Friday Feedback - 3/23/18
How grading practices can instill grit
The Power of Grit and Perseverance
At a recent Principal's Network meeting in Fairfield, we looked at data from across the state and the AEA on student success in college. We analyzed the data at first in small teams, including data that indicates many of our top performing students across the state are not surviving their first two years of college. We came to a couple of conclusions based on this data - 1) Students give up too easily when they are faced with adversity (both academically and athletically) and 2) Colleges are not very good extensions of public education because they do not often utilize good teaching or grading practices (not many professors are certified teachers).
So how can we help (because we all know that public education can solve everything, right?)? One of the ways that I believe grading reform can help instill this grit and perseverance in our students is by not allowing a kid to take a ZERO so that we can move towards the idea that grades are reflective of knowledge - they must do the work no matter what. Another way is that by breaking apart a letter grade (blowing up the A,B,C,D grade etc.) into the standards that make them up uncovers weak areas that all students have - it identifies what standards and areas students really need to focus their efforts and attention on so they become focused on learning as opposed to chasing points or chasing a grade. Far too many students are grade chasing and we want them to be knowledge chasers.
I am a firm believer that the ultimate punishment for not doing the work is doing the work. In our professional lives, if we don't get our work done nobody is going to do it for us so kids must do the work; period.
Many times students don't do the work because they aren't quite ready to be released to independently accomplish the challenging work that they may not understand yet - by not demanding students do the work, especially projects and lengthier assignments, we could be encouraging their learning gaps to grow and we are definitely not instilling grit.
Homework should be meaningful practice when they are ready = GRR!
Support must precede accountability...
Learning is not fixed, it is developed over time from solid instruction by caring adults...
"Use your professional judgement, not necessarily the “Mean” (when figuring grades); look at growth towards the standards/learning over time; low grades reflect on us as educators too" Dr. Tim Westerberg
What's Coming Up?
Tuesday 4/3 - School resumes from Spring Break
Down the road...
Friday 4/6 - Ag Day
Tuesday 4/10 - Bus Safety Drills - more details to come...