So much of what goes into a teacher’s grading practices is based on what they’ve experienced both as student and as a teacher. A lot of what veteran teachers were exposed to when they were students was the result of years and years of following the status quo. No one was taking the time to STOP and THINK about whether or not their assignments connected to a standard and if their grading reflected mastery of those standards. Because no one stopped to think about it, these unhealthy practices continued for years.
If you don’t believe it, stop and take a look at your own assignments and your own grading practices. Unfortunately, you may not like what you see. You may realize that you’ve been blindly following the same status quo. While this may bring you down a little bit, I’ve got great news: it’s not too late to make a change!
Here are some steps getting started:
- Before you assign something new, STOP.
- Analyze the assignment. Can you easily identify the standard your students practicing? This is a little tricky! An essay for a high school English class covers MANY standards, right? You don’t have to look too hard a list of learning targets to find a few that an essay covers. But this is where a lot of us tend to get stuck in the swamp of inaction. While this is true, what’s important is that you can easily identify a SPECIFIC standard you are going to be evaluating.
- If you can’t identify a specific standard, then the assignment probably isn’t worth your students’ time or your own time when you grade it. Focus on finding an assignment that allows students to focus in on and practice a specific standard.
- Then, ask yourself, how students will demonstrate mastery of the standard. They could show mastery through a specific response, a general understanding of an idea, a certain number of correct answers, or something you’ll need a holistic rubric to evaluate. However, identifying exactly how students will demonstrate mastery will inform your grading as well as help focus your instruction and remediation.
The biggest thing to remember as you begin this journey is that you’ve got to start small. You won’t be able to undo years and years of status quo practices in one assignment, but a series of small steps will help you cover a lot of ground over time. And most importantly, you have to allow yourself some grace as you go through the process an focus on the fact that you’re making positive changes. Remember, a work in progress is still making progress.
If you want more information about healthy grading practices, check out our book Grade Cleanse for an easy-to-follow roadmap to reflection and growth when it comes to grading.