Chapter 3 - The Need for a New Scale

This next chapter in Formative Assessment and Standards-Based Grading urges teachers to look at the current 100 point scale in teaching and moving toward more of a rubric and small score based scale. In the Standards-Based Grading (SBG) setting this is our intention. With the use of rubrics we can better assess our students. The funny thing is that we will still "score" our students - especially in our classes/districts with grading programs that only allow for a points-based system. The points-based issue doesn't need to be a bad thing...we can overcome it. This is done through assigning students a numerical score, but ultimately we could have the scores transfer to language like this:

5.0 - Exceeds expectations - mastery shown with extra practice
4.0 - Meets expectations - the student is demonstrating mastery, this leaves room for extra practice
3.0 - Approaching expectations - the student is able to demonstrate mastery, but on an inconsistent basis.
2.0/1.0 - remediation is required.
NA - this label is for standards that haven't been assessed yet

Now this is a scale that I just put together on the spot. While going on this SBG journey, I intend to look at peer reviewed journals, rubrics that other music educators have used, and resources from other educators.

I'm sure that many of us making this transition to SBG can see the assessment format to be overwhelming, but with the help of national and state music standards, I will be able to smoothly move away from points-based systems. I will be able to identify learning goals (targets) and create rubrics to assess them. The 6th grade science teacher at my school and I have talked about this. I asked - how did you create Learning Targets (LT)? She said that she merely took the science standard and broke it down into smaller sections. This is important for our students to not become overwhelmed.

Marzano brings up a great idea - how can we better communicate these rubrics with our students? He suggests giving the students an brief explanation of the rubric expectations and help them word it in a way that is understandable. I can say that this can be challenging and we may feel that we're supposed to be the people that use academic jargon throughout our practice. Well... let's be honest... Kids may not care about the use of "big words" and such, so why not have them help decipher how they can demonstrate their learning? We can help students take hold of their learning...which is so powerful!

My goal for this chapter is again - identify my standards, identify my LT, and create rubrics and lesson plans accordingly.

Happy Saturday Everyone!

- TGZ

The Anatomy of Formative Assessments

I was handed the book, Formative Assessment and Standards-Based Grading by Robert J Marzano. This is part of my direction shift from a points-based grading system to a standards-based system. The big take aways from this chapter are:

• Formative assessment is a process, not just giving a test, quiz, or worksheet. This type of assessment provides feedback to both the teacher and the student. Something to think about with this type of assessment, or any type really, is that when a test is given or when questions are asked we as teachers can find inadequacies in our instruction. This is typically shown through the number of missed questions, or in my case - missed pitches and incorrect rhythms. This allows the teacher to reteach and the students to eventually improve the student and the ensemble's achievement.

There are three types of Classroom Assessments - these are simply obtrusive, unobtrusive, and student-generated assessments.

• Obtrusive assessments are when we stop to take a test, fill out a worksheet, and they obstruct the flow of instruction. When first reading it, I held a negative connotation to the word "obtrusive". Yes, it may interrupt the flow, but I don't think that has to be a negative in our classrooms. These types of assessments allow us to collect our data through hard copies. 

• Unobtrusive assessments are more procedural and they don't interrupt the flow of instruction. These are content driven involving learning a skill, strategy, or a process. 

• The most underutilized type of assessment is student-generated assessment. Basically this means that students are guiding how they'll demonstrate what they've learned. I'm sure I'm not alone with saying that I struggle with this...I shouldn't, but I was trained by teachers that taught with stock assessments and a prescribed way of assessing. The cool thing, is that a shift can happen through Standards-Based Assessment. The teacher, with help from their national and states standards, can lay out the expectations academically for students. From there a student gets to demonstrate mastery of a skill set. In my district, particularly in 6th grade science, I've seen that students can't demonstrate they have mastery of a learning target, so that means the teacher meets with them during lunch and recess to reteach, allow for retakes, and the teacher allow provides other opportunities to demonstrate learning. I feel this allows for students to take ownership of their learning. 

There were other take aways that I had, but it is getting late. As I've been working on this transition, I'm excited to "nerd out" and share my findings. Please feel free to follow me @traviszinnel on Twitter. I'm happy to connect and to continue to learn.

Marzano, R. (2010). The anatomy of formative assessment. In Formative assessment & standards-based grading. Bloomington, IN: Marzano Research Laboratory.

A Standards-Based Journey Begins

It's been awhile! As many of you that view my blog may know that I'm a master's student through Kent State Universities Master in Music Education program. I'm currently in my research course and am working toward my Capstone course. This course goes hand-in-hand with the Capstone course. I've decided that my project will be developing a program design where I will change all of my assessing the courses I teach to standards-based grading.

Today's reading was The Collaborative Teacher, Chapter 4 by Chris Jakicic entitled, "Too Much To Teach: How to Identify What Matters Most". Here Jakicic lays out some important aspects of the Professional Learning Community (PLC) and offers some guidance toward developing a curriculum's standards.

Robert Marzano found 2 factors for student achievement - having a guaranteed and viable curriculum. This means that there are two aspect s of viability - the opportunity to learn and is there time to teach? While reading I found the three types of of curriculum; they are the intended or what the district/state/national branches develop, the implemented or what the teacher actually teaches, and the attained curriculum which is what the student actually learns. I believe it's nice to look at this as a holistic approach to curriculum development. We take the intended curriculum and enhance/choose what's best for our classroom (implemented); that is followed by what our students are actually learning or what do we hope for them to learn? My question is - how do we make sure that these are all being met? A question I hope to answer in the near future.

Back to the title of the chapter, "Too Much To Teach", the chapter suggests finding five to seven essential understandings that I want every student entering my classroom to have? What are the five to seven I can guarantee that every student leaving my room will have? These are great questions. In the midst of standards-based assessment I continue to find myself merely treading water in a vast sea of standards. I think every standard is important to a meaningful music education, but where do we draw the line? How do we create a foundation that not every student will have access to?

The next step in creating our curriculum is making sure that we create Power Standards:

Endurance - those standards that will be important to students beyond the time they are being taught and will be remembered after the assessment. In music we are constantly building upon a skill set, consistently adding tools to a kit to be later used. This is very similar to every academic discipline... we build upon the previously taught material, to enhance it.

Leverage - those standards that identify knowledge and understanding across multiple subject areas

Readiness - those standards that are prerequisites to future learning

All of these ideas are important to a well-rounded and strong founded curriculum.

The last part of the section talks about Professional Learning Communities and how they choose and assess specific standards. In my district I am the middle school music teacher, the high school faculty do assist with a class here and there, but I think as a department the alignment should begin. This is my first year in the district and I am excited to see how we could build upon a skill set taught in elementary, enhance in middle school, and allow for the middle to feed into two different high school programs. The problem comes with assessing... Do we have basic standards? There is so much that goes into playing an instrument or singing a melody that I wonder if those are too broad? Where do we go... I'll keep you in the know, but for now I'm signing off. I intended to blog much more and ask for resources to help my school and myself create a standards-based assessment system.

Have an excellent week everyone!