This presentation provides an overview of how we use assessment and feedback, in a standards-based environment, to drive student learning.

1. Assessment & Learning
Using Assessment to Drive Student Learning
Henderson International School
October 9, 2014

2. TONIGHT’S AGENDA
• Assessment
– Why do we assess?
– What types of assessment do we use?
• Standards-Based Grading
– What is the purpose of grading?
– How is SBG different from traditional grading?
• Standards-Based Grade Marks & Rubrics
– Why do we use them and what do they mean?
• SBG in the Classroom
• Q & A
Presenters: Chris Bezsylko, John Hefforn, Riki Seybert, Tara Cadena, and Ashia McReynolds

3. ASSESSMENT & LEARNING
We believe that the primary purpose of
assessment is to drive student learning.
We use assessment to:
1. Communicate student progress and achievement
2. Gather evidence to inform instructional decisions
3. Provide meaningful feedback
4. Create a structure for improved achievement

4. ASSESSMENT, LEARNING & MINDSET
Riki Seybert, 2nd Grade

10. ASSESSMENT FOR LEARNING
Effective assessment at HIS:
• Enables students to demonstrate what they have
learned, and take responsibility for their learning
• Enables teachers to ascertain levels of understanding
and modify instruction based on the needs of the
students
• Provides families with accurate information regarding
their child’s progress, including their strengths and
areas in need of support
• Moves from a grading culture to a learning culture

11. HIS STANDARDS
The standards we teach to are:
• CPAA Literacy & Mathematics in grades K-1
• ERB Verbal & Mathematics in grades 2-8
• NGSS Science in grades 1-8
• ACFTL Spanish in grades 1-8
• NCCAS Arts in grades K-8
• SHAPE Physical Education in grades K-8

12. TYPES OF ASSESSMENT
Formative – assessment to promote learning
Summative – assessment to measure learning at a
moment in time
Assessment events: quizzes, tests, graded discussions,
journals, essays, self-reflections, peer-reflections,
presentations, projects…

13. GRADING & REPORTING
The purpose of grades is to communicate to
students, parents, teachers, and other stakeholders
what a student knows and/or is able to do.
• Student #1 has a ‘B’ because she did all the work, turned in
her homework, and participated in class but didn’t quite
understand the concepts
• Student #2 has a ‘B’ because she aced all the tests and quizzes
but didn’t do any of the homework and didn’t participate in
class

14. GRADING MINDSET
- Derived from the factory model of education
- Grades used to label/sort
- Grade A versus Grade B
Golden Thin, delicate taste: try mixing with cocktails
Amber Ample & rich; enough body to hold up on pancakes
Dark Hearty & robust; aficionados love its complexity
Very Dark Bold & strong; best for backing

15. STANDARDS-BASED GRADING MINDSET
• Grades should have meaning
• SBG grades help teachers adjust instruction to meet
the needs of individual learners
• Students, and their families, can see more explicit
information about their learning
• SBG teaches what quality looks like

16. TRADITIONAL GRADING PRACTICES
A variety of grading practices are based on
tradition rather than science.
Challenging these traditions will not be easy. They’ve
been part of our education experiences for so long that
they usually go unquestioned, despite the fact that they
are ineffective and potentially harmful to students.
- Thomas Guskey, Five obstacles to grading reform

17. FIVE MISNOMERS ABOUT GRADING
Misnomer 1: Grades should provide the basis for
differentiation
- We don’t select talent, we develop it
- Differentiation should target specific standards and
include flexible grouping
Obstacle 2: Grade distribution should resemble a bell-shaped
curve
- Teaching is not random, it is a purposeful and
intentional act

18. FIVE MISNOMERS ABOUT GRADING
Misnomer 3: Grades should be based on student’s
standing among classmates
- Grades based upon student’s standing tells us
nothing about how well students have learned
- Grades must be based on specific learning criteria
that have direct meaning
- Grading is not about competition or ranking, but
rather about growth and learning for all

19. FIVE MISNOMERS ABOUT GRADING
Misnomer 4: Poor grades prompt students to try harder
- We don’t shut down learning, we promote it
- A Growth Mindset, along with clear levels of
performance, motivates students
Misnomer 5: Students should receive one grade for each
subject
- A averaging of diverse measures does not yield anything
meaningful
- Grades are based on explicit criteria within a subject
- Academic and Non-Academic grades

20. TRADITIONAL GRADE BOOK
Name Homework Ave. Quiz 1 Chp 1 Test Essay
John 90 65 70 68
Bill 50 75 78 70
Susan 110 65 70 80
Amanda 95 100 90 93
• How do these grades communicate student achievement?
• What instructional decisions can be made from these grades?
• How can these grades be used to provide meaningful
feedback?
• Is there a structure for improved achievement?

