Assessment and Grading

You will be evaluated based on your individual and collaborative efforts in the following areas:

• Major Assessments (50% of grade): Projects, Critiques, Exams.

(Project criteria include creativity/originality, willingness to explore materials and take artistic risks, craftsmanship, use of elements and principles of design, individual effort, punctual submission of work, and critiques).

• Minor Assessments (50% of grade): sketchbooks/thumbnail sketches, classwork including visible progress on projects, homework, class participation, visual journals.

Concept: Students are given a theme or concept for each project. How they interpret that project is up to each student individually. The purpose of this course is to teach students to think creatively and critically, and work will be evaluated based on the realization of the concept as well as execution of the project itself.

Progress Benchmarks: Progress on each project will be monitored through progress benchmark grades. These are deadlines by which students should be able to demonstrate an understanding of relevant concepts and skills by completing a specified portion of the project and these benchmarks count as minor assessments. For example, on a clay project, visible progress deadlines might be scheduled for preliminary sketches, clay construction, readiness for first firing, glazing and finishing. Students would then get a major assessment grade for the project itself, the critique and any written assignments that go along with it. Progress benchmarks are designed to keep each student on task to complete the project and do it to the best of his or her ability. 

Visible progress grades are scored as follows:

A (100) = Student demonstrates understanding of concepts/skills gained and has met or exceeded progress benchmark.

B (91)   = Student demonstrates adequate understanding of concept/skills gains but minor adjustments to work is required to meet progress benchmark.

C (82)  =  Student demonstrates some understanding of concept/skills to be gained, but requires up to half a class period of additional time to meet progress benchmark.

D (73) =   Student has not demonstrated understanding of concept/skills to be gained and requires at least a full additional class period to meet progress benchmark.

F (63) =   Student has not demonstrated understanding of concept/skills to be gained and required more than one additional class period to meet progress benchmark.

F  (0)  =   Student has not demonstrated an effort to understand concept or skills to be gained and has not attempted to meet progress benchmark.

Homework: Homework is infrequent, but YES, there is homework. Students will have a Visual Journal assignment that is due after each project. These assignments can be found on Google Classroom and are to be submitted in Google Classroom. Students may also be asked to obtain reference images, do sketches, written critique or statements about their work, or written descriptions of the process used to create their work. But MOST IMPORTANTLY, students who are absent or fall behind must take the initiative and arrange for additional studio time with the instructor.

Late Assignments: All studio work must be completed by the designated deadlines. Any Project, visual journal, or written assignment submitted late will be penalized in a 10 point deduction for each class day it is not turned in. Assignments submitted 5 or more days later will receive an automatic failing grade.