grades students receive are meaningful to them in terms of their own learning.
Two terms that this book uses interchangeably throughout, though our primary usage will focus on the latter, are standards referenced and standards based. This occurs because the process for figuring grades in each concept is essentially the same. However, there is a difference between the terms, as can be seen in a review of literature on these two topics.
Standards referenced means that teachers report student progress in reference to the priority standards for a specific grade level or course (Marzano, 2010). Grant Wiggins (1993, 1996) and Robert J. Marzano (2010) describe standards-referenced grading as a system in which teachers give students feedback about their proficiency on a set of defined standards and schools report students’ levels of performance on the grade-level standards, but students advance at the end of the course or year based on passing performance and other factors, only some of which may involve proficiency on the standards. Marzano (2010) observed, “The vast majority of schools and districts that claim to have standards-based systems in fact have standards-referenced systems” (pp. 18–19). In a system of standards-referenced grading and reporting, students might move upward in grade or content level without demonstrating proficiency in all the standards for that particular course or grade level.
Standards-based grading is a system of assessing and reporting that describes student progress in relation to standards. In a standards-based system, a student can demonstrate mastery of a set of standards and move immediately to a more challenging set of standards. This means that if a third-grade student masters the entire set of third-grade mathematics standards in two months, that student immediately begins to work on fourth-grade mathematics standards. The same principle applies to all grade levels and subject areas: as soon as a student demonstrates competency with all the standards for a specific level and subject area, he or she immediately begins working on the next level of standards for that subject area. At the same time, a student who does not achieve proficiency on the standards continues to work on those standards until he or she reaches proficiency. Thus, standards-based grading is the process teachers also use for competency-based or proficiency-based learning and reporting.
For the purpose of our work and this book, we will use the term standards-based learning to represent the practices and processes we explain. However, we will refer to standards-referenced reporting when appropriate during our discussion of traditional methods of grading and delivering report cards.
How to Use This Book
While it is true that there are resources for administrators and school leaders involved with the change to standards-based learning, we want to provide a resource for the K–12 classroom teacher who has to make standards-based learning work in his or her classroom. While we present the theory behind standards-based learning, this book’s purpose is to provide practical guidance for the classroom teacher. We base the information we present in these pages on our years of training classroom teachers around the world in their transition to this new concept of teaching.
Our approach is sequential, and we present each stage of adopting and implementing standards-based learning. In each chapter, teachers will find specific advice and examples designed to make the transition easier.
Chapter 1 discusses how to plan instruction in a standards-based learning environment using proficiency scales. This chapter provides detailed guidance on how to understand the learning progressions within proficiency scales. It then discusses how teachers can use their proficiency scales to create and sequence cohesive lesson and unit plans to optimize student learning.
In chapter 2, teachers will then learn how to instruct their classes using proficiency scales. Special mention is made of instruction techniques to use when beginning content instruction, as students develop proficiency, and when students move past proficiency.
Chapter 3 outlines the crucial student practice of setting goals and tracking their own progress toward these goals. It provides strategies for how teachers can encourage, both implicitly and explicitly, goal-setting behaviors in their students and highlight goals that will best encourage student learning. Finally, this chapter contains ways for teachers and students to track progress both individually and classwide, as well as suggestions for celebrating success as they reach goals.
Chapter 4 thoroughly explains how to administer quality classroom assessments in a standards-based environment, and how to subsequently figure student grades. We present types of assessments and different scoring methods, as well as strategies for calculating summative scores using proficiency scales and dealing with unusual patterns of performance.
Special considerations for teaching exceptional students is the topic of chapter 5. This chapter provides guidance for using and modifying proficiency scales with exceptional learners, such as students with disabilities, English learners (ELs), and gifted learners. It also discusses how to link standards-based grading with special classes such as Advanced Placement (AP) and International Baccalaureate (IB) classes.
Finally, chapter 6 delves into how to best communicate the standards-based system of grading to parents and other community members. It details how to approach parent-teacher conferences, including student-led conferences; how to convey proficiency scale grades on report cards; and how to convert standards-based grading methods to letter or percentage grades, when required. A list of frequently asked questions can be found in appendix A for additional information on implementation of standards-based learning practices.
While not a step-by-step guide, this book tries to provide the basic information most teachers can use as a starting point to adapt their instructional program to their specific needs. We will provide the overall framework, specifically advising where we think teachers must implement elements and suggesting places where they can adapt elements. In the end, you as the teacher must make the program your own. We hope we can provide the advice and benefit of our experience for your journey.
| 1 | Planning Instruction With Proficiency Scales |
When planning instruction within a standards-based learning environment, it is important for teachers to understand that the focus of instruction will evolve from a content-centered approach to one that develops student knowledge and abilities on the standards. Instead of forming the knowledge the student will need to acquire throughout the unit, the content is now the vehicle that drives student knowledge and skills development. Proficiency scales serve as a starting point to develop a plan that guides student growth on the standards.
This chapter provides teachers with a comprehensive understanding of how to create and use proficiency scales in a standards-based environment. It will explain how teachers can plan instruction by prioritizing standards, assessing students’ initial placement with a preassessment, and creating well-sequenced unit and lesson plans. This process is easily adapted to any instructional framework the teacher may be using.
Identifying Priority and Supporting Standards
Before discussing proficiency scales in detail, we should define the terms priority and supporting standards. Educators are tasked with teaching a large array of state standards, but a quick examination of these standards by an experienced teacher reveals that not all of these standards are of equal