21. STANDARDS-BASED GRADE BOOK
Language Arts Grade Mark
Describe the main idea of a passage Meeting Expectations
Describe a supporting idea in a passage Meeting Expectations
Compare and contrast elements from two texts Approaching Expectations
Capitalization of proper nouns Below Expectations
Capitalization of the first word of a sentence Meeting Expectations
Correct use of the comma Approaching Expectations
• How do these grades communicate student achievement?
• What instructional decisions can be made from these grades?
• How can these grades be used to provide meaningful
feedback?
• Is there a structure for improved achievement?

22. STANDARDS-BASED GRADE MARK RUBRICS
Grade Mark Proficiency Levels
Exceeding Expectations
- A very high to outstanding level of achievement
- Achievement exceeds the standard
- Involves in-depth inferences and applications that go
beyond what was taught
Meeting Expectations
- A high level of achievement
- Achievement meets the standard
- No major errors or omissions regarding any of the
information and/or processes that were explicitly taught
Approaching Expectations
- A passable level of achievement
- Student is approaching the HIS level of achievement
- Student presents no major errors/omissions regarding the
simpler details and processes, but there may be
errors/omissions regarding the more complex ideas and
processes
Below Expectations
- An insufficient level of achievement
- The student does not yet have a grasp on the standard

23. RUBRICS – TOOLS FOR LEARNING
Research has shown that grading and reporting to
specific standards, while using the accompanying
strategy of formative assessments and feedback related
to progress towards standards, significantly boosts
student achievement and motivation.
Effective Rubrics
1. Present explicit learning targets
2. Clearly define levels of proficiency
3. Provide a path for improvement

24. SAMPLE RUBRIC – PHONEMIC AWARENESS K
Exceeds
Expectations
Meets
Expectations
Approaching
Expectations
Below
Expectations
Rhyming
Student
consistently and
independently
creates two or
more syllable
rhyming pairs
Student
consistently and
independently
identifies one and
two syllable
rhyming pairs
containing
blends.
(black/tack)
(dreaming/steaming)
Student
independently
identifies one
syllable rhyming
pairs.
(fun/sun)
Student may be
able to identify
one syllable
rhyming pairs with
direct support and
guidance.

25. SAMPLE RUBRIC – SPELLING 2nd GRADE
Exceeds
Expectations
Meets
Expectations
Approaching
Expectations
Below
Expectations
Formative
Weekly
Quizzes
Meets + all of the
bonus words
17-20 words
correct
14-16 words
correct
0-13 words correct
Summative
Students
consistently
identify
misspellings of
commonly used
words with affixes
and words that
display improper
pluralization and
can then spell the
words correctly
below the
passage.
Students
consistently
identify
misspellings of
commonly used
words with affixes
and words that
display improper
pluralization in a
given passage.
Students can
identify a
misspelled grade
appropriate word
in a given passage,
with prompting
and support.
Students struggle
to identify
misspelled grade
appropriate words
in a passage.

26. SAMPLE RUBRIC – MATHEMATICS 5th GRADE
Exceeds
Expectations
Meets
Expectations
Approaching
Expectations
Below
Expectations
Understand
order of
operations
with whole
numbers
I independently
solve real world
application
problems and
corresponding 3+
step numerical
expressions with
multi-digit whole
numbers and
groupings using
the order of
operations
I independently
evaluate 3-step
numerical
expressions with
multi-digit whole
numbers and one
set of grouping
symbols using
order of
operations
I independently
evaluate 2-step
numerical
expressions with
multi-digit
numbers and one
set of grouping
symbols using the
order of
operations
I can evaluate 2-
step numerical
expressions with
multi-digit
numbers and one
set of grouping
symbols using the
order of
operations with
support and
guidance

