Sunday, January 6, 2013

Elements of Grading

I would have to say this book has been very eye opening.  Before reading it, I thought my feedback was effective and my grades were accurate.  I have now come to understand that my feedback could be improved, and my grades could be more accurate. 

 After reading this assignment I have decided that my idea of feedback is not as specific or timely as it could be.  My current feedback includes me grading papers, noticing the problems that many got wrong, and discussing those problems the following day.  Instead of  addressing the class as a whole group, I should try to give each student individual feedback (time is a limiting factor here).  To make my feedback more timely I am going to have my students show me the first 5 problems on their assignment.  If they got them correct they will be allowed to move onto the rest of their assignment.  Any mistakes they make can be immediately addressed. 
 
I have also decided that my grades are not a reflection of an end result.  Rather, they are a reflection of a learning journey, and if this journey starts out in a rocky place the end result is skewed.    
To make my grades more accurate, I am not going to grade my student's first attempt at a concept.  I am going to make their first assignment smaller so it can be graded quickly and feedback can be more timely.  Because change can be overwhelming, I plan to start with these changes in math and add other curriculum as the year goes on.    

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