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