Blog
Social Media Influencers and Student Assessment Pushback
If you spend time scrolling through social media you have most likely seen a teacher or principal who has become a social media influencer, it is the newest “second job” for educators. . . . Read more
Helping Data Analysis Take Root
Data analysis. It is a concept that spurs rich reflection from many, but eyerolls or quizzical looks from too many. Some teachers feel that the data analysis they do is just to satisfy someone else’s administrative need or to show that, yet again, the same set of kids in their class struggled. Read more
PLC Teams Work Hand in Hand with Literacy
Students aren’t databases or encyclopedias; they need to access and apply knowledge. Their literacy skills become the engine that drives their learning. Fortunately, the PLC at Work model helps collaborative teams discover this truth AND spark the professional growth that teachers need to improve, step-by-step over a career, as teachers of literacy. Read more
In Hot Pursuit of the Wrong Question
I received a question from a school that was contemplating a change in its grading scale from 60 percent to 70 percent in order for students to earn a passing grade. The school asked for my opinion . . . Read more
Thriving Inside the Creative Tension
Today, a tension exists in professional learning communities that are striving to do what’s best for students and learning: teachers feel caught between the desire to do more with formative . . . Read more
Q&A: Rick DuFour’s Response to a Question on Formative Assessment
Last week, educate4life posted the following comment on Grading Formative and Summative Assessments by Rick DuFour: I am new to this forum but stumbled upon this thread. I am a high school mathematics teacher... Read more
Prerequisites for Standards-Based Reporting
As we work with schools and teams that are doing the work associated with implementing professional learning community concepts and practices, we are often asked, “Don’t we need to . . . Read more
Eliminating Bias in Grading: Teachers Collaborate on Student Assessments
The work of a professional learning community team is never done. Instead, teachers continuously navigate the world of standards, assessments, interventions, and extensions, using inquiry in an informed way to improve student learning. They begin a journey that becomes… Read more
Grading Formative and Summative Assessments
We received a question about grading, specifically how to balance grading between formative and summative assessments. The author was concerned because the grading practices of the teachers in the . . . Read more
How PLCs Use Assessments
We received a series of questions from a school grappling with developing common assessments. I summarized the questions and attempted to provide a brief response for each… Read more
Should Homework Be Graded?
I received an interesting question from a teacher regarding recommendations for whether or not homework should be graded. He described a scenario in which a student demonstrates proficiency on every quiz, test, and exam but refuses to do homework each day. If, on a daily basis, the student… Read more
Drilling Deeper in a Professional Learning Community
The term professional learning communityhas become enormously popular, but the actual practices that form the framework of the professional learning community concept are much less evident in most . . . Read more