficient
Susan
Partially proficient
Partially proficient
Partially proficient
Felicia
Advanced
Proficient
Proficient
Amanda
Partially proficient
Advanced
Proficient
The standards-based grade book gives a wealth of information to help the teacher adjust instruction. Note that two objectives (1 and 3) may require more class instruction. The notations for Objective 2, on the other hand, suggest that the class only needs practice and one student needs some reteaching.
Students can also see much more information about their learning. In the traditional grade book, Amanda would assume she is in great shape, but standards-based grading reveals that she has not mastered a crucial concept.
Gifted and talented students can be truly challenged in a standards-based classroom because if they show early mastery of fundamental skills and concepts, they can then concentrate on more challenging work that is at higher levels of Bloom's taxonomy or that seeks connections among objectives.
Students who struggle can continue to retest and use alternate assessments until they show proficiency, and they are not penalized for needing extended time. I guide students with special needs to modify their work and, if needed, develop different ways of demonstrating that they've met their proficiency goals. Their working styles can be easily accommodated in this system because modified assignments and assessments require no special adjustments in the grade book. The grade book simply shows where they are in meeting the standards, without reference to how they are demonstrating their learning or what modifications needed to be made.
Reason 6: It Teaches What Quality Looks Like
In the adult world, everything is a performance assessment. If adults on the job make poor decisions or cannot determine the quality of their own work, the results are generally undesirable. Quality matters, and the ability to measure the quality of one's own work is a learned skill.
So how can we teach this essential skill? One way to teach quality is to demand it. We must create an environment where standards can and must be met and where students are not permitted to submit substandard work without being asked to revise.
If we base our grades on standards rather than attendance, behavior, or extra credit (which often has nothing to do with course objectives), we can actually help students grapple with the idea of quality and walk away with a higher degree of self-sufficiency. We can and should report information about student performance in areas like attendance and effort, but we can report it separately from academic achievement (O'Connor, 2007; Tomlinson & McTighe, 2006).
Reason 7: It's a Launchpad to Other Reforms
When I began using standards-based grading, I quickly discovered that I needed to reexamine my curriculum. Each class needed a clear and concise set of standards with precise levels of mastery. This prompted a number of discussions with other teachers in my department, and each year we continue to adapt our objectives. No one can use standards-based grading without clear standards.
In addition to improving curriculum, I have found new ways to use formative assessments and intervention strategies. My work with special education students and English language learners in particular goes much more smoothly because all the modification needed is already built into what I do. I have also been able to work much more effectively with parents by giving them better information.
How do students respond to this style of grading? Of course, their reactions vary. It takes time, discussion, and reflection for students to understand their rights and responsibilities in such a system, and teachers must be patient as students and parents adjust. Many students have expressed increased satisfaction with having a larger degree of control over their grades, although some students do not like the revisions they are required to do. Some struggle to overcome test anxiety and need access to alternate assessments.
As for parents, many of them simply want opportunities for their children to succeed, so they are grateful for the revision and retesting. Each year, parents ask thoughtful questions, with some noting that this method of grading is more similar to evaluation in the workplace.
These seven reasons to change to standards-based grading are merely a starting point. High school teachers need to hold their own practices up to scrutiny and decide whether those practices are worth keeping. By doing so, we unleash a force for change that we can control, with our students and parents as partners.
References
Marzano, R., Pickering, D., & Pollock, J. (2001). Classroom instruction that works. Alexandria, VA: ASCD.
O'Connor, K. (2007). A repair kit for grading: 15 fixes for broken grades. Portland, OR: Educational Testing Service.
Tomlinson, C., & McTighe, J. (2006). Integrating differentiated instruction and understanding by design. Alexandria, VA: ASCD.
Patricia L. Scriffiny is a math teacher at Montrose High School in Montrose, Colorado; pscriffiny@mcsd.k12.co.us.
From Educational Leadership
Patricia L. Scriffiny
If your grading system doesn't guide students toward excellence, it's time for something completely different.
Each week brings some new idea that teachers are supposed to implement, while still preparing lessons, grading papers, and keeping their classrooms in some semblance of order. Amid all these challenges, a call to change grading policies can seem particularly unrealistic.
One grading practice that is gaining popularity is standards-based grading, which involves measuring students' proficiency on well-defined course objectives (Tomlinson & McTighe, 2006). Although many districts adopt standards-based grading in addition to traditional grades, standards-based grading can and should replace traditional point-based grades.
My school, Montrose High School, is located in a small but rapidly growing rural community in southwestern Colorado. We serve a community that is primarily white but that has a significant Latino population. After spending the last three years implementing standards-based grading in my high school math classroom, I have discovered seven solid reasons for replacing point-based grades with a standards-based system.
