For many years I have been troubled by the problems created when students focus on their grades rather then on what they are learning in Science. Too often, students ask 'does this count?' rather than ask a question rooted in curiosity or a desire to understand something new. I have had the opportunity to work with (and learn from!) teachers who are 'going gradeless' in secondary courses and am ready to put some of this learning into practice. In my classroom, you will be assessed on an ongoing basis, but you will not see number grades on all of your assignments.
In my classroom, you can expect to receive descriptive feedback: specific information on how you can improve. Any task you complete will have clear success criteria, as in this example. You will be expected to read (or listen to) descriptive feedback and use it to improve. This might mean revising and resubmitting your work or taking feedback from one task and applying it to another similar task in the future. You will also be expected to use success criteria to assess your own work and to give descriptive feedback to your peers.
I realize that many students have come to rely on numeric grades as an indicator of progress, and that there might be some discomfort associated with not receiving grades on every single assignment. To help with this discomfort, you will set a personal goal for yourself at the beginning of the semester. If at any time I have concerns about you reaching your goal, I will have a conversation with you (and possibly your parents) about the steps you need to take to get back on track.
During the course, I will help you track evidence of your achievement of the learning goals. At certain points during the course (eg. at the end of each unit or after a significant project has been completed - this depends on the course!) I will meet with you to have a conversation about your progress. You will be expected to come to this meeting prepared to share evidence of your progress based on the learning goals for the course. I will bring the evidence of your learning that I have collected. During this conversation, we will use our evidence to come to a consensus about a grade that most accurately reflects your current progress.
Throughout the course you will have a wide variety of opportunities to demonstrate your learning. Every activity (lab, quiz, conversation, assignment, test, project, etc.) can provide evidence that we can use to assess your progress. It is important to understand that the evidence that you use to demonstrate your understanding might not be the same evidence used by a classmate. Every student learns at a different rate, and has different strengths and interests that they bring to the table. Assessment is not about ranking or comparing students, but rather about each student's progress as they develop understanding, thinking strategies, communication skills, and learn to apply their knowledge in Science class.
My approach to assessment and evaluation is consistent with the policies and practices defined by the Ministry of Education in the document Growing Success and with current SCDSB policy pertaining to Assessment, Evaluation, and Reporting. These policies describe best practices for assessment, including:
"It is worth noting, right from the start, that assessment is a human process, conducted by and with human beings, and subject inevitably to the frailties of human judgement. However crisp and objective we might try to make it, and however neatly quantifiable may be our “results”, assessment is closer to an art than a science. It is, after all, an exercise in human communication."
- Ruth Sutton; retrieved from Growing Success, pg.29