TheSchoolDistrictofWaukesha: WaukeshaforLearningHandbook
August2013RevisedJanuary2015
TableofContents:
➢ Chapter1:GettingStartedwithGradingforLearning
➢ Chapter2:GradingforLearningResources
➢ Chapter3:Assessment
➢ Chapter4:Rubrics-The5KeysofQualityAssessmentsandRubrics
➢ Chapter5:Reporting
➢ Chapter6:Feedback
➢ Chapter7:InstructionalDesign
➢ Chapter8:Homework
Chapter1:GettingStartedwithGradingforLearning 1.1Definition
GradingforLearningisaStandards-Based,Criterion-Referencedsystem.ClearStandards(LearningTargets)andCriteria(Rubrics)driveteachingandlearning.GradingforLearningwillnotworkasdesignedwithoutStandards(LearningTargets)andwithoutCriteria(Rubrics),thereforethecreationofbothmustbethefirstprioritywhenimplementingGradingforLearningpractices.1.2Purpose
WaukeshaforLearningisdesignedtoprovidestudentswithclearlearningtargets,andmultipleopportunitiestopractice,receivefeedbackandtodemonstratewhattheyknowandareabletodo.TheultimategoalofWaukeshaforLearningistoincreasestudentlearningandachievement.CombiningWaukeshaforLearningprinciplesandpracticeswithpurposefulandengaginginstructionensuresthatthesegoalsareachieved.1.3SDWforLearningPhilosophy
Studentslearnbestthroughasystemofclearlearningtargets,qualityformativeandsummativeassessments,purposefulandengaginginstruction,developmentalfeedbackandtheopportunitytorespondtothatfeedback.Becausegradingforlearningisbasedontheseguidingprinciples,itisimportantforteacherstooperatewithintheguidelinesoftheseprinciplesandpracticesratherthanattemptingtofollowasetofgradingrulesorpolicies.Thisconceptisreferredtoasthe“Realm”ofGradingforLearningandteacherpracticeneedstofitwithintheseguidelines.1.4History
TheteamthatresearchedgradingandassessmentpracticesanddevelopedGradingforLearninghasdrawnonmultipleliteraturesourcesandhasconsultedwithnationallyrecognizedauthoritiesongradingandassessment.Inparticular,creditmustbegiventotheworkofThomasR.Guskey,KenO’Connor,RobertJ.Marzano,CarolAnnTomlinson,GrantWiggins,RickDuFour,andDougReeves.The5PointGradingScale
4-AdvancedProficient
3-Proficient 2-Basic 1-Minimal IE-InsufficientEvidence
Studentdemonstratesthattheyhavemetthelearningtargetatahighercognitivelevel.
Studentdemonstratesthattheyhavemetthelearningtarget.
StudentisapproachingtheLearningTarget,oftenwithteachersupport.
Studentisbeginningtoshowunderstandingofthelearningtarget,oftenwithteachersupport.
Noevidenceofstudentlearning.
ExtendedThinking StrategicThinking UseofKnowledgeor Recallthinkingabout
ConceptualThinking facts,information,orprocedures
ProfessionalJudgement
GradingforLearningrequiresteacherstomakeprofessionaljudgmentsregardingwhatstudentsknowandareabletodo.Forexample,teacherscan’tmakethesejudgmentswithoutcriterialinkeddirectlytothecourselearningtargets,andwithoutusingwell-designedassessmentsthatassessthecriteriaexplicitly.Withoutcriteria,professionaljudgmentbecomesguessing,andsincemostteachersaren’tcomfortableguessing,itmayleadtosimplyaveragingandcalculatinggrades,whichitnotaprincipleorpracticeofG4L.Whilethisisoneexampleofprofessionaljudgment,theneedexistsforteacherstobecomfortablemakingjudgmentsaroundstudentachievementandgrading,andintheirbestinterest.Inturn,professionaljudgmentmustresultinaccuratelyreportingstudentachievementinrelationtothelearningtargets.ReasonableTimeandDeadlines
Studentsareresponsibleforbeingactiveparticipantsintheirlearning,andforprogressingtowardtheirgoals.Deadlinesexistintherealworld,andneedtoexistinschoolaswell.Teachersmustestablishdeadlinesthatprovideareasonabletimeperiodtocompletethetaskordemonstrationoflearning.Deadlinesdon’trepresentanendtothelearningprocess,butprovideaframeworktohelpourlearningcommunitiesandclassroomsfunctionatanoptimallevel.Teachersmustcommunicatethepurposeofthesedeadlinestostudentsandparents.
Teacherscansetanabsolutedeadlineforanassignmentoranassessmentretakeprovidedstudentshavehadareasonabletimetocompletethetask,andtoreceiveandpotentiallyactuponfeedback.
Seealso“Deadlines”insection3.2.TheZero
Teacherscan’tmakejudgmentsaboutstudentlearningwithoutsomethingtojudge.Inanequal-intervalgradingscale,usingazeroisacceptableinordertoindicatethefollowing:
-Astudenthasnotcompletedatask
-Astudenthasattemptedthetaskandhasnotdemonstratedanylevelofproficiencyyet.
