Grading is Communication
Communicating with students
Frequent communication with students in regards to grading is essential. Students need to know what they don't know so they can work on their weakest areas and strengthen their strong ones. Teachers should provide feedback to students on a regular basis about the work they are doing. When a teacher guides and directs a student, they are much more likely to succeed. Much of the time, this feedback is done through scoring an assignment. When students see that they scored higher or lower than they usually do, they will have a better understanding of how to evaluate their own level of understanding and think about how to increase it each day.
Keeping parents involved
It's incredibly important to keep parents involved in their child's learning. One way this is done is through communicating grades to parents. When a parent receives a report card for a student, that parent will be able to help their child improve in the necessary areas. Communication with parents should not happen just during report card season, however. Each week, students should be bringing home their graded assignments and showing them to their parents. These frequent little assignments will allow parents to keep better tabs on their child's progress and help their child learn well.
Collaborating with PLCs
Grades can be a big help in PLC collaboration. When teachers display grades for equivalent assignments across the board, the teachers can see which groups of students mastered the content, and which groups struggled with certain ideas. When teachers see that their colleagues are more/less effective in a certain area, they can share ideas about how to increase effective teaching in certain areas.
Informing the administration
The administration needs to be informed of progress at each report card period to ensure that effective learning is taking place. This puts necessary pressure on teachers to teach well and also provides a way for administrators to encourage and support teachers as they see the teachers strengths and weaknesses.
Keeping Colleges and Universities in mind
Grades don't just communicate within the school boundaries - they also communicate with colleges, universities, and other outside agencies. Because of this communication factor, it's important to keep grades equalized - that is, one school should not have an extremely high or extremely low grading scale. It's essential that if a student would receive a "B" at Hillcrest Elementary in a particular subject, that same student would receive a "B" at Alma Elementary. The International Baccalaureate system is great at equalizing grades among schools. If the IB system is not used in a school, that school must rely on standardized tests and other methods for assessing grades equally.
Frequent communication with students in regards to grading is essential. Students need to know what they don't know so they can work on their weakest areas and strengthen their strong ones. Teachers should provide feedback to students on a regular basis about the work they are doing. When a teacher guides and directs a student, they are much more likely to succeed. Much of the time, this feedback is done through scoring an assignment. When students see that they scored higher or lower than they usually do, they will have a better understanding of how to evaluate their own level of understanding and think about how to increase it each day.
Keeping parents involved
It's incredibly important to keep parents involved in their child's learning. One way this is done is through communicating grades to parents. When a parent receives a report card for a student, that parent will be able to help their child improve in the necessary areas. Communication with parents should not happen just during report card season, however. Each week, students should be bringing home their graded assignments and showing them to their parents. These frequent little assignments will allow parents to keep better tabs on their child's progress and help their child learn well.
Collaborating with PLCs
Grades can be a big help in PLC collaboration. When teachers display grades for equivalent assignments across the board, the teachers can see which groups of students mastered the content, and which groups struggled with certain ideas. When teachers see that their colleagues are more/less effective in a certain area, they can share ideas about how to increase effective teaching in certain areas.
Informing the administration
The administration needs to be informed of progress at each report card period to ensure that effective learning is taking place. This puts necessary pressure on teachers to teach well and also provides a way for administrators to encourage and support teachers as they see the teachers strengths and weaknesses.
Keeping Colleges and Universities in mind
Grades don't just communicate within the school boundaries - they also communicate with colleges, universities, and other outside agencies. Because of this communication factor, it's important to keep grades equalized - that is, one school should not have an extremely high or extremely low grading scale. It's essential that if a student would receive a "B" at Hillcrest Elementary in a particular subject, that same student would receive a "B" at Alma Elementary. The International Baccalaureate system is great at equalizing grades among schools. If the IB system is not used in a school, that school must rely on standardized tests and other methods for assessing grades equally.