Reason 1: Grades Should Have Meaning
Each letter grade that a student earns at the high school level is connected to a graduation credit, and many classes reflect only one step in a sequence of learning. So what does each grade indicate to students, parents, and teachers of later courses in the sequence? When I first considered this question, I realized I had no answers. When I was pressed to describe the qualitative difference between an A, B, C, D, or F, my answers were vague. So, I developed a much more focused idea of what I want my grades to mean:
* An A means the student has completed proficient work on all course objectives and advanced work on some objectives.
* A B means the student has completed proficient work on all course objectives.
* A C means the student has completed proficient work on the most important objectives, although not on all objectives. The student can continue to the next course.
* A D means the student has completed proficient work on at least one-half of the course objectives but is missing some important objectives and is at significant risk of failing the next course in the sequence. The student should repeat the course if it is a prerequisite for another course.
* An F means the student has completed proficient work on fewer than one-half of the course objectives and cannot successfully complete the next course in sequence.
Reason 2: We Need to Challenge the Status Quo
Many notions I had at the beginning of my career about grading didn't stand up to real scrutiny. The thorny issue of homework is one example of how the status quo needed to change. I once thought it was essential to award points to students simply for completing homework. I didn't believe students would do homework unless it was graded. And yet, in my classroom, students who were clearly learning sometimes earned low grades because of missing work. Conversely, some students actually learned very little but were good at “playing school.” Despite dismal test scores, these students earned decent grades by turning in homework and doing extra credit. They would often go on to struggle in later courses, while their parents watched and worried.
Over the past three years, I have radically changed how I formally assess homework—I don't. Of course, it is essential for students to do homework that is tied closely to learning objectives and for students to see those connections (Marzano, Pickering, & Pollock, 2001). Systematic and extensive feedback on assignments sends students the message that they can and should do homework as practice. A typical homework assignment for my students consists of a small collection of problems, each of which is linked to a learning objective. At first, I make those connections for my students, but eventually they make them on their own.
When I assign homework, I discuss with my students where and how it applies to their assessments. My goal is to get students to constantly ask themselves, “Do I know this? Can I do this?” To my surprise, my homework completion rates have remained steady over the past three years. Some students don't do all of the homework that I assign, but they know that they are accountable for mastering the standard connected to it. Of course, not every student who needs to practice always does so, but I am amazed and encouraged that students ask me for extra practice fairly regularly.
Reason 3: We Can Control Grading Practices
One of the biggest sources of frustration in schools today is the sense that we are at the mercy of factors we teachers cannot control. We cannot control student socioeconomic levels, school funding, our salaries, our teaching assignments, increasing class sizes, difficult parents, or a host of other important issues. However, we can control how we assess students.
When I approached my principal and district officials with the idea of using an experimental grading system, I received support and encouragement from all of them. In addition, a number of colleagues have been intrigued and want to make standards-based grading work in their classrooms.
If a teacher must use a point system to satisfy an administrative mandate or to use a particular grade book, that teacher can still use a standards-based system. The crucial idea is to use a system that is not based on the inappropriate use of averages. The system must not allow students to mask their level of understanding with their attendance, their level of effort, or other peripheral issues.
I have found that avoiding point values that might appear in a traditional percentage-based system is helpful because parents and students can get confused if they see numbers that look like what they've seen in the past but refer to a different scale. Teachers who have to assign points can avoid this confusion by using completely different numbers. A point value in the range of 1 to 10, for example, would not have the strong associations of a point value of 85, and thus would not be as easily misinterpreted.
Reason 4: Standards-Based Grading Reduces Meaningless Paperwork
Since I adopted standards-based grading, my load of meaningless paperwork has been drastically reduced, which provides time for more important considerations. Standards-based grading enables me to get the most from every piece of paper students turn in.
Writing feedback only on selected homework problems saves my time when marking papers while still giving me a sense of where students are in their learning. These homework assignments and other formative assessments help me judge the progress of the group as a whole before deciding how to proceed.
I don't assess student mastery of any objective until I am confident that a reasonable number of students will score proficiently, and that makes each assessment mean much more. Students who are still struggling after a significant portion of the class has demonstrated mastery can retest individually. The bottom line is that when I review any set of papers, I walk away knowing a great deal more about what my students know than I ever did before.
Reason 5: It Helps Teachers Adjust Instruction
Imagine two different grade books for the same set of students, as shown in Figure 1. Which one of the two better illustrates what students know and what they still need to learn?