Teachersmustusethetoolsof‘reasonabletime’and‘professionaljudgment’whendeterminingwhethertoassignazerotoastudent’slearningtask.DeclaringGrades
Thisprincipleclearlyplacestheresponsibilityofdetermininggradesontheteacherandnotontheelectronicgradebook,becausestudentsmusthavemultiplepracticeandassessmentopportunitiestodemonstratewhattheyknowandareabletodo,soteacherscanmakefairandaccuratejudgments.Therefore,teachersmustreviewstudentprogresstowardsthelearningtargetsanddeclareastudent’s
gradewhennecessary.PowerLawwithinInfiniteCampuswillmakearecommendationastowhatthestudent’sgradesindicateistheirtrendinprogress,butitwillbeuptotheteachertodeclarethestudent’sgradesbeforeposting.
1.5GradingforLearningandEducatorEffectiveness
ThefollowingisexcerptedfromtheDanielsonFrameworkandprovidesclarityregardingtheconnectionbetweenGradingforLearningandtheEducatorEffectivenessteacherevaluationmodel:
Section3d–UsingAssessmentinInstruction
“Assessmentisfullyintegratedintoinstruction,throughextensiveuseofformativeassessment.Studentsappeartobeawareof,andthereissomeevidencethattheyhavecontributedtotheassessmentcriteria.Questionsandassessmentsareusedregularlytodiagnoseevidenceoflearningbyindividualstudents.Avarietyofformsoffeedback,frombothteacherandpeersisaccurateandspecificandadvanceslearning.Studentsself-assessandmonitortheirownprogress…”1.6UnderstandingbyDesignInstructionalPlanningModelLearningTargets,Rubrics,AssessmentsandInstructionmustaligninordertomaximizetheeffectivenessofGradingforLearning.Whenplanninginstruction,theUnderstandingbyDesignModel(WigginsandMcTighe,1998)hasbeenadoptedbySDWtoensurethisalignmentandcoherenceexists.Tosummarize:BeginbyselectingtheLearningTargetstobeinstructedandassessed.Then,developcriteriabywhichtojudgestudentperformance.Then,collaborativelydevelopsummativeassessment(s)thatalignwiththecriteriaandeffectivelyassessboththecriteriaandthetarget.Finally,buildlessons,practiceandformativeassessmentsthatareengaging,relevant,purposefulandalignedwiththetargets,criteriaandthesummativeassessment(s)
Chapter2:GradingforLearningResources
2.1G4LandInfiniteCampusAtaGlanceGuideAugust,2014
Thisisaone-pagesummaryofGradingForLearningprinciplesandguidelines.Itmaybeusedwithteachers,parents,andstudentsforthebasicunderstandingsofGradingForLearningpractices.
2.2GradingforLearningSharedCommitmentsDocumentMay,2013TheGradingforLearningSharedCommitmentsdocumentprovidestheoverarchingprinciplesthatalignallaspectsandallstakeholdersinGradingforLearningpractices.Thesecollaborativelydevelopedguidingprinciplesare:1."Beginwiththeendinmind-purposefulinstruction"2."GoodtoGreat"3."Speakthesamegradinglanguage."4."Letthestudents'voicesbeheard.“(PleaserefertothecompleteGradingforLearningSharedCommitmentsDocumentformoredetails.)
2.3GradingforLearningMisconceptionsDocument June,2013
Thisdocumentprovidesclarifyingstatementsaroundsomeofthemostchallenginggradingissuesinthedistrict.Theseissueshavesurfacedoverthefouryearsofimplementation,andmustbeaddressedinordertoevolveGradingforLearningintobestpractice.(PleaserefertothecompleteGradingforLearningMisconceptionsDocumentformoredetails.)
2.4GradingforLearningReflectionToolJune,2013
ThisdocumentprovidesaquickreferencetobegindeterminingthebestpracticesofGradingforLearning,andhowtomoveawayfromharmfulandineffectivegradingpractices.(PleaserefertothecompleteGradingforLearningReflectionToolformoredetails.)
2.5GradingforLearningRights&ResponsibilitiesDocumentJune,2013
Thisdocumentprovidesteachersandstudentsaframeworktobetterunderstandtheirrolesandresponsibilitiesingrading,andempowerseachtodotheirparttoensurelearningforall.(PleaserefertothecompleteGradingforLearningRightsandResponsibilitiesDocumentformoredetails.)