27. NON-ACADEMIC RUBRIC – EFFORT
Exceeding
Expectations
Student always demonstrates best effort in the classroom. The student always demonstrates persistence
and perseverance in his or her work, positively responds to feedback, and shows genuine interest and
curiosity in learning and growing. In addition, student always: participates in class discussion, is actively
engaged in learning tasks, turns in all completed class work and homework assignments on time, and is
prepared for class. Student positively encourages and supports the efforts of others.
Meeting
Expectations
Student consistently demonstrates best effort in the classroom throughout the term. The student usually
demonstrates persistence and perseverance in his or her work, positively responds to feedback, and
shows genuine interest and curiosity in learning and growing. In addition, student consistently :
participates in class discussion, is actively engaged in learning tasks, turns in all completed class work and
homework assignments on time, and is prepared for class. Once in a while the student may need a
teacher reminder or prompt to continue giving best effort.
Approaching
Expectations
Student sometimes demonstrates best effort in the classroom throughout the term. The student
sometimes demonstrates persistence and perseverance in his or her work, positively responds to
feedback, and shows genuine interest and curiosity in learning and growing. In addition, student
sometimes: participates in class discussion, is actively engaged in learning tasks, turns in all completed
class work and homework assignments on time, and is prepared for class. There may be an attempt on
the part of the student, but requires prompting on the part of the teacher.
Below
Expectations
Student rarely demonstrates best effort in the classroom throughout the term. The student rarely
demonstrates persistence and perseverance in his or her work, positively responds to feedback, and
shows genuine interest and curiosity in learning and growing. In addition, student rarely: participates in
class discussion, is engaged in learning tasks, turns in all completed class work and homework
assignments on time, and is prepared for class. The student often requires prompting to give best effort
and lack of effort is effecting academic achievement.

28. RUBRICS AS TOOLS FOR LEARNING #1
Tara Cadena, 7th & 8th Grade Math

29. 8th GRADE MATHEMATICS RUBRIC
Exceeds
Expectations
Meets
Expectations
Approaching
Expectations
Below
Expectations
Understand
order of
arithmetic
operations
(decimals)
I can accurately
add, subtract, and
multiply
expressions with
four signed
decimals, and
expressions with
divide two signed
decimal, including
expressions with
variables
I can accurately
add, subtract, and
multiply
expressions with
three signed
decimals, and
divide expressions
with two signed
decimals
With prompting
and support, I can
add, subtract,
multiply, and
divide signed
expressions with
two decimals
I struggle to
accurately add,
subtract, multiply,
and divide
expressions with
two signed
decimals

31. RUBRICS AS TOOLS FOR LEARNING #2
Ashia McReynolds, 4th Grade

32. HOW WOULD YOU ASSESS IT?

34. 4th GRADE WRITING CONCEPTS & SKILLS RUBRIC
Exceeds
Expectations
Meets
Expectations
Approaching
Expectations
Below
Expectations
Recognize
thesis
statements
Student can
create a thesis
statement that is
precise,
knowledgeable,
and significant.
Student
consistently
identifies the
thesis statement
in a piece of
writing.
Student can
explain what a
thesis statement
should be but
cannot yet
consistently
identify a thesis
statement in a
piece of writing.
Student cannot
explain what a
thesis statement
should be.

36. RUBRIC: FREE WRITING JOURNAL
Quotes, PE Today, Science Today, and CNN Student News

37. MY TAKEAWAYS
• Rubrics help remove subjectivity
• Students and parents are aware of expectations
• Teachers are concise and clear about expectations
• Create student confidence

38. REFERENCES
• Guskey, Thomas R. (2011). Five obstacles to grading reform. Educational
Leadership.
• Heflebower, Tammy, Hoegh, Jan K., Warrick, Phil. (2014). A school leader’s guide to
standards-based grading. Marzano Research Laboratory.
• Marzano, R. J. (2009). Formative assessment and standards-based grading.
Solution Tree.
• O’Connor, Ken. (2009). How to grade for learning: K-12 (3rd edition). Corwin.
• O’Connor, Ken. (2010). A repair kit for grading: Fifteen fixes for broken grades (2nd
edition). Pearson.
• Wormeli, Rick. (2006). Fair isn’t always equal: Assessing and grading in a
differentiated classroom. Stenhouse.

39. QUESTIONS
• Assessment
– Why do we assess?
– What types of assessment do we use?
• Standards-Based Grading
– What is the purpose of grading?
– How is SBG different from traditional grading?
• Standards-Based Grade Marks & Rubrics
– Why do we use them and what do they mean?
• SBG in the Classroom