In standards-based grading, teachers communicate goals of learning rather than tasks. In other words, learning is communicated in relation to the course outcomes rather than the activities (homework, quiz, project, essay, etc.) demonstrating the learning outcomes.
Standards-based grading: lock-ins and lecture halls.
(a.k.a. why schools choose to adopt educational practices such as grading that are often different from colleges/universities)
The purpose of this article is to describe principles of standards-based grading, empirical support of SBG, and several common challenges secondary school leaders may face when considering this philosophical shift. Future research recommendations include exploring the perspectives of college students who graduate from high schools using SBG to understand the longer-term successes and shortcomings of the grading system.
At a few recent workshops I have facilitated, well-intentioned teachers submitted the following questions: How do we hold students accountable for homework? What do we do with students who do not want to reassess? I was delighted to share my personal experience as a teacher and district administrator involved with standards-based grading, however in each
The purpose of this recently published paper is to provide a model for educational leadership faculty who aspire to walk the talk of effective feedback by embedding standards-based grading (SBG) in their courses.
In early 2016, I listed what I thought were the top ten books written about effective grading practices. Many books have been written about standards-based grading in the last three years, however I wanted to highlight five that have impacted me the most. Here we go! O’Connor, K. (2018). How to grade for learning, K-12 (4th
In early 2016, I wrote what I thought were the “Top 10 standards-based grading articles” available at that time. Nearly three years have past and a number of quality articles have been written in that time. Here we go! Brookhart, S. M., Guskey, T. R., Bowers, A. J., McMillan, J. H., Smith, J. K., Smith,
One of many possible reasons why standards-based grading has been slower to catch on at secondary level when compared to elementary settings…. From a study of nearly 3,000 K-12 teachers: The evidence gathered in this study shows that nearly all teachers believe that grading plays a role in the teaching and learning process. However, the
Two articles were published in the February 2018 issue of School Administrator (AASA) describing university admissions office perspectives on standards-based grading (SBG). The full e-edition is available online and brief summary of each article is below. — High school students experiencing SBG receive a fair shot at higher education admissions The authors interviewed admissions folks at several
I was invited to share our district’s standards-based grading journey with the national superintendents’ professional organization, AASA. A brief summary: In Solon, Iowa, teachers’ gradebooks describe students’ current levels of learning without the customary array of A’s and C’s or numerical grades. The small district is at the forefront of a new assessment movement in