2.6GradingforLearningTeacherLeaderPositionQatarTeacher(s)ineachbuildingwillbehiredandtrainedtoprovide“justintimesupport”forG4L.TeacherLeaderResponsibilitiesinclude:· Attendmonthlydistrictleveltrainingsessions· ProvidedailyG4Lcoachingsupportduringprephours,before&afterschool· Providesite-levelG4Lprofessionaldevelopmentandtrainingsessions· Buildongoingdistrict-levelG4Lresourcesincommitteework
Chapter3:Assessment3.1Purpose
Assessmentsdriveinstructionaldecisionsandhelpboththeteacherandthestudentssetlearninggoalsandmeasureprogresstowardproficiencyandmastery.AssessmentisacriticalpartofthePlan-Do-Study–Act-Cycle:a
PLAN-PlaninstructionbasedonstudentneedDO-Instructionthatisengaging,CommonCoreStateStandardsaligned,basedonstudentneed
planningSTUDY-AnalyzeresultsofformativeandsummativeassessmentsACT-Analyzetheinstructionandthestudents’responsetotheinstructionalactivitiesPLAN-Planinstructionbasedonthecycleandstudentneedandcontinuethecycle
Eachlevelofproficiencymustbeclearlydefinedandprovidedinarubrictostudentspriortoassessmentandinstruction.3.2Formative/Pre-assessment
Instructionbeginswithpre-assessment.Teachersdeterminewhatthestudentsknowandareabletodoandplaninstructionaccordingtowhattheydon’tknoworcan’tdoyet.Formativeassessmenttakesplacefrequentlyalongthelearningpathtowardthesummativeassessment.Itenablesboththeteacherandthestudenttoknowwhathasbeenlearned,andwhatneedstobereviewedandrelearned.FormsofFormativeAssessmentinclude:
● pre-assessments ● quizzes ● surveys(googleforms, ● observationalnotes ● conferringnotes ● assignmentstakenthroughtheAnalyzingStudentWorkprocess ● exitslips-“Solveoneproblem…Writea1paragraphsummary…List3wordsthat…”
Someeffectiveapplicationstouseforformativeassessmentinclude:
● Educreations● QuizCast● Socrative--app can be used to create quizzes, open-ended questions and vote on results, exit
tickets. https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/id477620120?mt=8● Show Me, Explain Everythin http://edtech.jcisd.org/formative-assessment-apps.html● Several interesting apps, all free can be found at: http://www.tabletsforschools.org.uk/the-five-
best-observation-assessment-apps-for-teachers/
Whenformativeworkisgraded,itcountsfor0%ofthestudent’sfinalgradeforthegradingperiod.Formativeassessmentsdon’talwaysneedtobeenteredintheelectronicgradebook,butthereshouldbeadequateformativeentriessostudentsandtheirparentscantracktheirprogresstowardthegoalofmastery.Deadlinesshouldbesetforpracticeandformativeworkcompletiontoallowteacherstoprovidetimelyfeedbacktostudents.Ifapre-assessmenthasbeengiventothestudentsanditisclearthatastudentneedstocompletepracticeinordertoachieveproficiency,thenthereneedstobeadeadlineonthework.Thedeadlineshouldbeareasonableamountoftimepriortothesummativeassessmentonthesameskillinordertoallowtheinstructortimetogivevaluablefeedbackandcoachingtothestudentsotheskillcanbeeffectivelymeasuredonthesummativeassessment.3.3SummativeAssessment
SummativeAssessmentsalignwithCommonCoreStateStandards-basedinstruction.TheyareadministeredsostudentscandemonstrateproficiencyintheLearningTargets.SummativeAssessmentsmayevaluateastudent’sperformanceskills,aproduct,oraprocesslearned.SummativeAssessmentscombinetoform100%ormoreofastudent’sfinalgradeforthegradingperiod.StudentsclearlyunderstandthepurposeoftheSummativeAssessment,accordingtotheLearningTargetspostedintheclassroom,ontheassessment,andintheaccompanyingrubric.Theassessmentactivities/questionsaredirectlylinkedtotheLearningTargets.SummativeAssessmentsalsoprovideopportunitiesforstudentstodemonstrateadvancedskillswheneverconceptsassessedarenotmasteryskills.Seealsosections1.6and7.33.4MultipleOpportunitiesforSummativeAssessment
Studentsmustreceivemultipleopportunitiestodemonstrateproficiencyandwhattheyknowandareabletodo.“Multipleopportunitiestoshowproficiency”referstotheopportunitiesastudentmaybegiveninordertoshowmasteryofsubjectmaterial.Thisisdonewithacombinationofbothformativeandsummativeassessments.Someclarificationandexamplesregardingtheconceptof‘retakes:’
A. Thelanguageof“retakes”mustbereplacedwith“multipleopportunities”asstudentsneedhelpunderstandingtheprincipleratherthanbeingallowedtodisengageinthelearningprocess.
B. Teachersarenotrequiredtoprovideunlimitedormultiplesummativeassessments,andmay
decidethatthesummativeassessment“istheretake”,providedthatmultipleformativeopportunitiesalongwithtimelydevelopmentalfeedbackhasbeenprovided.
C. Multipleopportunitiestodemonstrateproficiencydoesnotmeangivingunlimited“retakes,”
butratherensuresthatastudenthashadthechancetodemonstrateproficiencyinawaythatmeetshis/herneeds.
D. Astudentmaybegivenanalternativesummativeassessment,withaccommodationsand
modificationsasappropriatethatwillmeasurethesamelevelofproficiencyfortheLearningTarget.Ifastudentdoesnotmeetproficiencyonasummativeassessment,anditisdeterminedthatthestudentknowsthecontentbuttheformofassessmentpreventedthestudentfromshowingproficiency,itisappropriatetoprovideanalternativeformofassessmentforthatstudent.Althoughtheformofassessmentisdifferent,thestudentshouldbescoredusingthesamerubricastheoriginalassessment.
