Going Gradeless, Grades 6-12: Shifting the Focus to Student Learning

Reform assessment, reduce stress, and strengthen learning   Great things happen when students are able to focus on their learning instead of their scores. However, assessment reform, including standards-based grading, remains a hotly debated issue in education. Going Gradeless shows that it is possible to teach and assess without the stress of traditional grading practices.  Sharing their successful shifts to alternate assessment and their perspectives as experienced classroom teachers, the authors show you how to remove the negative impacts of grades while still maintaining a high level of accountability. Readers will find concrete examples of how these approaches can be developed and applied, plus: • Sample assessments and rubrics • Student work samples from all grade levels • An accountability checklist            • A review of collected data It is possible to go gradeless! Focusing less on letter grades allows students to interact with the content more deeply, develop better relationships with their teachers and peers, and gain confidence in the classroom, school, and beyond. 

Table of Contents:
Foreword Preface Acknowledgments About the Authors Chapter 1: Why? How This Book Is Organized A Note on Terminology Chapter 2: A Discussion About Equity Chapter 3: Educational Theory That Grounds Our Model Chapter 4: Development of the Model, 2015–2020 The Beginning: 2015–2016 First Revision: 2016–2017 Refining and Reorganizing: 2017–2018 Realigning: 2018–2019 Ongoing Adjustments: 2019–2020 Chapter 5: Creating Language for the Learning Progressions Example: History Contextualization Example: English Language Arts Thesis/Claim Example: Math Problem Solving Example: Art Elements and Principles Chapter 6: Assessments Introduction Setting the Stage: Our Past Practice Why Did It Need to Change? Addressing the Concerns Regarding the New Structure On Curriculum and Planning On Sustained Effort A Note Regarding Integrity Scalable and Progressive On Grading (Time, Stress, and Feedback) On Conversations With Students and Parents Our Types of Assessments Chapter 7: Aligning Progress With a Traditional Model Grade Translations Development Scaling the Course Using for Quarterly or Semester Grades Reporting Skills Progress in the Gradebook Reporting Habits of Scholarship Conferencing Missing Work and Extra Credit Concerns and How We Address Them Chapter 8: Our Evidence Chapter 9: A Step-by-Step Guide to Going Gradeless Step 1: Identifying Your Values Step 2: Grouping the Standards Step 3: Creating a Learning Progression Step 4: Pairing Assessments and Standards Step 5: Aligning Assessments and Activities Step 6: Reporting Out Day-to-Day Implementation Presenting to Students/Parents In Conclusion Resources A: Assessing Student Work Resources B: Student Progress and Setting Benchmarks Resources C: Some Full Rubrics References Index

About the Author :
Elise Burns has been a science teacher for 30 years, teaching physics, chemistry, biology, math, and earth science. Her work is characterized by trying new technology and approaches, in order to provide the best possible learning experience for kids. She presented at conferences annually at either NSTA, ASCD, or NJSTA, with workshops on rubric design, inquiry, standards-based learning, project-based learning, writing CERs, and assessment design, amongst others. David Frangiosa has spent 14 years as a high school science teacher, teaching biology, chemistry, physics and a number of science electives. Over that time, he has been a driving force in many initiatives across multiple districts. He developed, wrote curriculum for and taught two courses for a medical academy. As part of this initiative, high school students were placed in allied health internships at a local hospital. This program piloted a paperless classroom that led to a district-wide one-to-one program. Shortly after moving on to Pascack Valley Regional High School District, he began conducting action research on grade reform. As a result of this work, he was asked to be on a county-wide Growth Learning Assessment and Mindset (GLAM) committee. In addition to presenting these ideas with the district and at the GLAM meetings, he has presented at ECET2Metro, the New Jersey Science Teachers Convention, and many online workshops.

Review :
"This book shows there is a way to hold students accountable while allowing them to step away from the stress of traditional grading. What a win for moving education forward! It shows evidence that going beyond traditional grading can push students to the next level without the stigma of that letter grade. We can teach and assess with out the stress! In our ever-changing world, we have to find ways to take our students to the next level. Going Gradeless will allow students to focus on their learning and free their minds to explore the content at a deeper level without the fear of failure."