Grading in the Differentiated Classroom

This week choose 3 of the 4 Grading Articles found on Toolkit to read. After reading the articles, consider that you are getting started in a differentiated classroom, what principles pertaining to grading and assessment do you want to adhere to? Please make sure you support your principles with examples from class or the articles you read.

As I begin teaching, I think I'll really take to heart what Carol wrote in the beginning of her article, "Grading for Success." She says that "to truly measure achievement, grading practices should grow from a philosophy of teaching and learning that respects student differences and reflects individual growth." I really think this one statement sums up the intricacies of grading in the differentiated classroom. Carol goes on to talk about how we teach aiming towards student success, and should have the same philosophy towards grading. We must look at the gains that individual students have made. She also emphasizes the need for clear grading requirements for each assignment, letting students know what you expect of them and how the assigment will be assessed. In the same vein, it is important to give students detailed feedback of what they did well, and what they still need to work on. Also critically important is a new view on grades as more of an assessment of growth then an assessment of natural ability. I love Carol's idea of giving grades and levels on the report card, where a child that shows excellent growth but has below grade level abilities would get an A3. This really takes into account both ability and effort in a really easily understandable way. I would really love to implement that system in the classroom.

In Tonya Moon's article, "The Role of Assessment in Differentiation," she goes into more specifics about assessment. She talks about attentiveness to "students' level of mastery of the identified learning goals and objectives" in terms of grading their assignments. She also points out that differentiation and grades should both focus on "clarity and focus on preidentified knowledge, understanding, and skills for which students are accountable." The big question she asks about grading is basically: Did the student meet the learning goals set for him/her? I like this idea of grading, and would definitely use it in the classroom.

In Guskey's article, "Making High School Grades Meaningful," he opens by saying that "most teachers base students' grades on more than one factor. The difficulty is figuring out how to weight and combine the different pieces that go into the final mark." He goes on to talk about product, process, and progress as the three elements of grading in the classroom. I loved this idea! It takes into account natural ability, effort, and growth in coming up with a final grade for students. In the classroom, I would love to encorporate ideas from all three of these authors in making sure that my students are rewarded for both their intelligence and their growth in the classroom.

Management Strategies

This week we looked at various management strategies. What advice would you give to teachers who decide to implement the strategies you reviewed to ensure that they work smoothly and effectively in the classroom?

• Set Firm Routines - Make sure your students know what to do! Practice transitions between activities so that they don't fall apart when you try to put them into place. Make sure students know what to do when they finish work earlier than other students in the class.
  
• Be Organized - Know what you want students to do, otherwise you can never expect things to run smoothly. Have a place for students to turn in work when they are done so you're not constantly bombarded by students wanting to turn in assignments. Plan more than you think is necessary for a lesson in case it goes more quickly than anticipated.
  
• Be Available - Make yourself available to students both in class and outside of class in order to address individual concerns and struggles. Make sure students feel as though they can come to you with cognitive and affective needs.
  
• Be Flexible - Nothing will ever go exactly as you plan for it to! Be ready to adapt! The main objective of differentiation is to adapt to students' needs. It may be necessary at any time for you to adapt a lesson that isn't working quite like you planned for it to.
  
• Know Your Students - It is pivotally important to know your students both cognitively and affectively, so that you can best address their needs.
  

Strategies and Assessments

Look at the strategies and assessments your fellow classmates created on our website. If you were at a school where colleagues asked you for feedback on this work, what would you say to them? Please respond to the work of at least two of the groups.

Some questions to consider:
• Are the KUDs clear? Worthwhile?
• Do you see alignment between the KUDs, assessments, and the strategy?
• Does the activity adhere to the intent of the strategy?
• Are all tasks respectful and challenging?

Interest-Based Lesson Plan:

I really like the way this lesson is set up. Interest-based lesson plans are always very appealing to me. Your KUD's are great! I love that y'all focus on so many aspects of Chinese culture. I see the link between the pre-assessment worksheet and the KUD's, in determining which areas of Chinese culture the students are most interested in. However, I'm not sure I understand the connection between the KUD's and the bridge building activity. If a child says they're more interested in Chinese writing, how can they apply this interest to bridge building? The activity itself is very well-designed. Allowing the students a choice about the type of bridge they create as well as the materials they use to create it and the purpose it will serve really gets as student interests. I also really like the idea of the post card as an exit card for the class, but I would suggest making sure that it is used to show what the students learned from the activity, not just to tell about what they did.

Learning Profile Lesson Plan:

This is an excellent lesson plan! I really can't come up with any criticism. The KUD's are clear and consise. They are relevant to the book The Pain and the Great One and to important learning skills. The activities adhere closely to the KUD's. I love the idea of making students argue for the opposite side of the side they can relate to. It reinforces the ideas of perspective and bias. Also, the learning profile differentiated activity is great! All three tasks are respectful and challenging and get at the different learning profiles. The pre-assessment and formative assessments really assess what the KUD's want students to have learned. I particularly like the idea of the exit card about things you learned, questions you have, and an observation of a bias in class. This really reinforces the main points of the lesson.