E. Withteacherdiscretion,asstudentmayreceive“multipleopportunities”tocompleteoneor
morepartsofasummativeassessmentasfollows:
● Studenttakesapre-assessment,deficienciesarenoted ● Studentattemptsformativeworkthatpracticesthedeficientskills ● Studenttakesasummativeassessment,demonstratesthattherearestilldeficientskill
areas ● Teacherallowsmorepracticeonthedeficientskillareas,iftheformativeworkwas
completed ● Studentisassessedonlyonthepartsofthesummativeassessmentwiththeareasof
deficiency ● Thenewgradeearnedreplacestheformersummativegradeintheelectronic
gradebook. 3.4Goalsetting
Studentcansetgoalsbasedontheresultsoftheirformativeandsummativeassessments.Thesegoalsshouldberecordedandprogresstowardgoalsismonitoredbythestudentandtheteacher.3.5Results
Resultsofassessmentsarecommunicatedinatimelymannerandusedtoplaninstruction.Itallowstheteachertimetogivevaluablefeedbackandcoachthestudent.Itallowsthestudenttimetolearnorrelearnmaterialthathasnotbeenmasteredandretakeanassessment,asappropriate.Timelypostingofresultsintheelectronicgradebookallowsthestudentandparentstomonitorprogresstowardproficiencygoals.3.6Self-assessmentactivities
Throughvariedself-assessmentactivitiesstudentsareabletoarticulatetheirprogressaswellasareasofweakness.Itincreasesthestudent’sresponsibilityforlearning.Thisfostersthestudent’sself-awarenessandself-advocacy.3.7ProfessionalLearningCommunity(PLC)Implications
TeachersusebothformativeandsummativeassessmentinformationandtheAnalyzingStudentWork(ASW)processduringtheirPLCtimetoreviewstudentlearningandplannextinstructionalsteps.AlltypesofassessmentscanprovidevaluableinstructionalinformationwhentheteachertakestimetoanalyzetheresultsthroughthePLCanddeterminewhichtargetsneedtobetaughttothewholeclass,whichshouldbetaughttosmall,flexiblegroupsofstudents,andwhichtargetsneedtobeaddressedonanindividualstudentbasis.Thisongoingidentificationofstudentneedshouldalwaysdriveinstructionaldecisions.
Chapter4:Rubrics-The5KeysofQualityAssessmentsandRubrics
4.1Key1:ClearPurpose
Rubricshelpteacherswithbothassessmentforlearningandassessmentoflearning.Thepurposeoftherubricistodefinequalitywithclearcriteria,notjusttoprovideascoringmechanismorjustificationforgivingagrade.4.2Key2:ClearTargets
HighqualityrubricscontaincriticalLearningTargetsasdefinedbytheCommonCoreStateStandards.Onlytheimportantcontentofthesubjectmatterthestudentsareexpectedtolearnshouldbeincluded.UsuallytheLearningTargetbecomesthe“3-Proficient”descriptorintherubric.Unimportantthingsmustbeleftoutoftherubric.4.3Key3:SoundDesign
Content:Highqualityrubricsmust:● UseWebb’sDepthofKnowledge/Bloom’s/Costa’slanguage,correspondingtoproficiencylevels.
KarenHess’CognitiveRigorMatrixisalsoavaluableresourceforcreatingrubrics. ● Beflexibleenoughtobeusedinmultiplecontentareasandforassignmentswhenappropriate,
yetspecificenoughtotargettheskillbeingassessed. ● Focusonthemaincontentofthesubjectmatterthestudentsareexpectedtolearn.This
includescriticalLearningTargets.Unimportantthingsmustbeleftoutoftherubric ● Focusonskilldevelopmentratherthanbeingachecklistofcompliance.Legibility/conventions
targetsmaybeincludedinrubrics,providedtheydon’toutweighoroutnumberthecontenttargets
● Focusontheskills/targetsthataredemonstrated,notwhatislacking ● Usearubricscoreof4toindicateworkatahigherthinkinglevelthanproficient.ItdoesNOT
indicatesimplymoreworkcompleted.“4isnotmore.” RubricExample:“4isnotmore”-Rather,a“4”indicateshigher-levelthinkingandgreaterdepthofunderstandingThemainskillbeingassessedistheunderstandingofthevocabularywords-nottheconventionsofcapitalletters,correctspelling,orpunctuation.TherubricfocusesonwhatthestudentCANdo,notwhatislacking.
4AdvancedProficient
3Proficient
2Basic
1Minimal
IE-InsufficientEvidence
Student’swritingisoriginal,creative,andcoherent,demonstrating
Student’swritingcontainssentencesandcoherent
Student’swritingcontainssentencesthat
Student’swritingusesthevocabulary
Noevidenceisshownthatthestudentcancorrectlyusethe
ahighlevelofunderstandingofthevocabularywords.
paragraphsinwhichthevocabularywordsareusedcorrectlyincontext.
correctlyusethevocabularywordsincontext.
words. vocabularywordsincontext.
