Transforming Classroom Grading

Robert Marzano provides a thorough discussion of what grades are for, what they should include, and how to compute final scores that accurately reflect student learning.

Discusses alternatives to grading and different types of student assessment.

"Joe Feldman shows us how we can use grading to help students become the leaders of their own learning and lift the veil on how to succeed. . . . This must-have book will help teachers learn to implement improved, equity-focused grading for impact." —Zaretta Hammond, Author of Culturally Responsive Teaching & The Brain Crack open the grading conversation Here at last—and none too soon—is a resource that delivers the research base, tools, and courage to tackle one of the most challenging and emotionally charged conversations in today’s schools: our inconsistent grading practices and the ways they can inadvertently perpetuate the achievement and opportunity gaps among our students. With Grading for Equity, Joe Feldman cuts to the core of the conversation, revealing how grading practices that are accurate, bias-resistant, and motivational will improve learning, minimize grade inflation, reduce failure rates, and become a lever for creating stronger teacher-student relationships and more caring classrooms. Essential reading for schoolwide and individual book study or for student advocates, Grading for Equity provides A critical historical backdrop, describing how our inherited system of grading was originally set up as a sorting mechanism to provide or deny opportunity, control students, and endorse a "fixed mindset" about students’ academic potential—practices that are still in place a century later A summary of the research on motivation and equitable teaching and learning, establishing a rock-solid foundation and a "true north" orientation toward equitable grading practices Specific grading practices that are more equitable, along with teacher examples, strategies to solve common hiccups and concerns, and evidence of effectiveness Reflection tools for facilitating individual or group engagement and understanding As Joe writes, "Grading practices are a mirror not just for students, but for us as their teachers." Each one of us should start by asking, "What do my grading practices say about who I am and what I believe?" Then, let’s make the choice to do things differently . . . with Grading for Equity as a dog-eared reference.

Robert J. Marzano distills 35 years of research to bring you expert advice on the best practices for assessing and grading the work done by today's students.

Make school a better experience for students by ensuring grading and reporting practices are honest, accurate, meaningful, and fair. A companion to the best-selling and award-winning On Your Mark, this practical guide details how to successfully lead lasting grading reform. Dr. Thomas R. Guskey simplifies the transition by guiding educators through six essential steps--from developing a coalition devoted to change to creating a systematic plan. Use this resource to develop a new system of grading in your school or district: Become familiar with the process of implementing a rigorous new system of reporting that aligns with the goals of standards-based grading. Acquire numerous tools and strategies that will assist in the process of implementing a new grading system. Study the six steps that are essential to any successful attempt to reform grading, as well as how to succeed in each. Learn how to form a change action plan that covers the entire system of implementation and improves the student experience. Contents: About the Author Introduction Chapter 1: Learn From Failures Chapter 2: Form a Coalition for Change Chapter 3: Understand the Change Process Chapter 4: Clarify the Purpose of Grading and Reporting Chapter 5: Report Multiple Grades for Cognitive Outcomes Chapter 6: Report Multiple Grades for Noncognitive Outcomes Chapter 7: Get Assessment Policies and Practices Right Chapter 8: Develop a Systematic Plan for Implementation References and Resources Index

Create and sustain a learning environment where students thrive and stakeholders are accurately informed of student progress. Clarify the purpose of grades, craft a vision statement aligned with this purpose, and discover research-based strategies to implement effective grading and reporting practices. Identify policies and practices that render grading inaccurate, and understand the role grades play in students’ future success and opportunities.

A thinking student is an engaged student Teachers often find it difficult to implement lessons that help students go beyond rote memorization and repetitive calculations. In fact, institutional norms and habits that permeate all classrooms can actually be enabling "non-thinking" student behavior. Sparked by observing teachers struggle to implement rich mathematics tasks to engage students in deep thinking, Peter Liljedahl has translated his 15 years of research into this practical guide on how to move toward a thinking classroom. Building Thinking Classrooms in Mathematics, Grades K–12 helps teachers implement 14 optimal practices for thinking that create an ideal setting for deep mathematics learning to occur. This guide Provides the what, why, and how of each practice and answers teachers’ most frequently asked questions Includes firsthand accounts of how these practices foster thinking through teacher and student interviews and student work samples Offers a plethora of macro moves, micro moves, and rich tasks to get started Organizes the 14 practices into four toolkits that can be implemented in order and built on throughout the year When combined, these unique research-based practices create the optimal conditions for learner-centered, student-owned deep mathematical thinking and learning, and have the power to transform mathematics classrooms like never before.

Get to know which practices related to curriculum, instruction, and assessment are essential to make learning the goal for every student! You’ll learn how to Create learning targets that are scalable and transferable within and across units Develop instructional scales for each learning target Design non-scored practice activities and assessments Introduce and model skills that will be assessed and design tasks that allow students to use these skills Differentiate instruction and activities based on data from various types of assessments Maintain a gradebook that tracks summative achievement of learning targets, and score assessments accordingly Communicate progress clearly and efficiently with students and families