Reflection on First Year of Standards-Based Grading...and a Few Other Changes

The Paper Tower Challenge

If you've read my blog, you know that I am a huge believer in student feedback.  It is important to me that my students feel respected and valued and also enjoy the time they spend in my class. Of course, learning is important, but if students don't feel valued and respected or dread coming to my class, learning is not as likely to occur. That is why I use Google forms for students to share their thoughts with me. 

I ask my students for input numerous times throughout the school year. I often make changes to my classroom practices based on what they say.  At the end of the year, I have students complete a lengthy survey.  They have the option of including their name or being anonymous. In one question, I asked them to state their favorite activity.  The paper tower challenge and writing groups were the two winners.  It just so happens that these were both new additions to my classroom this year.  The Paper Tower Challenge was one of my stations. Students worked in groups of four or five to construct a paper tower. They could ONLY use twenty pieces of paper and their goal was to build the tallest tower they could.  No, this has nothing to do with English, but one of my goals this year was to address the social-emotional needs of my students and create a close-knit community. Thank you to Marisa Thompson, my Twitter edufriend, for this awesome idea. They loved it!  You can check her out on Twitter @MarisaEThompson. She's AMAZING!

Of course, the most important questions in this year's survey addressed my new standards-based grading system. I spent most of last summer reading, researching, and preparing for this undertaking. I have to admit; I was terrified.  I feared the students' reactions. Would they do all of the practice work even though it did not count towards their grade? Would they be willing to revise their writing and retake tests?  Answer: YES!  Mainly I feared parents' reactions. Would they like it? Would they understand? Answer: YES! I did not have ONE parent complaint! For more information about how I implemented standards-based grading, please read this blog post.  One of my favorite aspects of SBG is that students began to accept that learning is a PROCESS. It is okay not to get something the first time. It's okay to rewrite and redo an assignment. The end product, the learning, is what is important.

Here are some comments I received from parents:

Tara definitely benefited from the standards-based grading. She learned that being able to rewrite and make revisions is part of the learning process. 

Your grading system works for us.

Brandon has struggled in the past with actually putting real effort into his writing.  I think the standards-based grading forced in to actually try to make his work better.  He realized that just ‘phoning it in’ was not going to work.  In addition, he realized that by putting the effort in, he is a good reader and writer.

I am so thankful for your belief in learning as a process the grading system you implemented this year. It was fantastic and I wish others would adopt it. That is what learning is about and it ties perfectly into the real-world experience. 

Here is what students had to say in the Google form :

This was my first year implementing standards-based grading. Would you recommend I do it next year? Why or why not?

Yes, because it gave you a sense of what you are going to and are learning about. Otherwise, it seems like random information being thrown at you. Without Standards-Based Grading, it is like saying, "Here are 20 pages of a random lesson. Learn it!". Whereas with Standards-Based Grading you can put yourself into the mindset of what you are learning.

Yes, because it gave the students a goal to work towards.

Yes, because it was helpful and easy.

Yes, because it makes things easier and less stressful.

Yes, I enjoyed working towards a goal and trying to master it.

Yes, because it takes the stress of people and is a more fair grading system.

Yes, it is easy to understand and it kept things organized.

yes, because I thought it was overall very organized and the stations were fun sometimes!

I liked it because it was much less simple, I didn’t dent need to worry about getting a certain percentage I just knew I needed to get a 4 or a 3 to Get my grade up if I didn't like it.

I recommend doing it next year because I don't stress out as much on right away getting a 4,3,2,1.

Yes, it made learning and getting the grade less stressful.

Yes, it gives students crucial practice and serves as a good system.

Yes, I would recommend the system because it is easier to get good grades.

No, it's not that fun, and it's hard.

What are your thoughts about being able to retake/redo assignments and quizzes for a higher grade? Did it help or motivate you?

Retaking assignments was very helpful, especially when we knew what we did wrong and could fix it. Otherwise, we get discouraged that we didn't get a good grade. We learn more the second time through. No one says, "I am going to redo this essay for no reason! Yipee!" No, grades shouldn't be the only thing forcing kids to learn. However, grades can motivate us, especially for those of us who care to learn and not just memorize.

It helped me out because I didn't have anxiety or get super scared. I knew I could better my score.

I think it is a great idea (even though I don't think I had to retake any quizzes or tests). It gives kids more hope that they can improve and that the first time doing something (even if they do bad)  won't reflect on them forever.

It did help me stress less. I still motivated myself to do well on quizzes though.

It helped me feel more confident in a test knowing that it wouldn't tank my grade.

It did help me because I knew that I could find what to improve after getting feedback

Obviously, I did not include every response, but a common theme was that students felt less stressed with this grading system. That's a win in my book. Also, students never asked me for extra credit! Another win.  Finally, I did not have ONE D or F! Yes, you read that right...not ONE! Students knew it was never too late to turn in work or redo an assignment for a higher grade. Because of this, they never gave up.  Most of the time I provided the students with lots of feedback before they saw a grade. This was so valuable.

If you are looking to grow as a teacher and watch your students thrive, I highly recommend adopting standards-based grading.  It is worth the extra work. You won't regret it!