Changing the Culture of Grading in a StandardsBased System

1
Changing the Culture of Grading in a
Standards-Based System

• Kathryn Schladweiler
• Cheryl Ross, High School Mathematics
• Kelly Penn, 8th Grade Reading/Language Arts
• James Spicer, Board President
• Mason City Community Schools
• Mason City, Iowa
• For further information contact
  kschladweiler_at_mason-city.k12.ia.us

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The challenge of the culture

• Few practices in education are as sacred and yet
  deleterious as grading.
• Edwards, 1999

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Traditional Grading

• A, B, C, D, F
• Academic achievement tainted by non-academic
  factors
• Grade everything and average it together
• Chronological listing of all the assignments
• Report only 1 grade for a class

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What do grades mean in a standards-based system?

• Clarity
• Consistency
• Alignment
• Articulation
• Student-centered vs teacher-centered
• J curve, not bell curve

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The goal clarity and consistency

• Through staff development
• Through the work of study groups
• Through policy
• Through report card changes

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Guiding questions for staff development

• What are the purposes of grades?
• What should be the reference points for grades?
• What should be included in grades?

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Focusing staff development

• Addressing beliefs through district-wide staff
  development
• Bob in a Box
• Study groups focused on research
• Task force for policy change

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What study groups did

• What should be the purpose of grades?
• Study and analysis of the research on grading and
  grading practices
• Analysis of district practices and procedures
• Board also engaged in study of the research

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Results of Staff Development

• Standards should be the reference points for
  grades
• Academic achievement should be separate from
  nonacademic factors
• A policy needed to be developed for consistency.

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The role of policy

• It is very rare to find a district policy that
  provides real guidance to teachers as to how they
  should compose students grades.
• Kevin OConnor, 1999

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Getting beliefs into policy

• The role of the board
• The role of district leaders
• The role of a task force
• The role of critical friends
• The role of piloting
• The role of communication

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Standards-Based Grading Policy Foundations

• Academic achievement reported separately from
  non-academic factors (productivity)
• Academic grades are entered into electronic grade
  book by standards and reported out by standards.

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Implementation Issues Concerns

• Impact on teachers, students and parents
• Clarity on definitions
• Consistency on values assigned to grades
• Designing and grading assessments

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Impact of Acting on Beliefs

• Think differently about grading
• Think differently about lesson design and
  assessment
• Think differently about communicating about grades