|
|
|
|
|
Question
|
Having been to your sessions in the past, I am just wondering if you can answer a question that was never answered. When a teacher has 200 students, and is expected to provide regular summative and formative feedback, how is this possible without having deadlines? Without giving a "0" The government requires us to give "grades" by eventually by a certain date. If left to June, our deadlines, which must be met can not. I find today we are getting so bogged down by research (which can be questioned) that is not practicle in the "real world". Our profession has changed so much in the last 5 years alone, so I don't believe anyone who has not taught FULL TIME in a real classroom in the last 5 years has any appreciation for the inpracticality of certain ideals vs realism. How do we deal with the ideal vs the real, in a world that gives deadlines and expects people to be accountable for their actions at least at some point?
|
2009-10-22
garry |
|
The
Grade
Doctor
says:
|
Let may start by saying I have not "taught full time in a real classroom" for almost twenty
years. (I find it hard to believe that so many years have gone by so fast.) However, I always
acknowledge that we have to balance three "P'S" - Policy, Principles and Practicality and
that policy and principles have to be "tweaked" to make them practical. I believe the
answer to the problem you identify has three main components - a limited number of
summative assessments, clearly defined supportive consequences for deadlines, and an "I"
for "Incomplete" as part of the grading scale.
First, assessment is a sampling procedure so you need enough evidence to make the
judgments you have to make (determining grades), not too little or too much. Teachers
frequently collect a lot more evidence than they need, so you can make it more
manageable by requiring at least three but no more than 9 summative assessments for
each grading period (preferably 5 to 7). Apart from anything else you then have less
deadlines for students to meet. Other benefits are that the assessments will probably be
higher quality and you have time for a process of instruction and formative assessment
that will lead to greater achievement by students on the summative assessments.
Second, you need to provide support and consequences for students who miss deadlines,
that is, there need to be times and places where students are required to attend to get the
support they need to complete required summative assessments. These times may be in a
support period in the timetable (if you have one) or before school, after school or during
lunch.
Third, if students have not submitted sufficient assessment evidence by the day teachers
have to determine grades the grade they get is an "I" for "Incomplete" or "Insufficient
Evidence," regardless of the grade they would get based on the evidence they have
submitted. The "I" grade has the same impact as an "F" and should appear on the report
card and in the transcript. If government or district policy does not allow this and you are
required to report a percentage grade there should be an agreed upon number for
incomplete.
I believe that these three strategies are practical and manageable as long as they are
applied school wide with all teachers being involved in the support system.
|
Add Your Comment
|
|
|
