On March 6, 2014, we looked at Ken O’Connor’s “15 Fixes to Broken Grades.”
Thing I agree with:
– keeping behavior and grades separate
– support for students who submit work late (Although I would do this within reason because your students need to work as hard as you. However, I think if students hand in late work they probably have extenuating circumstances and need our support).
– report absences separate from grades
– organize information by I Can Statements/Outcomes
– provide clear expectations
– rely on quality assessments and not on those that do not meet the standards of quality (ie. get students to redo and then grade)
– use your professional judgment (ie. mean is not the only measure)
– use alternatives for zero (ie. incomplete, etc.)
– use summative evidence only in grade and keep formative assessment out of it
– include lots of formative assessment in teaching practice
– focus on recent achievement and allow for practice time
– involve students in their own assessment and make them part of the grading process
Things I am unsure of:
– not including group scores in grades (I think this is sometimes appropriate. We can use our professional judgment to determine when it is fair and when it is not).