The“4-AdvancedProficient”columnofarubricshouldNOTcontaindescriptorssuchas,“Student’swritingcontains4or5paragraphs…”or“Student’swritingcontains2sentenceswitheachvocabularywordusedcorrectly…”orotherquantitativelanguage.CommonRubrics:SchoolDistrictofWaukeshaleadteamswillcontinuetocreatecommonrubricsforcourse-alikeandgrade-levelteamsforassessingCCSSandcoursespecificlearningtargets.Theseshouldbeusedtoensureconsistencyinassessingandinstructionaroundtheselearningtargets,whilemaintainingalevelofteacherautonomyaroundassessmentdevelopment.Teacherscouldagreeonaparticular‘common’scoringguide,thendevelopdifferentassessmentsthatalignwiththisrubric,andstillengageincollegialconversationandtheAnalyzingStudentWorkprocessbecausethecriteria(intherubric)isthesame.Clarity:Highqualityrubricsmust:
● usestudent-friendlylanguagesoastobeabletobeunderstoodbyallstudents● adequatelydescribequalityforallstudents,freefromracial,cultural,andgenderbiases● followsthecommonformatwith“4”ontheleftmovingto“1”and“0”ontherightside● useparallelstructureoflanguagemovingfromthelefttotherightsideofeachrowofthe
rubric● usequalitativelanguage,notquantitative
RubricExample:QualitativeLanguageandParallelstructureoflanguagepresent
4AdvancedProficient
3Proficient
2Basic
1Minimal
IE-InsufficientEvidence
Icancompareandcontrasteventsinhistoryinordertoanalyzehowitaffectspeoplelivingtoday.Icanprovideaninsightfulsynthesisofideas.
Icancompareandcontrasteventsinhistoryinordertoanalyzehowitaffectspeoplelivingtoday.
Icancompareandcontrasteventsinhistory.
Icandescribeeventsinhistory.
Noevidenceofunderstandingoftheeventsinhistory
(Notetheabsenceofquantitativelanguage,suchas“Give3reasons…”or“Icandescribe2eventsinhistory…”)RubricExample:Studentfriendlylanguageforprimarystudents
Webb’sDOK/Bloom’s/Costa’sTHINKINGused.
4AdvancedProficient
3Proficient
2Basic
1Minimal
IE-InsufficientEvidence
Icanshowwhichtoolswouldbebesttousetoshowthesolution,andwhythatwouldbethebestway.
Icanshowthecorrectsolutioninavarietyofwaysusingtools.
Icanshowthecorrectsolutionusingtools.
Icanshowthecorrectsolution.
Noevidenceofunderstanding
Notethatthehigherlevelthinkingrequiredfor3-Proficientand4-AdvancedProficientisnotshownintheverbsusedinthisrubric,sinceitiswritteninstudent-friendlylanguageforprimarystudents.Rather,whatthestudentisaskedtodorequiresthehigherlevelthinkingskillsofsynthesis,judgment,andjustification.Practicality:Highqualityrubricsmust:
● beeasytousebystudentsforself-assessmentandgoalsetting● beeasytousebyteachers,containinformationusefulforplanningforinstruction.
Embeddedrubricsmaybegeneralenoughtobeusedacrosscontentareas,butmustbespecificenoughtoassessskilldevelopment.Ifateacherdoesneedmorespecificguidelinesforstudents,thenthoseexpectationscanbeaddedtotheembeddedrubricasadditionalrows.Theteachercouldalsouseachecklisttoguidestudentspriortousingtherubricwiththeassessment.Theguidelinesand/orchecklistcanbeusedtogiveformativefeedback.RubricExample:EmbeddedRubric-maybeusedindifferentsubjectareasWebb’sDOK/Bloom’s/Costa’sLanguageused
4AdvancedProficient
3Proficient
2Basic
1Minimal
IE-InsufficientEvidence
Icanjustifymyclaimwithmemorableandspecificevidenceandanalyzetheevidencebeyondtheobvious.
Icansupportmyclaimwithrelevantevidenceandprovideananalysisoftheevidence.
Icansupportmyclaimwithevidenceandprovideasummaryoftheevidence.
Icansupportmyclaimwithevidence.
Icannotsupportmyclaimwithevidence.
Notethattheinstructionsseemtobeonlyaskingforwhatisminimallyacceptableinastudentresponse.However,rememberthatstudentsmustseetherubricpriortodoingtheassignment,therebyknowingtheexpectationsforProficientandAdvanceddemonstrationoflearning.
