An Accurate Representation of Student Achievement Module 1: Teacher Practices Supplies Needed: Small Post-its Large Poster Post-its Paper for free-write Pens/Pencils for free-write Graphic Organizer for Jigsaw (copies for entire staff) Copy’s of 15 Fixes book or (copies of Fixes 2, 3, and 6.) for all staff members Copy’s of the Fixes graphic organizers (one for each staff member) Additional Resources: Chapter 10 of Stiggins book “Classroom Assessment for Student Learning: Doing it Right--Using Well” 2007 .pdf on module 8 Steps for Meaningful Grading (article) .pdf on module

Rationale •A standards-based approach to reporting communicates precisely how students are performing in the school setting on specific academic and behavioral targets in order to guide key stakeholders (students, parents, teachers, and principals) in making important educational decisions. •Current grading practices frequently lack direct links to learning standards and therefore lack the specificity needed for timely educational decisions.

CSD Instructional Framework

Completing the Module As you go through this module, fill out the graphic organizer in the appropriate spots. At the end, take the quiz on CANVAS.

Objectives: I can... understand what a grade communicates. develop a deeper understanding of best teaching practices for standards-based grading. reflect on where is my grading in this process. These objectives cover Standards Based Grading as a whole and Fixes 2, 3, and 6 specifically.

Key Concepts: A grade is an accurate representation of learning when: late work is accepted without academic penalty. extra credit is not included. individual, not group scores, are included in the grade.

Words to Think About... Robert Marzano, an educational researcher, is quoted as saying, “...grades are so imprecise that they are almost meaningless.” Across the nation, it has become common practice to include other factors, besides evidence of student learning, into calculating grades.

Reflect #1: What factors do you currently include in determining a final grade? Why? (5 Minutes Total) (3 Minutes) - Have teachers free-write their answer in order to process what they are currently doing. Do not have teacher share this, it is only to get them thinking. (2 Minutes) - Pair Share on the 2nd question. Conclusion - As you have found out there are many different factors and reasons that go into grades. What we are trying to do at this point is to simplify and clarify what that letter grade communicates. In order to do that we need to look at 1. Why we are grading? 2. What factors do include? 3.How do we combine those factors to give us the most accurate picture of current student achievement?

Words to Think About... “Of all the things we do as teachers, few have the potential for creating more problems and miscommunication than grading. “ --Stiggens et al. (2004, p. 304)

Reflect #2 What is the purpose of a grade? What is a grade supposed to communicate? On your graphic organizer, write down the purpose of assigning students a grade. Fill out graphic organizer

Assignment/Date Total Percent 9/5—Pretest 14/30 47% 9/9—Assign 15/30 (late) 50% 9/13—Assign 18/30 60% 9/17—Quiz 20/30 67% 9/21—Assign 22/30 73% 9/29—Assign 9/29—Quiz 26/30 87% 10/4—Final test 28/30 93% Extra Credit 20 pts Point Total 185/240 77% Based on this simplified set of scores, what would you determine as Agatha’s final grade? Justify your answer. (10 minutes total) Teachers using Agatha’s grades will individually determine what grade she would earn in their class for first term. Then teachers will write the grade on a sticky note. Taking those sticky notes they will post them on previously posted large sticky notes labeled: A, B, C, D, and F. Have everyone look a the discrepancies that are shown. Explain that this is why we need to look over our process for communicating grades since as we look at this we are all communicating something different.

Key Concept #1:late work is accepted without academic penalty. One of the biggest inconsistencies among teachers is how they handle late work. Some teachers don’t accept it at all. Other teachers dock a certain percentage point for each “day” it is late. Standards-based grading follows these guiding principles regarding late work: Penalties distort the learning the grade is intending to communicate Penalties actually reduce student motivation Penalties do not change student behavior

Best Practice: Teachers implementing standards-based grading do the following: No academic penalties for late work Instead, they set up supports to help students complete work on time Chronic lateness is reflected in non-academic reports or in classroom consequences

Words to Think About... “The appropriate consequences for failing to complete an assignment is completing the assignment…students lose privileges, free time, and unstructured class or study hall time, and they are required to complete the assignment.” (Reeves, quoted in o’connor p.30)

Reflect #3: What supports could you and/or your school put in place to help reduce/eliminate late work?

