Global Educator, Curriculum Developer, and Trainer
I finally finished reading What We Know About Grading, a 2019 ASCD book summarizing a century of research on grading. Probably doesn’t sound compelling to most people — it’s not going to top the New York Times bestseller list — but I wanted to know what the research says, since we spend so much of…
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I saw a graphic on Twitter earlier this week that said something like: “There is no downside to giving a student a second chance. Zero, zilch, nada.” I scoffed and passed over it, but it kept nagging at me. I went back to find it later, and of course I couldn’t. So you’ll just have…
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Every time I think I’ve wrapped my head around proficiency-based grading, I encounter a new question, and I’m lost all over again. At my school, we’ve had a training session and a few meetings since I last blogged about my personal transition (What is a 3, anyway?). During staff training, we all read a blog…
Read MoreIn the world of standards-based grading, a 3 means proficient. Does that means it’s kind of like a C? Or more like a B? Don’t tell me it doesn’t matter. It does. It has to go in the gradebook. In late August, I wrote this post about my first foray into the world of proficiency-based…
Read MoreLast week, I asked a few hundred of my former journalism students: Did you ever feel like you received an unfair grade in high school? If so, why was it unfair? I asked them to share their stories with me, and I received just one — from Alistair. His experience is good food for thought,…
Read MoreI am one of those nerdy teachers who cannot wait to check her students’ AP scores in July. Pass rates, distributions, average scores — it’s all interesting data to me. I always want to know how my latest cohort of students compares to previous groups, whether I’m reaching my goal (93% with a 3 or…
Read MoreWatching Frontline’s documentary of Michelle Rhee during the same week AP scores were released has me trying to wrap my head around this issue of standardized testing and how we should use test scores. I know many teachers hate standardized tests of any kind — and for good reason. They cause anxiety. They are biased…
Read MoreAt the end of the semester, “motivation” soars. High school teachers get heartfelt pleas from two groups of students: those who are failing and really want to pass, and those who are earning A-s and really want As instead. “What can I do?” both groups ask. “I’ll do anything!” The first group – the kids…
Read MoreThree years ago, under a new principal, my high school leaped head first into the “re-learning, re-take” trend sweeping public education. The philosophy is simple and has undeniable logical appeal. If Michael performs poorly on a test, he should have the opportunity to re-learn the material and improve his score. After all, we get more…
Read MoreWhat would happen this year if I tossed out all of my rubrics, test scores and grading scales and just granted As to all of my students? Would my classroom become a utopia, where students — free from the rat-race of chasing grades — would engage in learning for the pure love of it? Or…
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MARTHA RUSH 