4.4Key4:EffectiveCommunication
Rubricsaresharedwithandeasilyaccessedbystudentspriortotasksandassessmenttoensurethattheyknowwhattheyneedtodotomeetorexceedthelearneroutcomes.Thedescriptorsontherubricmustbeunderstoodbythestudents.Itisalsoimportanttoconsiderhowtherubricisbeingutilizedintheclassroomasapartoffeedback.Asrubricsaredevelopedandusedeffectively,teacherteamsshouldworktogethertocalibrateexpectations.Thiscanbedoneinanumberofways,forexample,cross-scoringofstudentwork(2ormoreteachersscorestudentworktogether),usingtheAnalyzingStudentWork(ASW)tool,comingtogetherfordetailedconversationwhenthereisquestionaboutstudentperformance.Incrementsof.5maybeusedwhenarubriccategoryhasmultipleindicatorsandastudentdemonstratesskillsthatencompassallelementsfromthelowerproficiencylevelandisprogressingtowardthenexthighestlevel.Ifmultiplerubricsareusedononeassessment,ascoreforeachrubricshouldbeenteredseparatelyratherthanaveragingbothscoresintoonesummativegrade.A.5canbeusedwhenitprovidesthemostaccuratefeedbackofastudent‘progressing’towardthenextlevelofproficiency,althoughteachersareencouragedtousewholenumbergradesasmuchaspossible.4.5Key5:StudentInvolvement
Wheneverpossible,studentsshouldbeinvolvedinwritingrubrics.Ithelpsthemclearlyunderstandandarticulatethelearningtargetsandexpectationsformeetingthem.Italsohelpsensurethattherubricsarewritteninstudent-friendlylanguage.Aboveall,itincreasestheirownershipintheirlearning.Anexampleofthiswouldbethedevelopmentofastudent-generatedrubricforaprojectbasedactivity.However,student-generatedrubricsdon’treplacedistrictlevelcommonrubrics,asbothservedifferentpurposesforassessment.
Chapter5:Reporting
Thepurposeofreportingistocommunicatemeaningfulinformationtostudents,parents,teachers,potentialemployers,collegesandotherinstitutionsconcerningtheachievementstatusofstudentsasrelatedtothecourselearningtargets.5.1ElectronicGradeBookExpectations
Reportcardsandelectronicgradebooksaredevelopedsothatprogressisreportedaccordingtoprogress/proficiencyonthelearningtargets.Studentprogressismonitoredandreportedregularlytoaidinthedevelopmentofremediationandadditionallearningopportunities. 5.2AssigningStandardstoAssessmentsandAssignments
Elementary-AssignmentsandAssessmentsarerecordedintheelectronicgradebookatthedomainlevel.Itisimportanttocreateaconsistentnamingsystemtoaccuratelyreflectprogresstowardthedifferentstandardswithinadomain.Thiswillrequireteacherstoentermultiplegradesforasingleassessmentwhenmultiplestandardsarebeingassessed.CurrentlyinInfiniteCampusteachersareabletoarticulatestandardsin“AddDescription”whenanassignmentiscreated.MS/HS-Gradingisdoneatthe‘target’level,whichmeansthatassessmentsandassignmentswillberecordedundereachlearningtargetforacourse,andtheneachtargetscorewillbeaveragedtodeterminethestudent’sfinalcoursegrade(seedeclaringgradessection1.4).Itisimportantforteachertocreateaconsistentnamingsystemtodistinguishbetweendifferentskillswithinonelearningtarget(ex:writing).Thisalsorequiresteacherstoentermultiplegradesforoneassessmentwhenmultiplerubricsareusedtoassessmultiplestandards(skills)ononeassessment.StandardsLanguageStandardslanguageisusedbytheteacherandthestudentstoensurethatacommonlanguageisbeingusedtoexpresslearninggoalsandperformance.Studentsareusingthelanguageintheirlearningandassessment.Whenitcomestoouryoungestlearners,it’simportanttoteachthemmuchofthestandardslanguage.TheyhaveshownthattheyCANlearnanduseit.5.3ElementaryReporting
Noticethattheelementaryuseofthisscalereferencescurrentprogressasitrelatestowardsend-of-yearproficiency.Thiscancreatesomeconfusionforstudentsandparents,howeverthefollowingwillhelpclarifythisprocess:
Thisletteristoprovideyouwithmorespecificinsightintothestandardizedreportingrelativetoprogressinallsubjectandskillareas.Achild’slearningoccursacrossacontinuum.Thismeansthatstudentscanstruggleincertainareassometimesandbesuccessfulinothersatdifferenttimes.Astheeducator,itisourjobtoprovidestudentswithspecificfeedbackandinstructionthatwillbothstretchandsupporttheirlearning.
Currently,whenreportingoutareadingorothersubjectareaperformancescore(‘grade’)eachchild’sgradeisbeingreportedinrelationtotheendoftheyeartargetproficiency.
Forexample,astudentmayreceiveascoreof1attheendofthefirsttrimesterwhichwouldbeappropriateforthistimeoftheschoolyearformanystudents.Thisscoreof1indicatesthatastudentisbeginningtounderstandthestandard.A2meanshis/herunderstandingisdeepeningandthestudentisapproachingproficiency.Thegoalisforastudenttoreachproficiency(3)inthestandardsbytheendoftheschoolyear.Advancedthinkingandlearningexperiencesoccurthroughouttheyearandinallsubjectareasareareindicatedbyascoreof4.
