FIAE Chapter 9

FIAE Ch 9
Grades must be accurate to mastery. This chapter talked about 10 different approaches you should use to avoid
1 Don’t include nonacademic factors in the final grade. These factors may include behavior, attendance, and effort.
2. Don’t penalize students when it takes multiple attempts to prove mastery but providing feedback is very important. If a student shows mastery in the end then they should receive the grade reflecting it.
3. Don’t grade practice because these are a method to reach mastery, not to prove mastery. This practice gives students time to reflect and revise their work and understanding of the subject matter.
4. Don’t withhold assistance when it is needed. Include differentiation to clarify information. This may not seem equal but it is what needs to be done for some students to gain mastery.
5. Only assess in ways that accurately indicate mastery.
6. Don’t give extra credit and bonus points. These do not usually show mastery of a subject.
7. Avoid group grades. They do not reflect each student’s understanding of the subject and may create an unhealthy atmosphere within the group due to peer pressure.
8. Don’t grade on a curve. You need to compare students to themselves not each other the way curve grading does.
9. Don’t record zeros for work not done because it significantly distorts the grade.
10. Don’t use compare students to each other but to their own past work.

It seems that the further we get into grading the more complicated it becomes. There was some question about grading for homework. If you are not going to grade homework what is the incentive for students to hand it in or take it seriously? On the other hand, students need to be able to try and get it wrong without being afraid that it will bring their grades down. One student commented on scaling and that students should continue on in their education because they have mastered the basics not because the grades were scaled. The principle about avoiding penalizing student’s attempts to try to master the subject was really useful. There were thoughts on number six. Sometimes bonus points can be useful and, more importantly, fun. Sometimes bonus questions can be used to assess higher levels of learning. We have all seen some (or most) of these practices in high school but we have also seen this in college, used in both positive and negative ways.

FIAE Chapter 8

Abstract
Many teachers view grading as something that they have to do instead of something they do to benefit the students. The chapter breaks up different ways and reasons that teachers grade work.
To document student and teacher progress
To provide feedback to the student, family and teacher
To inform instructional decisions
To motivate students
To punish students
To sort students
The first three reasons are ones that are understandable and don't produce much controversy, however the second three are ones that get much discussion over. Some other discussions are about whether or not participation and effort.

Reflection
Grading is something that really needs to happen. Maybe not always using actual grades to do it but by using some sort of assessment piece that will be kept to give you a record of how well a student is doing. We all agreed that grade affect our lives dramatically whether it be that we are always trying to get good grades or say when we do get a grade and it doesn't seem to fit what we thought we would get then it becomes more frustration than anything. Most of us agreed also on grading students for their participation inside the classroom and that is because it get the students to be involved with a discussion and perhaps gets them to learn more about the topic being discussed.

FIAE Chapter 10

Chapter 10 dealt entirely with the concept of making up late work. The chapter goes in to some detail concerning certain instances where late work might occur, and how to deal with them in the form of some sort of policy. Generally, the book says it is best to give students who were showing effort on a piece the opportunity to revise their work for a better grade. It was highly recommended that there be some sort of system that will ensure late work is not just blown off work. One suggestion was for the teacher to rewrite the assignment so students have to show effort in the work. Other recommendations included parents signing notes as well. At the very least this would encourage parent involvement and therefore diminish the chances of a student using the full credit make up system for "blow-off" purposes. It is also strongly recommended that a time limit be instated for late work, as well as not allowing any make up work for the last week of a grading period. This is mostly for teacher purposes, seeing as cramming make-up grades in to the gradebook at such a late time would be very stressful for the teachers.

Basically everyone agreed with the ideas introduced in the book. Students should certainly be allowed full credit makeups and revisions, but there are definite limitations that need to be addressed in order to maintain some sort of classroom sanity. Many people exclaimed in the definite line given for the do's and don'ts of makeup and revision work.

Chapter 10

This chapter gives us ways to get students to do things outside of the classroom that has them use the knowledge they learned. Things like internships, have projects that involve experts, have them look toward summer and enrichment programs and support their learning on their own. Making this connection to the outside world with students will help them appreciate and value school more than they did before. Students are simply looking to be intrigued and inspired with the work they do and if they never get that then there is no motivation for them to be in school.

Chapter 9

This chapter is about trying to make any rough edges smooth before you even get to them. Like when a student feels discouraged with school it usually means that something went wrong with the grades they are getting or got. It could also be that the student isn't secure or lacks the confidence needed to be appreciated. The students created a list of questions that teachers should ask before grades a posted and after they are. One student said that a new teacher should be sure to maintain control and or of his or her classroom environment. There is another important section that deals with what to do when things go wrong. In it Cushman says don't be afraid to apologize, reexamine your teaching approach, don't take a bad day too hard, your success shouldn't be based on whether or not your students like you and don't try to be a superhero.