Key Concept #2:extra credit is not included. Including extra credit in final grades is another issue that causes inconsistencies and miscommunication about student learning. Standards-based grading follows these guiding principles regarding extra credit: Extra credit and bonus points do not demonstrate achievement of specified academic standards. Learning is not just about doing “the work” and accumulating points, but rather achieving higher levels of learning.

Best Practice: Teachers implementing standards-based grading do the following: require extra evidence that demonstrates a higher level of achievement if students want to earn higher grades. This additional evidence must reveal new or deeper learning.

Words to Think About... “Some teachers add ‘extra credit’ points to the total scores...This does a disservice to students when their test scores rightly show that they did not learn certain key concepts and skills and the extra credit tasks do not help the students to master those concepts and skills. Sometimes the extra credit work is barely, or not at all, related to the key concepts and skills that are supposed to be the basis of the grade.” (Carr, 2000, p. 53 quoted in o’connor pg. 35)

Reflect #4 How does providing “extra credit” that requires students to show new or deeper learning support DOK levels 3 and 4?

Key Concept #3:individual, not group scores, are included in the grade.

Key Concept #3:individual, not group scores, are included in the grade. Group projects can often be a source of contention among students. It is common to see one or two students do the majority of the work, while the others benefit from the resulting grade without putting forth much effort. Standards-based grading follows these guiding principles regarding scores resulting from group projects: student grades should not depend upon the achievement (or behavior) of other students Including group scores infringes upon individual accountability. Group scores can undermine student motivation. Implementing effective group collaboration requires individual accountability.

Best Practice: Teachers implementing standards-based grading do the following: Because working in groups is a learning activity; teachers should assess students individually to find out what they learned, understand, and can do as a result of working/learning in a group.

Words to Think About... “The assessment of individuals within groups...involves such procedures as individual tests and products, observing students while working in groups, giving group members a questionnaire to complete, and interviewing group members during group sessions…” johnson and johnson2004, pg 53, quoted in O’connor pg 49

Reflect #5: Think of a group project your students have completed or are going to complete. What supports do you have or could have put in place to individually assess students on what they learned while working in their group?

Assignment/Date Total Percent 9/5—Pretest 14/30 47% 9/9—Assign 15/30 (late) 50% 9/13—Assign 18/30 60% 9/17—Quiz 20/30 67% 9/21—Assign 22/30 73% 9/29—Assign 9/29—Quiz 26/30 87% 10/4—Final test 28/30 93% Extra Credit 20 pts Point Total 185/240 77% Now that you have learned about some of the basics of standards-based grading, what final grade would you give Agatha?

Summary Reflection: Based on what you have just learned, how confident are you that the grades students get in your classroom/school/district are a true representation of student achievement? Justify your answer. fill out box in graphic organizer

Review: I can... understand what a grade communicates. develop a deeper understanding of best teaching practices for standards-based grading. reflect on where is my grading in this process. rate themselves on their interpretation of the “I Can…” statements

Review: Key Concepts A grade is an accurate representation of learning when: late work is accepted without academic penalty. extra credit is not included. individual, not group scores, are included in the grade.

Quiz Please remember to take the Accurate Representation of Achievement: Teacher Practices quiz on CANVAS.

Extension Activity ›Jigsaw of Fixes 2, 3, & 6 ›In your group, assign each member one of the fixes (you might have two people reading the same fix). Read your assigned Fix using the following annotations to mark the text: ›Underline or Highlight - defining points ›★ - important ideas ›? – unsure of idea ›Meet with peers who were assigned the same fix. As a team fill out your section of the graphic organizer: and be prepared to share with original team. (21 Minute Total) Strategically assign groups, consider spreading your Building Leadership Team members throughout the groups. In the middle school divide teachers by interdisciplinary team and electives by departments, still groups of 3-5. In the High School divide teachers by department then divide the departments into smaller groups of 4-6 teachers. (10 Minutes) Read and mark the Fix you are assigned. (5 Minutes) To share with your group that has the same fix and come up with 3 talking points. (6 Minutes) With your original group to share your 3 talking points about your Fix.

Implementation Survey/Graph This survey is to be done at the end of the module to find out where the faculty stands with these grading practices. Idea is to have this survey in google docs or CANVAS so teachers can take the survey and presenter can show the results immediately during training.