Mastery Learning
Philosophy
Learning is a journey. We should always be moving forward in this journey. We learn from our mistakes and keep a growth mindset. As teachers, we measure the growth throughout the time we are with our students. With mastery learning, the most recent measurement of understanding is what should be reported as the grade. However, traditional grades take into account measurements throughout the journey. A poor score using traditional grading at the beginning of a unit can affect the overall grade. For example, a student scores a 50% on a test at the beginning of the quarter and a 100% at the end of the quarter. The grades are averaged, and the student earns a C (75%) for the quarter grade. The 50% is a measure of where the student was, and the 100% is the most recent measurement of the understanding. Therefore, if the student can provide enough evidence that the understanding has grown to 100%, then the student has shown mastery and should receive an A+. The other major rule with mastery learning (or standards-based learning) is that behavior judgements are not a part of the grade. In his book Fair Isn't Always Equal, Rick Wormeli explains that, "grades should be clear, undiluted indicators of what students have learned (according to a) fair and developmentally appropriate curriculum." The grade for this class will be based on evidence of understanding that the student provides for each assigned learning target or skill. The student is expected to take an active role in the journey through practice, reflection, and communication with the teacher.
Feedback
Students will be practicing what they learn and providing evidence of understanding throughout each unit. Evidence will be collected in multiple ways, even through conversation (questions can be very powerful!). Assignments will be posted on Google Classroom. Communication about the progress and feedback will be posted on Google Classroom through a private comment. Students can also find feedback about progress on Infinite Campus. Practice work will be marked as either "Turned in" (The work is submitted and has met or exceeded expectations), "Turned in and Incomplete" (The work is submitted but does not meet expectations), or "Missing" (The work has not been submitted.)
Standards and Learning Targets
The standards and learning targets for this class are based on Ohio’s Learning Standards and Model Curriculum for eighth grade. The standards listed in the diagram below (from Ohio's Learning Standards and Model Curriculum) are broken down into learning targets for this class.