Chapter 8

This was a very important chapter in this book. It is so important because we as teacher need to know what to expect in any situation and this may very well be a situation that many of us face. When you have an English learning student in your class they will feel uncomfortable to answer questions or share work for fear of messing up their English. But what we as teachers need to do is ensure that their grammar skills, accents and other differences they may have don't get made fun of. Getting them to take risks is an essential part of them learning the language so look past spelling errors and grammar mistakes, ask them if they are understanding the content that we are teaching to them and make sure that we give them alternate ways to present the knowledge on the subject.

Chatper 7

There is some material that will come difficult to some students, I actually experienced this when I was in the classroom. This chapter tries to help us as teacher create ways that will get the student to better understand and learn those harder materials. Ways such as breaking down the material, linking the material to something that they already know or can do, make connections to things they already do and use different approaches when teaching the material. Getting students to think about the subject will get them to better understand and get them to remember it better when it is time to take the test than when they are just trying to cram knowledge in their brain for the test.

Chapter 6

This chapter is talks about the reasons why students go to school and why they would stay in school. It is also about what motivates the students as well as what makes them bored. Andres tells us that a reason he attends school because he wants to reach his full potential even though some of the classes he doesn't like. By connecting the lessons and activities that a teacher is doing you will create a classroom that is going to be less boring to all of you students. Basically keep the students actively thinking about what is being taught and how they can use it.

Chapter 5

This chapter has two parts. First Cushman presents concepts of how each individual student works in the classroom. The second part is about the same ideas but instead of individuals it is about groups. Cushman has different types of student classifications on the individual basis. When doing things with groups, the groups need to be set up with a purpose (the students should get something out of it).

Chapter 4

Inform students of the high expectations you have of them. This will help create a culture of success. No human is perfect, so 2nd chances should be given to students who do try to complete their work on time. It's only fair that students get rewarded for the work they attempt. DON'T FAVOR ANY STUDENTS. Allow students to have an opinion on something and ensure that their opinion doesn't get made fun of or disregarded. All of these are ways to create a successful class culture.

Chapter 3

The chapter describes how to create, keep and identify ways and problems that arise when making an orderly and purposeful classroom. When creating this classroom a teacher needs to inform the students indirectly that he or she truly wants the them to learn and succeed in the classroom. To keep an orderly and purposeful classroom one must get the entire class involved in making class rule and having class discussion throughout the year. Identifying disruptions and dealing with them in a respectful and proper (for the situation) manner.

FIAE: Chapter 7

Grading practices are a big concern for teachers and schools but it is often ignored. Even though teachers and administrators do not really want to talk about them, there should be discussions about grades. There are so many different interpretations of what a certain grade stands for, yet it would take a lot of energy to sit down and agree on one meaning. How can a student, a parent, or a fellow teacher tell if a student understands what they should about the subjects taught that quarter when all they get to see is one letter grade? They can’t. Grades mean too much, and yet are not explained enough. Everyone needs to remember that grades are not always a clear message of understanding. A student can do all the work required, but still not understanding the material. Every teacher grades differently. We are different people, so the fact that our grades will be based on whom we are will never change. The concept of a C being average is long gone. Many parents who expect their children to go to college after high school would not be pleased to see a C on their child’s report card. In most cases C equals something bad, not an average score to be content with. Do not say that everyone has an A and then they lose points as the quarter goes on. That is not a good way to encourage students; it just makes them sad to see the number going down. Do not use unhappy faces on papers, it doesn’t do anything good for the student, it just makes them feel bad. Grades do not always motivate students. Many students need something more worth while than a report card to learn. There is no one set way to grade. Teachers should find a way that works for them, their class, and most importantly their students.

We believe that it is important that students should not be compared to other students. Students should be provided with good rubrics, so that they understand what is expected but to also help teacher’s grade effectively. There should be no unhappy faces on assignments. Teachers should focus on the positive things a student accomplishes. They should define the grades a student earns, because parents and students alike want to know what a grade actually stands for. The DNA essay question made most of us think. We had to stop and think about how we would grade it. Then to think of the paper in the mind frame of the different situations was difficult at times. Thinking about that made a very good point in how we grade students. We all know that it is challenging to define what grades are, yet that does not stop us from trying. The grade should not be the number one priority, but how can we say that, when at times, grades were important to us and probably still our. Some people felt that is was hard to grade or judge someone’s work. They wanted to be sure they were fair in their grades and were fair to all the students. The biggest surprise was that C’s would be thought of as average, because many of us did not feel that way in school. Many of us felt that a C was just getting by, not actually excelling. Many of us were expected to earn at least B’s in our classes. Yet in the end, many of us felt that this chapter was actually useful.