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Summer is now in full swing which means a few things: random naps, grad school homework, more time to blog and read blogs, starting to plan for next year, and hours spent browsing pinterest for inspiration.
One thing I want to do differently next year is to have a more structured system for SBG quizzes and reassessments. Last year, my quizzes were sometimes handwritten, sometimes typed by me, sometimes stolen from somewhere on the internet. There was no cohesiveness, and that bothers me. So, one of my first projects this summer is to decide how I want my quizzes to look.
Here’s my plan for 2015-2016 as of now:
The first quiz for each skill will be typed on a standard template. This is my current vision of this template. Definitely a work in progress.
I will prepare additional questions for each skill that will be written on index cards for me to pull out and use at my convenience when students need to retake a quiz.
Students will have to complete some sort of error analysis/reflection sheet on their first quiz in order to be allowed to take the quiz again.
Each quiz attempt will be numbered.
If a student wishes to retake a quiz, they must bring me their original quiz, their error analysis sheet, and a new blank quiz that they have filled out with their name, the skill number, the unit number, the attempt number, and the learning goal. I rather like the idea of having them write out the learning goal by hand each time they retake the quiz.
All attempts for a quiz and all error analysis sheets will be kept stapled together. When students have successfully made an A or B on all the skills for the unit, these quiz packets will be assembled into a portfolio of sorts.
This past year, I had students who would throw away their old quizzes and then want to retake them. If a student hasn’t done the work to learn from their mistakes and reflect on them, they shouldn’t be retaking a quiz.
I think my favorite idea (and completely unoriginal, btw) is to have students complete a self-assessment before turning in their quiz. They will mark whether they think they should receive an A, a B, or a Not Yet.
I also want to leave a designated place at the bottom of the quiz for students to leave me a note. I’m not exactly sure what information students will end up sharing with me, but I want to give each student a chance to reach out to me if they need to. I also plan on using this notes section to respond to student notes or write a note of my own to them.
Ideas? Suggestions? I’m open to all feedback.
Jessica Mayer
Monday 29th of June 2015
I really like the idea of SBG, especially since i'll be teaching a Resource Chemistry class next year and I think the message to my special education students. I also teach at an IB school so our grading is a little weird. Some classes are on a 1-8 scale (1 is bad 8 is best) and some are on a 1-7 (1 bad 7 best) scale. I have no idea how i could use SBD with these scales
Sarah Carter (@mathequalslove)
Wednesday 6th of September 2017
Thanks for sharing!
Alex Adams
Wednesday 9th of August 2017
I use a 5-10 scale. Feel free to check out. Modified from when math happens.
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1aAk6YcqevJnGYiaTz2FlQnCieLbHJVFQ45KI9UiGtlc/edit?usp=sharing
Sarah Carter (@mathequalslove)
Friday 17th of July 2015
There are lots of examples of different SBG scales out there. Maybe you could take one that uses .5 levels such as (3.5) and adjust to 7 or 8???
Unknown
Sunday 28th of June 2015
I would love to find out more about SBG! Your blog is the first I've heard of it. We are switching to a 10-pt grading next year. How do you give numerical grades for report cards? I'd really like to know all the ins and outs of SBG. I love your site and have shared it with several of the math teachers at my school. Really wonderful!
Sarah Carter (@mathequalslove)
Friday 17th of July 2015
A = 100, B = 85, Not Yet = 0 until students retake to earn an A or a B. There are lots of different SBG conversion methods out there, though.
Teri Ferguson
Saturday 30th of May 2015
(If you've addressed this in a previous post, just link me there. I didn't take the time to look.) Do students have to master (A or B) every skill in order to receive credit? What happens if a student never masters a skill? I'm really pondering SBG, but like an earlier commenter, it's just so scary! The unknown is scary. In your class are there any other activities that earn "grades" besides quizzes?
Sarah Carter (@mathequalslove)
Saturday 30th of May 2015
I haven't really blogged about the details of my SBG system. I'll put that on my list of posts to write soon! :D
Unknown
Friday 29th of May 2015
I like this a lot. Ever since switching over to SBG a few years ago, I have been struggling with a method for ensuring continued effort/progress before reassessments. This strikes me as pretty clear cut and less likely to impede student efforts (or piss off snowplow parents more than necessary), and thus a significant improvement.
Like Alli, I am intrigued as to your initial assessment process. I am currently using unit exams with 5-6 open ended questions and a roughly 50/50 split between old and new standards, but I am as yet unconvinced that this is the best of all workable models.
Sarah Carter (@mathequalslove)
Friday 29th of May 2015
I'm currently doing one quiz per skill. Each quiz assesses a single skill. I've done a rotation between skills before on quizzes, but it was harder for me to keep up with that way. I need to force my students to show work before requizzing and individual quizzes help me with this.
Anonymous
Friday 29th of May 2015
I am also wrestling with SBG and do not know if I am ready to take the plunge next year. Couple of thoughts on your template: - I like the self and teacher grading. Why do you choose A/B/Not Yet vs. Mastered/Proficient/Not Yet - I believe that the hierarchy plays a very important role in how you organize your units. Do you have examples of units/skill/goal combinations? In my mind, skills and goals may be confused without clear delineations. - I am toying in my mind with the idea of eliminating the attempt number at the top and make this into stapled set (across top of page) where the first attempt (top page is first attempt) is the shortest page. The second page would be longer by just the amount to grade and give notes. The third page would be larger by the same amount. etc.
Really neat ideas you have, I hope you are willing to blog about successes and challenges with this.
Sarah Carter (@mathequalslove)
Friday 29th of May 2015
It took me a while to make the plunge, but I'm so glad I did. I definitely learned A LOT this year, and I have a bunch of tweaks to make for next year.
I chose A/B/Not Yet because I thought it would seem familiar to my students who had never experienced SBG before. I think Mastered/Proficient/Not Yet could work just as well.
I've posted last year's units and goals here https://mathequalslove.net/algebra-1-learning-goals/ and here https://mathequalslove.net/algebra-2-learning-goals/. These need lots of modifications for the new year!
I'm intrigued by the different lengths of pages, but I think that might be too much for me to keep up with. I'm the type of person who has one template and uses it for EVERYTHING. Less to think about and stress about that way.
I'd definitely encourage you to give SBG a go, though!