“Um, Ms. Smith, is there some extra credit I can do to bring my grade up?”
Such an annoying question, right? And yet, many teachers succumb. They find or create something the student can do to earn a few extra points. Especially when those points are the difference between and F and a D.
No teacher wants her students to fail.
But how did we get here in the first place?
There is no reason for students to earn Fs—or even Ds in a class. I mean , really, why do kids ever fail a class?
Is it truly because they are not capable?
If that’s the case, then there’s a system problem — a need for interventions, guidance,etc.
But, for the most part, any student sitting in your classroom is capable of earning a passing grade and of mastering what is deemed ESSENTIAL for the course.
They may not all excel, but they can and should all pass… And extra credit need not play any role.
Here are 3 steps to take to eliminate Fs—with no extra credit!
1) MAKE 50 the lowest possible grade.
If you haven’t already, do not give scores lower than 50. Or, if you prefer, use a 0-50 point scale.
That simply keeps the grading scale aligned.
The zero-100 scale is flawed:
A= 90-100 (10 point range)
B=80-89 (9 point range)
C= 70-79 (9 point range_
D= 60-69 (9 point range)
F= 0-59 (59 point range)
(See Monte Syrie’s discussion of the harmfulness of this scale here.)
Of course, if you want to keep the 0-100, that’s fine, but only if you insist on multiple retakes until the student reaches the desired level of proficiency. (See #3 Below)
2) Replace or weigh grades over time.
Have you heard the one about the parachute operator? Let’s say you’re going skydiving and you have your choice of two instructors to jump with you. They both received a B in parachute opening. Instructor Jamie did really well at the beginning of class, folding the parachute correctly and doing well on quizzes about the parachute. As time went by, his grades dropped when it became clear that he couldn’t open the parachute quickly. Instructor Jody did really poorly on those early folding and multiple choice quizzes, but toward the end of the course could demonstrate her proficiency in opening the darn thing. Both averaged a B. Which one do you choose?
In my work, we’ve used a Decaying Average so that the later grades carry more weight. There are other options, including a Power Law or Replacing Grades. Erin Werra describes all three better than I can in this post.
3) Allow retakes.
Better yet, insist on retakes below a certain score. You can apply this to everyone so that anyone with X score has to retake it. You can also allow students to individually determine their lowest acceptable grade—with your blessing and, perhaps, with a parent notification form.
This is a shift and there will be grumbling from students (who might prefer to just ask for that dreaded extra credit later.)
Here’s a script:
In this class, it’s not okay to fail. We are working on very important skills and concepts. I wouldn’t be doing my job if any of you failed.
However, you all come to this class with different levels of skill, enthusiasm, etc. So, while it would be great if everyone got an A, that might not be reasonable —or even in your best interests if you need to conserve time and effort for some other classes.
Therefore, I want everyone to share with me your highest desired grade, the lowest you can deal with and your expectation ( a best case scenario, a worst-case scenario and a realistic expectation).
I’d also like you to share why you have this grade goal. Might be something like:
- This subject comes easily to me. I think this class should be an “easy A” for me and will help boost my GPA
- This subject has always been a struggle for me. I know I can do the work with effort and I’d be okay with a C range grade.
- I like this subject and can do the work, but I have to give more effort to some other, tougher classes. So while I think I could get an A, I’ll be satisfied in the B range.
As your teacher, I simply cannot accept Ds and Fs. Luckily for you, we have a retake policy in this class. Anyone who scores below our Desired Level of Proficiency on a major assessment will have the opportunity to earn the DLP by retaking or redoing some or all of the assessment (or an alternate assessment). I have some guidelines about when, where and how that will happen.
EXTRA CREDIT Is just that..
It’s extra…beyond…unnecessary.
Don’t do it! Don’t have them do some throwaway extra something that neither of you cares about. Instead, have them prove that they can do what’s necessary.
Listen, extra credit is additional time, work and energy for you and for your students. So are retakes. Which one makes more sense?
Read MoreDavid Aderhold, a superintendent in New Jersey recently put an end to HS mid-term and final exams in a well-intentioned attempt to ease pressure on increasingly anxious kids–pressure also discussed in this recent NY Times opinion piece and the film Race to Nowhere.
Aderhold’s decision led to a vigorous debate in his community–with one side firmly standing with the superintendent, led by concern about their children’s mental health. Those on the other side worried that the superintendent was dumbing down education.
It’s possible that neither side is completely right or wrong and that there’s a way to satisfy both camps: standards-based learning (and grading).
What we really want to do is focus on learning, not grades. At the same time, we want to ensure that what kids are learning and how they demonstrate that learning is rigorous and prepares them to take on deeper and tougher material as they proceed through high school and beyond. Done right, SBL satisfies both sides. It takes away the singular focus on grades and GPA and it provides a rigorous pathway.
Using SBL, courses have clear standards–what students must know and be able to do to prove that they have successfully completed a course. Instead, each of the course’s power standards are clearly unpacked, so that any teacher teaching the course, any student learning in the course and any parent what mastery looks like, what approaching mastery looks like, and what it looks like to exceed mastery. It’s then up to the learning community to support students to reach for mastery and beyond, while supporting students who struggle by clearly showing what’s needed to get to the next level.*
Getting to SBL takes time and work and consensus building as it’s a change from what we’ve always done. I truly hope we’ll all get there someday, but until then, I have a few suggestions for schools who want to both ease pressure and promote rigor.
- Don’t throw away mid-term and final exams: Large scale displays of knowledge are important for students, they allow students to cohesively package what they have learned over the course of several weeks or months and show what they know and can do
- Do rethink what a mid-term or final looks like: Ensure that mid-terms and final exams are largely performance based and the expectations are shared ahead of time–so that students are thinking, consciously and subconsciously, about how they will pull the standards and the work together to a culminating piece
- Do allow retakes to the greatest extent possible and practicable BUT make sure the purpose of retakes is to allow students to learn from mistake and have additional opportunities to demonstrate mastery . That way, students will believe us when we tell them “It’s Not About the Points”
It is actually possible to have kids love rigorous learning. SBL could well be a key.
Read More