Grading

Now that it is summer, I have found myself will a lot of extra time on my hands and I have been using this time to read and reflect on ways to make my classroom better.  Grading and assessment in music have always been a source of conflict and doubt for me.  After reading many books, listening to podcasts and reflecting on ways to make my grading practices better, I realized that I need to make sure my grading philosophy lines up with how I want to be graded.

This forced me to think about what practices were beneficial to me as a student and as a teacher (teacher evaluations.)  The most beneficial assessments for me are ones that include specific feedback (either what I did well or what I struggled with) and specific ideas for how I can improve.  Therefore my grading practices need to fit these criteria: Be Specific, Be Positive.  The same rules for specific and positive feedback apply to formal and informal assessments.  Telling a students "Good Job" is not specific enough, I need to tell them exactly what I thought they did well.

I recently listened to a podcast about coaching and one of the topics was praise.  Research has shown that people flourish when they receive at least 3 positives for every negative comment.  Positive comments also need to be specific.  Generic compliments do not have the power that detailed compliments carry.  This factor alone shows why letter grades are failing our students.  What does an A mean?  How do I go from a B to an A? Letter grades are neither specific or show how to improve.

The purpose of grades are to show students (teachers and parents) how a child is progressing through different skills and concepts.  I know from my own experience, that being told "Good Job" is not nearly as meaningful as being told specifically what I am doing well.  I still have my teacher evaluations from two years ago.  Obviously, I need to keep them for professional reasons, but I also kept them as a positive reminder.  Under each competency is a 3-5 sentence paragraph explaining exactly how I met each requirement.  The positive feedback shows me exactly where my administrator thought I am in my teaching journey.

This desire to give specific feedback with detailed examples of how my students can improve has led me to research Standards Based Grading.  I still have a lot of work to do, but I plan on transitioning my classroom to a SBG System this next school year.  The questions guiding my grading will be "Am I being specific?" and "Am I giving specific examples on how they can improve?"

What questions guide your grading practices?