HowdoesStandards-BasedGradingwork?5.4SecondaryReporting
StudentprogressisreportedforeachLearningTarget,whichmeansonaverageastudentwillreceive3-5TargetGradesforeachcoursepergradingperiod.TheseTargetGradeshaveequalvalue,andareaveragedtodetermineastudent’soverallgradeforeachcourse.Astudent’scoursegradeisthenconvertedtoalettergrade,whichinturnhasanumericGradePointAveragevalue,asfoundinthefollowingtable:
Thesescoresarethenusedtocalculateastudent’soverallGPAforagradingperiod.WhilethegoalisforstudentstodemonstratealevelofproficiencyineachLearningTargetduringagradingperiod,thisisaninstructionalandreportingguidelineandiscurrentlynotadistrictpolicy.Ifusingthispractice,besuretocommunicateitatthestartoftheyeartobothstudentsandfamilies,asInfiniteCampuswillcontinuetocalculateanaverageofallLearningTargets,whichmaynotreflectastudentiscurrentlynotproficiencyinoneormoreTarget.5.5Student-ledConferencesandPortfolios
Astudent-ledconferenceisattendedbythestudent,parent,andtheteacher,duringwhichthestudentcanclearlyarticulatehis/herlearningstrengthsandneeds.Usuallyaportfolioofthestudent’sworkissharedbythestudent,includinganelectronicportfoliowhereappropriate.Theportfoliocontainsworksamplescarefullyselectedbythestudent,withteacherinput,inordertodemonstratethelearningthat
hasoccurredduringthegradingperiod.Theteacheristypicallyveryquiet,addingonlynecessarycommentstogiveaclearpictureofstudentachievement.5.6Formative/Summativeassessment
PleaserefertoChapter2:Assessment
Chapter6:Feedback
Feedbackisprovidedtostudentsinordertohelpthemknowwheretheyaresuccessful,andwhereimprovementisneeded.6.1Tobeeffective,feedbackmustbe:
SpecificandDescriptive-detailsaregivensothestudentknowsandcanarticulatewhatisexpectedtodemonstratetheirknowledge.Examplesofspecificanddescriptivefeedbackinclude“Yougaveclearexamplesinyouranalysis,”and“Greatchoiceoftoolsforsolvingthisproblem.”Nonspecificfeedbacksuchas“Great!”or“Nicework”doesnothelpthestudentknowwhatwasdonewellandwhetherthereisroomforimprovement,orhowtotakethelearningtothenextlevel.RegularandTimely-inorderforstudentstohavetimetorelearnandreviewpriortothesummativeassessmentsfeedbackmustbegivenatregularintervalsduringthegradingperiod
6.2Self-assessmentactivities
Whenstudentsaregivenself-assessmentactivities,theycanarticulatetheirprogresstowardmeetingthelearningtargetandunderstandwheregrowthisneeded.Theycanalsoarticulatewhatisbeingassessed,howitwillbeassessedandwhyitisimportant.Thishasbeenshowntobeahighlyeffectivelearningstrategy.
Chapter7:InstructionalDesign
7.1Instruction/activities
InstructionandclassactivitiesaredirectlylinkedtoLearningTargets.TheLearningTargetsarepostedintheclassroomandincludedonassignments,assessmentsandrubrics.StudentscanarticulatetheLearningTargetsandhowtheyrelatetotheclassactivity.Authentic,project-basedlearningexperienceshaveahighlevelofstudentengagementineverysubjectarea.Highlyengaging,authenticlearningexperiencesleadtoacademicgrowth.Seealsosections1.1and3.3. 7.2PersonalizedLearning
Educationaltrendshaveseenashiftawayfrom“Teachingthegivencurriculum”to“Teachingtheindividualstudent.”WithintheguidelinesoftheCommonCoreStateStandards,studentsarebecomingincreasinglymoreinvolvedindesigningtheirownlearningplansandsettingindividualgoalsofrigorandchallenge.Theycanarticulatethesegoals,reflectontheirprogresstowardgoalmastery,andplantheirnextsteps.Thelevelofteacherguidanceinthisprocessvaries,ofcourse,withage/gradelevel,andstudentabilitytosetindividualgoals.7.3Data/AssessmentDriven-Differentiation
InstructionismostefficientandeffectiveifitisbasedonstudentneedsasrelatedtotheLearningTargets.Assessmentanddataareimportanttoolstousefordeterminingstudentneedandplanninginstructionaccordingly.Assessmentsrangefromnationallynormedmeasures,suchasMAP,toclassroomformativeassessments.Alltypescanprovidevaluableinstructionalinformationwhentheteachertakestimetoanalyzetheresultsanddeterminewhichtargetsneedtobetaughttothewholeclass,whichshouldbetaughttosmall,flexiblegroupsofstudents,andwhichtargetsneedtobeaddressedonanindividualstudentbasis.Thisongoingidentificationofstudentneedshoulddriveinstructionaldecisionsallyearlong.DifferentiatedInstructionprovidessimilarobjectivestogroupsofstudentsattheirreadinesslevel.
