GRADEKEEPER POINT SYSTEM FULL

Much of the work we do in class is focused on learning and practicing specific skills. This approach to grading created a disconnect between a student’s level of mastery and his/her grade. This led to an enormous number of grades in my gradebook, but it did not provide real insight into how much they were actually learning. In the past, students received points for almost every activity they completed in class. homework, classwork, projects, tests, and projects), I identified the main skills we would be focusing on developing in this class and used those to create my gradebook categories.īecause my students create everything from digital stories to digital portfolios to RSA animation, I also included “Creative Design” and “Academic Engagement” categories to cover additional skills that are crucial to their success. Instead of organizing my gradebook using traditional categories (e.g. This year I decided to overhaul my gradebook and assess students based on their mastery of particular skills, also referred to as standards-based grading. Unfortunately, I feel like school is akin to a Pacman game where students are myopically focused on gobbling up points and, as a result, miss the point of learning entirely. I want my students to value learning, not the accumulation of points.

When I tried the scale below, it did not work as well for me and my goals but again, this is because my grade book is only standards, if you were using a grade book of only more traditional tasks and weighted categories Option 3 might be more ideal for you.For the last two years, I’ve been increasingly frustrated with the traditional approach to assessing students and reporting grades. My goal is to get students inspired to keep trying and so I need them to be able to easily see what that looks like. Does this make it a little easier to move from a B to an A with just a few tasks averaging above a B, absolutely it does but this is what I feel most comfortable with it because as students see themselves progressing forward they are more likely to try again and resubmit. Because I am standards-based, this is ideal for me (well kind of, averaging, in general, is not ideal but that's a post for another day.) Each task in the grade book is a standard, not an assignment not a worksheet not an essay and so if they are averaging above a 3 I am comfortable with them earning an A. This system reads that a 3 = B and a 2 = C but it will also move a student to the letter grade above if they start to average anything above a 3 or above a 2. The purpose is not to make the rigor or expectations lower, the purpose is to make the system of measure more equitable and accessible.įor the most part, there range between each letter grade is equal distance with the exception of an F which is anyone with a total below 10%. And this is where your traditional scales don't always need to be changed that much, what you considered an A before can probably stay an A or a 4, what you considered an F before can probably stay an F or a 0. This is where you as the teacher (hopefully with a PLC group) determine what mastery looks like. I always talk to teachers about developing their rubrics and ranges first because this is where the actual scoring and grading happens. The first thing you have to do when you convert your class to a 0-4 scale is you have to take time to determine what each level of the scale will mean for each assignment or task you give. Instead, I want to focus on trying to make this shift when you are stuck with a traditional grade reporting system that ONLY reads 100 point scales. Now, this post today isn't really supposed to be about the reasons to go with a 0-4 scale, if you want to learn more I suggest looking here and here. It takes, on average, 8 assignments to make up for the impact of a single 0 on a 100 point scale so why would a kid even keep trying when all they can see is the hole they are in and no way out? And then there is the role of a 0 on a 100 point scale where it acts as a dream killer and grade destroyer.

Another is to consider are there really 100 different levels or mastery or achievement for that particular task or skill? Is the difference between an 80 and an 83 really 3 degrees of mastery or proficiency? If it isn't, why are there so many points you could award for the task at hand? Add to that the fact that a 0-4 scale allows for great inter-reliability between teachers. The bias that can find it's way into 100 point scales is just one reason to abandon it. Maybe Johnny and Sally did the same level of mastery but Johnny had an attitude when completing it, how likely is it that Sally will get an 85% and Johnny will get an 80% while those few points might seem like nothing, that can add up.

GRADEKEEPER POINT SYSTEM FULL

The 100 point scale is a dream killer and it is full of opportunities for our own bias to trickle into the grading process.

Gradekeeper point system