This chapter discussed the different grade book formats for a differentiated classroom. Our gradebooks should be organized so that they encourage learning in our students, instead of discouraging it by including zeros. There are four grade book formats: Grouping assignments by standard, objective, or benchmark; Grouping assignments by weight or category; Listing assignments by date; and Basing your grade book on topics. Unfortunately, one format does not work best for all teachers. Instead, we need to do a trial and error to find which format works best for us, our classroom, and our students.
We were all different in our opinions in how we will possibly arrange our grade books once we become teachers. The topic-based grade book is good to see how certain students do in certain areas so that you can see how a student works and learn more about their progress, but the date-based grade book is good for organizational purposes. However, you could combine the two, and date base your topical-based grade book, since most teachers go through the year based on certain topics. This way, you can be organized, but still learn about your students, their progress, and how they learn.
Monday, April 30, 2007
Chapter 14
This chapter went it depth about what really goes into report cards. For many students it is what can make or break a semester. Grades are also supposed to be a measure of how well a student has mastered material. Is there any real way tell students in what areas they have progressed in mastery, what areas they are lacking, how much of the material they have learned as well as their own personal progress, all in one letter? One tactic to make the grading a little more meaningful is to attach a number to it. The letter will show the level of mastery, but the number will show the amount of personal progress the student has made. This way they have some notion of how they're doing, even if they mess up some of the projects.
This chapter seems big into moving away from the standard approach to reporting grades. For all of us going through school we were most likely given report cards with the standard A-F grades and maybe if we were lucky we got a computer generated comment along the lines of "works well with others". We have to really think about it and see how much the grades did for us. Did they help us at all in our learning? As teachers we need to think about what it means to fully differentiate the classroom. That would mean differentiating the grades as well. We need to think about how to go about maknig the grades as beneficial as possible to our students.
This chapter seems big into moving away from the standard approach to reporting grades. For all of us going through school we were most likely given report cards with the standard A-F grades and maybe if we were lucky we got a computer generated comment along the lines of "works well with others". We have to really think about it and see how much the grades did for us. Did they help us at all in our learning? As teachers we need to think about what it means to fully differentiate the classroom. That would mean differentiating the grades as well. We need to think about how to go about maknig the grades as beneficial as possible to our students.
Sunday, April 29, 2007
Chapter 11
This chapter covers six different gradings questions, and what teachers should do in each case.
The first big question is whether a 0 or a 60 should be recorded in the grade book. The book states that a 60 should be recorded and primarily uses the 60 point failing range to justify that 60. Moreover, a 60, (or a 50) is still failing. They are receiving failing grades for not handing in work More importantly, the effect the 0 has on students is rather profound. If they know they've received a few 0's for the course, they've lost all hope. They know that no matter how hard they try, they are still going to get a miserable grade. So why try? Getting a 60 or a 50 on the other hand, with the potential to make up work, offers hope to even the most hard-bitten and cynical student.
The next question is how to grade advanced students? Despite the apparent difficulty of the question the answer can be simplified quite succinctly. Change the grading criteria to match the students performance. The text is aware that this will be time consuming, but in cases of advanced or honors classes, it is absolutely essential.
Concerning weighted grades the text seems to jump the question a bit, a few of us noticed this. The chapter and author's conclusion is that grades aren't really helpful and can often be irrelevant anyway. Given this, weighted grades is a dead issue since grades themselves should be killed off. Its a nice logical argument, but it doesn't help people who are stuck with a system. It is rather difficult to weigh grades accordingly, lots of schools had trouble with it, so the philosophy around here seems to be to avoid it at all cost. Besides if one does everything one should be doing concerning teaching and grading, it is unlikely that one would need or want weighted grades anyway.
We all seem to have some difficulty understanding exactly what Automatically vs. concept attainment means. We all understand however that there are different perspectives concerning understanding and that these perspectives must be taken into account. To use an analogy from Beth's class, if a duck is trying to learn how to climb, we have to understand that its not what comes natural to it.
Grading late work. Here is a subject particularly near and dear to my own heart since I am guilty of delivering late (usually only slightly) work more times than I care to count. The bottom line is that it isn't appropriate to simply give the student and F and call it good when he or she turns in late work. That destroys the learning process and school is all about learning not grades. Concerning chronically late students, the text suggests there is a reason for the chronic lateness. It also suggests that the teacher should find out what it is, and take steps to alleviate or mitigate the issue.
Lastly we come to grading the special needs students which can be a little tricky. The text seems to suggest that two methods be used, one which details what the student is capable of, and the other how much progress the student has made in various avenues. This is going to involve a description rather than a number or letter. The description serves the student far better than the numbers because they know exactly what it indicates. Sure its time consuming, but in the end, undoubtedly worth it.