Chapter8:Homework
The‘homeworkprinciple’ofG4Listhatstudentshavearightto“riskfreepractice”opportunitieswithtimelyfeedback.Pleaseconsiderhowassignedpracticetasksalignwiththetargetedskillfordevelopment,andbesuretoalwaysstriveforalignmentandclearpurpose.Challengeswillalwaysexisttohelpstudentsfindvalueincompletinghomework.Pleaserememberthatitisnotacceptabletomakestudenthomework“summative”toensurecomplianceandcompletion,asthisdoesnotfallintothe‘realm’ofGradingforLearningandmayplaceteachersatoddsoverhowstudentsmustprioritizetheirlearning.8.1Purposes
Whengivinghomework,thepurposeshouldbeclear.ItshouldbedirectlyrelatedtomovementtowardmasteryofaLearningTargetandcommunicatedonallassignments.Thishelpsthestudentrecallandunderstandthepurpose.Thereare4differentpurposesand/ortypesofhomework:· Homeworkforpractice· Homeworkforpreparationforlearning· Homeworkasanextensionoflearning· Homeworkasformativeassessment.8.2HomeworkforPractice
PracticeHomeworkmustbedirectlyrelatedtoaLearningTargetandbasedonstudentneedforpracticeinthatarea. Rarelyshouldthesamehomeworkbeassignedtothewholeclass.Somestudentsneedpracticeactivitiesthatdifferfromthatoftheirpeers.8.3HomeworkforPreparationforLearning
Homeworkmaybeassignedwhichwillprovideastudentwithpurposefulpracticeandbackgroundforanupcominglesson.The“FlippedClassroom”isaformofhomeworkaspreparationforlearning,whereastudentaccessesanonlinelessonathomefortheactuallesson,andthencompletesapracticeactivityinschoolwheretheteachercanprovideindividualassistanceasnecessary.8.4HomeworkforExtensionofLearning
Homeworkmaybeassignedthatextendslearningbeyondthelessonofthedayandallowsthestudenttoexplorethenextleveloflearninginatopic,oratopicrelatedtotheLearningTarget.8.5HomeworkforFormativeAssessment
HomeworkmaybeusedbytheteacherasaformativeassessmentofLearningTargets,leadingtoplanningforinstructionwhereitisneededforindividualsorgroupsofstudents.Alltypesofhomeworkeventuallyleadtothesummativeassessmentoftheskillsthatarepracticedduringhomework.AccordingtotheUnderstandingbyDesign(UbD)templateandBestPractices,thesummativeassessmentisknownbeforetheinstructionbegins.Allhomeworkassignmentsmustbedirectlylinkedtotheprogressiontowardlearningtargets.8.6Differentiation
Homeworkshouldbepurposefullydifferentiatedaccordingtostudents’needs.Differentiatedactivitiesareassignedthatstretchstudentstoadvancedthinkingandlearning.Homeworkmayalsobedifferentiatedtoaccommodatespeciallearningneedsofstudents.Allhomeworkshouldprovidemeaningfulpracticeforallstudents.8.7Scoring
Homeworkisexcludedfromgradecalculationintheelectronicgradebook.Thatis,itisworth0%.Notallhomeworkneedsarubric;however,feedbackisexpected.Ascoreshouldtrulyreflecttheskilllevelofastudent.Homeworkisdesignedtomeasurealllevelsofproficiencyatatask.Arubricorotherformoffeedbackshouldbeincludedafterhomeworkiscompleted,inatimelymanner,beforeitgetssenthome.Ifhomeworkislateorincomplete,thegradecannotbelowered.Ascoreshouldtrulyreflecttheskillthatisbeingassessedandnotbe“docked”forbeinglate.Ifhomeworkneedstobecompletedinorderforastudenttoparticipateinaclassdiscussionortogainbackgroundknowledgeforalesson(asrelatedtoalearningtarget),andithasnotbeencompleted,thenascoreof“0”canberecorded,orateachermaychoosetorecorditasnotbeing“checkedin.”Ifastudentdemonstratesproficiencyinaskillonapre-assessment,he/sheshouldnotbeassigneda“0”ifahomeworkassignmentisgivenonthatsameskillandthehomeworkisnotcompleted.Infact,ifthestudenthasdemonstratedproficiencyinaskillhe/sheshouldnotbeassignedhomeworkonthatskill.Instead,astudentcouldbechallengedwithdifferentiatedactivitiesthatstretchthestudenttoadvancedthinkingandlearning.Dependingonthetypeofhomework,itmay,ormaynotberecordedinthegradebook.Ifformativeassessmentsarebeingrecorded,thenthereshouldbeanopportunitytodemonstrateadvancedlearningandearna“4”ontheassessment.
Notalltypesofhomeworkcandemonstratea“4”level.Itisalsoimportanttopointoutthatmanyformativeassessmentsarenotgraded(i.e.homeworkforpracticeandhomeworkaspreparationforlearning).Formativeassessmentis“checkingin,”gaugingwherestudentsare,andshouldguideinstruction.Ifateacherwantstorecordaformativeassessmentthatdoesnothaveapossible“4”component,butitisvitalintellingthestoryofastudent’sdevelopment,itcanstillberecordedandmanually“trended”laterastheskilldevelopstoahigherlevel.Someskillscannotbedemonstratedasa“4.”AnexampleisIdentificationtasks,whichisalow-levelskill.Forexample,ifa10thgradestudentcoulddefinetenwordscorrectlyonamatchingvocabularytest,thescorewouldbea1or2,becausethisisalowerlevelthinkingskill(recall,identification).Ateachermayprefertousethe“turnedin”optiontorecordthatinformation,ormaychoosetonotrecordtheinformationatall,rathergiveittothestudentasfeedbackandcontinuetobuildonthatknowledgeuntila“4”levelskillcanbeachieved.8.8HomeworkResources
DrCathyVatterrot’sWebsiteNationalEducationAssociation’sWebsite