Figure 1. Comparing Traditional and Standards-Based Grade Books
Traditional Grade Book
Name
Homework Average
Quiz 1
Chapter 1 Test
John
90
65
70
Bill
50
75
78
Susan
110
50
62
Felicia
10
90
85
Amanda
95
100
90
Standards-Based Grade Book
Name
Objective 1: Write an alternate ending for a story
Objective 2: Identify the elements of a story
Objective 3: Compare and contrast two stories
John
Partially proficient
Proficient
Partially proficient
Bill
Proficient
Proficient
Partially proficient
Susan
Partially proficient
Partially proficient
Partially proficient
Felicia
Advanced
Proficient
Proficient
Amanda
Partially proficient
Advanced
Proficient
The standards-based grade book gives a wealth of information to help the teacher adjust instruction. Note that two objectives (1 and 3) may require more class instruction. The notations for Objective 2, on the other hand, suggest that the class only needs practice and one student needs some reteaching.
Students can also see much more information about their learning. In the traditional grade book, Amanda would assume she is in great shape, but standards-based grading reveals that she has not mastered a crucial concept.
Gifted and talented students can be truly challenged in a standards-based classroom because if they show early mastery of fundamental skills and concepts, they can then concentrate on more challenging work that is at higher levels of Bloom's taxonomy or that seeks connections among objectives.
Students who struggle can continue to retest and use alternate assessments until they show proficiency, and they are not penalized for needing extended time. I guide students with special needs to modify their work and, if needed, develop different ways of demonstrating that they've met their proficiency goals. Their working styles can be easily accommodated in this system because modified assignments and assessments require no special adjustments in the grade book. The grade book simply shows where they are in meeting the standards, without reference to how they are demonstrating their learning or what modifications needed to be made.
Reason 6: It Teaches What Quality Looks Like
In the adult world, everything is a performance assessment. If adults on the job make poor decisions or cannot determine the quality of their own work, the results are generally undesirable. Quality matters, and the ability to measure the quality of one's own work is a learned skill.
So how can we teach this essential skill? One way to teach quality is to demand it. We must create an environment where standards can and must be met and where students are not permitted to submit substandard work without being asked to revise.
If we base our grades on standards rather than attendance, behavior, or extra credit (which often has nothing to do with course objectives), we can actually help students grapple with the idea of quality and walk away with a higher degree of self-sufficiency. We can and should report information about student performance in areas like attendance and effort, but we can report it separately from academic achievement (O'Connor, 2007; Tomlinson & McTighe, 2006).
Reason 7: It's a Launchpad to Other Reforms
When I began using standards-based grading, I quickly discovered that I needed to reexamine my curriculum. Each class needed a clear and concise set of standards with precise levels of mastery. This prompted a number of discussions with other teachers in my department, and each year we continue to adapt our objectives. No one can use standards-based grading without clear standards.
In addition to improving curriculum, I have found new ways to use formative assessments and intervention strategies. My work with special education students and English language learners in particular goes much more smoothly because all the modification needed is already built into what I do. I have also been able to work much more effectively with parents by giving them better information.
How do students respond to this style of grading? Of course, their reactions vary. It takes time, discussion, and reflection for students to understand their rights and responsibilities in such a system, and teachers must be patient as students and parents adjust. Many students have expressed increased satisfaction with having a larger degree of control over their grades, although some students do not like the revisions they are required to do. Some struggle to overcome test anxiety and need access to alternate assessments.
As for parents, many of them simply want opportunities for their children to succeed, so they are grateful for the revision and retesting. Each year, parents ask thoughtful questions, with some noting that this method of grading is more similar to evaluation in the workplace.
These seven reasons to change to standards-based grading are merely a starting point. High school teachers need to hold their own practices up to scrutiny and decide whether those practices are worth keeping. By doing so, we unleash a force for change that we can control, with our students and parents as partners.
References
Marzano, R., Pickering, D., & Pollock, J. (2001). Classroom instruction that works. Alexandria, VA: ASCD.
O'Connor, K. (2007). A repair kit for grading: 15 fixes for broken grades. Portland, OR: Educational Testing Service.
Tomlinson, C., & McTighe, J. (2006). Integrating differentiated instruction and understanding by design. Alexandria, VA: ASCD.
Patricia L. Scriffiny is a math teacher at Montrose High School in Montrose, Colorado; pscriffiny@mcsd.k12.co.us.
A Place to Struggle
So I needed to create a place to struggle with the idea of Standards Based Grading.
Standards Based Grading = measuring students proficiency on well-defined course objectives
So instead of a homework assignment in the gradebook---it says something like "Demonstrates the ability to compare and contrast organelle functions"
I am still trying to figure out what this will look like in my classroom. So I am using this blog as a place to collect information and put thoughts.
Standards Based Grading = measuring students proficiency on well-defined course objectives
So instead of a homework assignment in the gradebook---it says something like "Demonstrates the ability to compare and contrast organelle functions"
I am still trying to figure out what this will look like in my classroom. So I am using this blog as a place to collect information and put thoughts.
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