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These changes can be made with little or no extra effort on your part! In fact one of them will actually SAVE you time! There is no reason not to start doing these tomorrow.
These changes can be made with little or no extra effort on your part! In fact one of them will actually SAVE you time! There is no reason not to start doing these tomorrow.
Ditch the zero
Ditch the zero
Why should I change?
Why should I change?
Because zeros on a 100 point scale have a devastating affect on students grades. If a student has one zero it takes 10 assignments scoring a perfect 100 to get the student back up to a 90%
How do I do it?
How do I do it?
Give students a 50% for work that is not turned in. 50% is still an F by the way! In many grading programs you can assign a 50% for work that is showing as missing in the grade book, this will allow you to still print missing assignment reports but will not destroy a grade.
The 100 point scale has 6 levels of F!
Use a 4-point scale
Use a 4-point scale
Why should I change?
Why should I change?
A four-point proficiency scale gets rid of the confusing notion of a 50% for no work and it will not make it extremely hard to recover.
How do I do it?
How do I do it?
4 - Exceeds Expectations (A)
3 - Meets Expectations (B)
2 - Nearing Expectation (C)
1 - Does not meet Expectations yet (D)
0 - No evidence (F)
But wait you say! You have a zero! It is true, but now the grade distribution is not out of whack. Every Letter grade gets 20%.
If your district does not have a standards-based grade book in your SIS, you will need to change your grade scale in your grade book!
0-19 = F, 20-39 = D, 40-59 = C, 60-79 = B, 80-100 = A
Want to reduce the time and difficulty of grading? Get rid of "Exceeds Expectations". If a student meets all of your expectations shouldn't they get an A?
The 4 point scale has only 1 level of F!
Don't Grade Everything
Don't Grade Everything
Why should I change?
Why should I change?
Because you spend too much time grading already! More importantly, you need to ask yourself, why are you grading homework? Is it because you fear that students will not do it if they are not graded for it? Do all your students do the homework now?
How do I do it?
How do I do it?
Have students self-check homework assignments or classwork.
Make sure your homework/classwork is targeted toward your learning targets. If students know that your homework will help them succeed on the test, they are more likely to do it.
Students can get meaningful feedback from one another. With thoughtful (and equity-minded) protocols and norms, students can gain insight into their learning and growth with trusted team members.
If you really want to, you can still document if they did the work or not and report that to parents, but just don't include it in the grade.
Eliminate Participation/Behavior Grades
Eliminate Participation/Behavior Grades
Why should I change?
Why should I change?
Participation and behavior grades are rife with bias. Appropriate behavior in a school is decided on by the dominant culture in that school. By this definition, any student who is not a part of the dominant culture will be more likely to be disciplined. Equitable grades are about student learning and growth. What does coming late to class have to do with students learning and growth? Some will say that if you are late to work, you will get fired. Is this true at your school? What happens if a teacher shows up late to a staff meeting? Do teachers get paid less? No. If it happens all the time, likely the principal will have a conversation with the staff member and figure out a solution. Should we not do the same for students?
How do I do it?
How do I do it?
Simply stop putting behavior in your grade book!
Ask the student WHY they were late to class. I had a student who was constantly late to my class. When I asked why this was happening, it turned out that he was in the band and needed to put his trumpet in his locker before coming to class, and his locker was in the wrong direction from my class. My response was, bring it to class and I will put it in my office. He was not late again. I would also ask about why a student isn't turning in assignments. The responses could allow you to have a conversation with them on how their practice could impact their learning. It is hard to know what they know if they are not participating on assessments. Encouraging students to see the connection and meaning behind the assignments/assessments will hopefully allow them to feel it is worth showing you what they know and understand.
Pick a punishment that fits the situation. If a student is missing class time, they need to make it up during lunch, or some other time they would rather be hanging out with friends. Call home and have a conversation with parents. This is a perfect time to talk with them about why they are late!
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