The first big question is whether a 0 or a 60 should be recorded in the grade book. The book states that a 60 should be recorded and primarily uses the 60 point failing range to justify that 60. Moreover, a 60, (or a 50) is still failing. They are receiving failing grades for not handing in work More importantly, the effect the 0 has on students is rather profound. If they know they've received a few 0's for the course, they've lost all hope. They know that no matter how hard they try, they are still going to get a miserable grade. So why try? Getting a 60 or a 50 on the other hand, with the potential to make up work, offers hope to even the most hard-bitten and cynical student.
The next question is how to grade advanced students? Despite the apparent difficulty of the question the answer can be simplified quite succinctly. Change the grading criteria to match the students performance. The text is aware that this will be time consuming, but in cases of advanced or honors classes, it is absolutely essential.
Concerning weighted grades the text seems to jump the question a bit, a few of us noticed this. The chapter and author's conclusion is that grades aren't really helpful and can often be irrelevant anyway. Given this, weighted grades is a dead issue since grades themselves should be killed off. Its a nice logical argument, but it doesn't help people who are stuck with a system. It is rather difficult to weigh grades accordingly, lots of schools had trouble with it, so the philosophy around here seems to be to avoid it at all cost. Besides if one does everything one should be doing concerning teaching and grading, it is unlikely that one would need or want weighted grades anyway.
We all seem to have some difficulty understanding exactly what Automatically vs. concept attainment means. We all understand however that there are different perspectives concerning understanding and that these perspectives must be taken into account. To use an analogy from Beth's class, if a duck is trying to learn how to climb, we have to understand that its not what comes natural to it.
Grading late work. Here is a subject particularly near and dear to my own heart since I am guilty of delivering late (usually only slightly) work more times than I care to count. The bottom line is that it isn't appropriate to simply give the student and F and call it good when he or she turns in late work. That destroys the learning process and school is all about learning not grades. Concerning chronically late students, the text suggests there is a reason for the chronic lateness. It also suggests that the teacher should find out what it is, and take steps to alleviate or mitigate the issue.
Lastly we come to grading the special needs students which can be a little tricky. The text seems to suggest that two methods be used, one which details what the student is capable of, and the other how much progress the student has made in various avenues. This is going to involve a description rather than a number or letter. The description serves the student far better than the numbers because they know exactly what it indicates. Sure its time consuming, but in the end, undoubtedly worth it.
Chapter 12
This chapter discussed grading scales. The two it focused most on were the four point and the one hundred point scales. Larger scales are more subjective to a student's mastery of a subject. It warns, however, that parents and students will associate the four point scale with fours being A's and ones being F's. Rubrics help achieve objectives and accurate grades. They are a good way of taking note of how much a student is learning. It gives a more accurate reading of a students mastery in a subject and the feedback is more useful for teachers, students, and their parents.
While we were all in high school our schools used the hundred point scale for our assignments. Switching to a four point scale with every subject can be hard. In math, for instance, four point scales and rubrics work for projects, but not assignments that involve a lot of mathematical computations. It is a good idea, however, to have a scale over a hundred. This way each assignment is equal to a certain number of points so students can see which assignments are worth more than others. When one has to use the hundred point scale, it might be a good idea to stray away from the traditional scaling. By making an A 80-100 and an F 0-19, there is less of a gap between each grade. However, the four point scale and rubrics are normally the best bet with a lot of assignments.
While we were all in high school our schools used the hundred point scale for our assignments. Switching to a four point scale with every subject can be hard. In math, for instance, four point scales and rubrics work for projects, but not assignments that involve a lot of mathematical computations. It is a good idea, however, to have a scale over a hundred. This way each assignment is equal to a certain number of points so students can see which assignments are worth more than others. When one has to use the hundred point scale, it might be a good idea to stray away from the traditional scaling. By making an A 80-100 and an F 0-19, there is less of a gap between each grade. However, the four point scale and rubrics are normally the best bet with a lot of assignments.
Monday, April 23, 2007
Chapter 9
This chapter is about what a teacher should not do when grading and assessing students. It is important not to add nonacademic factors like behavior and attendance into a student's final grade, and not to penalize them for multiple attempts at an assignment; they should be given more opportunities to master the subject. Also, homework for practice is to be avoided becuase if a student doesn't understand the material in the first place, they will not do well on the homework. Students should also not be graded individually and not on a curve. Curve grading shows no mastery and false progress.
Many of us did the homework in middle school and high school, and yet never learned anything from it. We simply did it because it was required of us. The hardest part is when you are trying to do the homework and you don't understand the material. If this happens, then the student feels as though he or she is incompetent or stupid. While extra credit is not always a good thing, and should not replace a failing grade, we feel as though it should sometimes be allowed as long as the extra credit pertains to the unit and will be beneficial for the student.
