Soooo... How Am I Supposed To Grade A Yearbook Class?

HABITS OF MIND

• Persisting • Managing impulsivity • Listening with understanding and empathy • Thinking flexibly • Thinking about your thinking • Striving for accuracy • Questioning and problem posing • Applying past knowledge to new situations • Thinking and communicating with clarity and precision • Gather data through all senses • Creating, imagining and innovating • Responding with wonderment and awe • Taking responsible risks • Finding humor • Thinking interdependently • Remaining open to continuous learning

10% REFLECTIONS

20% HABITS OF MIND

20% MEETING DEADLINES

For example, “striving for accuracy” is one of the Habits of Mind. When students take a photo, properly tagging everyone in the photo is part of that value. If a student is writing copy, editing and looking for revision is a way they can demonstrate that Habit of Mind. “But it could even be something as simple as somebody’s the scribe for the day and they’re writing on the white board,” said Geasa. “And they catch a spelling error on the white board and it matters to do it right.” She now tracks what’s happening in the classroom daily, with 20 percent of the grade reserved for the Habits of Mind. That portion of their grade tracks what the student is doing day in and day out that is thinking and learning behavior. “Completing a task” accounts for 50 percent of a student’s grade, and Geasa uses Habits of Mind to assess. For each task, she has the students reflect on their own work by filling out a rubric. Geasa then compares her assessment with that student’s. “It may seem subjective, but it’s actually less subjective because the students self-assess first. And then when I’m assessing them, I’m comparing,” she said. “And it actually speeds up the grading process for

50% COMPLETION OF TASKS AND ASSIGNMENTS

me because I don’t teeter over things as much.” Once work for the year gets underway, Geasa

estimates her student will be filling out their

own rubrics about every two weeks.

HABITS

OF MIND

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