Issue link: http://educator.cta.org/i/1449741
when she and four colleagues heard education expert Rick Wormeli speak on standards-based grading. It sparked a grassroots teacher-led movement at her site. "ere was also a lot of resistance," admits the San Ramon Valley Edu- cation Association member. "is kind of change is touchy for teachers. We have a lot of autonomy for grading, but very little training in how to do it. We fall back on the practices of when we were in school." She describes the transition as a work in progress with plenty of trial and error and teacher reflection. Her school calls it "evidence-based learning" with a four-point scale of M for mastery, P for proficient, E for emerging, and N for no evidence. "I understand that at the middle school level, you want to teach functional skills like turning things in on time, good handwriting and following directions. But that can cloud how students are graded — especially boys." S om e students w hose grades were inf lat ed by good b ehavior received lower grades under the new system, and some parents at the high-performing school were not happy. Teachers had to explain Does your grading system make the grade? Feel strongly about your grading system and what works best for your students? Tell us why at editor@cta.org. Put "Grades" in the subject line. Konopacky says the transition at her school site from tradtional grading to "evidence-based learning," above, is a work in progress. compliance and nice handwriting don't merit an A. Last year, a majority of teachers including Konopacky eliminated D's, but it wasn't a schoolwide policy. Stu- dents can now turn in assignments late and redo work. Konopacky is doing her best to make sure nobody fails, helping students at lunchtime. If a student asks to redo a test or assignment, she asks them to reflect on why they did poorly before and why they think they can do better now. "It's a slow process that requires collaboration, vul- nerability, and talking about what works and what doesn't, so we can get kids back on track. Some of us felt guilty about the way we used to do things. But it's important to look forward — not backward. And teach- ers definitely need more professional development to help us with this." 34 cta.org "This kind of change is touchy for teachers. We have a lot of autonomy for grading, but very little training in how to do it. We fall back on the practices of when we were in school." —Courtney Konopacky, San Ramon Valley Education Association G r a d i n g S c a l e S V M S M A S T E R Y T H E L E A R N E R D E M O N S T R A T E S T H E H I G H E S T L E V E L O F C O N C E P T U A L & P R O C E D U R A L U N D E R S T A N D I N G O F S P E C I F I C K N O W L E D G E A N D S K I L L S M P E N P R O F I C I E N T T H E L E A R N E R D E M O N S T R A T E S U N D E R S T A N D I N G O F S P E C I F I C K N O W L E D G E A N D S K I L L S E M E R G I N G T H E L E A R N E R D E M O N S T R A T E S D E V E L O P I N G U N D E R S T A N D I N G O F S P E C I F I C K N O W L E D G E A N D S K I L L S N O E V I D E N C E T H E L E A R N E R H A S N O T Y E T D E M O N S T R A T E D U N D E R S T A N D I N G O F S P E C I F I C K N O W L E D G E A N D S K I L L S Feature