Many of us did the homework in middle school and high school, and yet never learned anything from it. We simply did it because it was required of us. The hardest part is when you are trying to do the homework and you don't understand the material. If this happens, then the student feels as though he or she is incompetent or stupid. While extra credit is not always a good thing, and should not replace a failing grade, we feel as though it should sometimes be allowed as long as the extra credit pertains to the unit and will be beneficial for the student.
Chapter 7
This chapter was about the nature of grades and how differentiated instruction directly impacts our grading policies. Problems with grading is becuase of a lack of understanding as to what grades actually mean and why they are so important. Grades not only vary depending upon the teacher, but also upon a student's background, and whether the student is considered gifted or has disabilities. Some questions that this chapter asked were: 1. Why are there grades in the first place? 2. What does a grade really mean? 3. What would school be like if there weren't any grades?
We all agreed that it is ok for some grades to be adjusted for students with extenuating circumstances, but not every assignment for every student. If we adjust grades for every student on every assignment, what is the point of assigning the grade in the first place? After reading this chapter, we have come to realize that letter grades do not reflect much unless the teacher has set out specific standards for each grade and each assignment so that the students are better able to understand their grade in that class. For some students, grades are important not only because they ultimately define our life decisions and possible future choices, but they are also the only part of school that they are able to control. Since they can't control the curriculum, assignments, or professors they end up with, the grade is all that is left for them to decide on their own.
We all agreed that it is ok for some grades to be adjusted for students with extenuating circumstances, but not every assignment for every student. If we adjust grades for every student on every assignment, what is the point of assigning the grade in the first place? After reading this chapter, we have come to realize that letter grades do not reflect much unless the teacher has set out specific standards for each grade and each assignment so that the students are better able to understand their grade in that class. For some students, grades are important not only because they ultimately define our life decisions and possible future choices, but they are also the only part of school that they are able to control. Since they can't control the curriculum, assignments, or professors they end up with, the grade is all that is left for them to decide on their own.
Sunday, April 22, 2007
Chapter 8
This chapter is largely about the issue about whether or not to incorporate attendence, effort, and participation into a grade. It s a difficult topic to reason a solution to. On one side grades are supposed to reflect mastery of the material and therefore diluting the grade with these other ideas would remove the accuracy of the grade ( unless its some sort of topic where participation is the material being graded). On the other side of things, school is supposed to prepare students for the real world, so is it right to have a student being able to pass with an A when they're missing the majority of the classes? If they did this in the real job world, they'd be fired.
This question of whether to include these ideas in grades causes a lot of mental struggle. For a lot of us growing up attendence and participation were included in grades so it seems hard not to do so as well. But we also know that there can be circumstances in which having attendence can hurt a students learning more than help and thats something we always want to avoid. A way to include effort was mentioned by having students right reflective pieces at the end of each unit aobut what they learned and what they thought of it.
This question of whether to include these ideas in grades causes a lot of mental struggle. For a lot of us growing up attendence and participation were included in grades so it seems hard not to do so as well. But we also know that there can be circumstances in which having attendence can hurt a students learning more than help and thats something we always want to avoid. A way to include effort was mentioned by having students right reflective pieces at the end of each unit aobut what they learned and what they thought of it.
Friday, April 13, 2007
Chapter 10
This chapter discussed redoing and turning in work again for full credit. It is important to give students another chance to master their work, but to make guidelines for this clear. One point given was not to allow every student to redo his or her work. If we know that the student had blown off a test or a project, they should probably not be allowed to retake it. It is important to guide those students we allow to redo assignments through the process of studying and schedule making. Time management is important, and because we want them to do well, we need to be there to help our students. By giving students restrictions on what they can and cannot redo, you can ensure that the work is done to a certain quality.
This chapter was great because it gave examples of when it's okay to let students redo their work. It gave restrictions on what should and should not be done. When we know that a student has blown off an assignment, it's perfectly acceptable not to give them a second chance. However, in situations where a student studies for a test for weeks, but still fails, a redo is needed. Simply retaking the same test, however, isn't a good idea. Taking a different test, or doing a different assignment that will bring the same outcome works.
This chapter was great because it gave examples of when it's okay to let students redo their work. It gave restrictions on what should and should not be done. When we know that a student has blown off an assignment, it's perfectly acceptable not to give them a second chance. However, in situations where a student studies for a test for weeks, but still fails, a redo is needed. Simply retaking the same test, however, isn't a good idea. Taking a different test, or doing a different assignment that will bring the same outcome works.
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