This document outlines Brent Schmidt's approach to simplifying assessment and grading in middle school. His key principles include: - Assessing students on a 1-4 scale for specific learning outcomes, rather than numbers or percentages. - Basing achievement on a student's most recent and consistent demonstrations of learning, to observe growth over time. - Aligning assessments with Manitoba's reporting categories and only including the most relevant assessments. - Preventing zeros from penalizing student grades by using a minimum score of 1 for missing or incomplete work. - Translating 1-4 category scores to percentage scores out of 5 to standardize grading across assessments.

1. I want to show a way to simplify
assessment and grading.

2. *Disclosure Alert* This is not the be-all-end-all
of assessment. This is something that, as per
usual, I got from somebody else, then adapted
to fit middle school curriculum, the Manitoba
Report Card, and divisional rubrics.
I don’t know how other provinces, states,
countries, or districts operate. But I hope this
info will help you if you’re feeling bogged down
by assessment.

3. Brent Schmidt’s Personal Guiding
Principles for Assessing and
Reporting Student Learning &
Achievement
but also aligns with divisional and provincial requirements ;)
@brentrschmidt

4. Use smaller, more manageable numbers

5. Student “score” based on a 1-4
scale, for a specific learning
outcome.

6. Achievement is based on what
students can demonstrate most
recently and consistently.
Observe their growth or regression.

7. Not every assessment needs to
show up on a progress report or
report card.

8. Zeros cannot be entered for
missing assignments, or as an
achievement level, in a way that
would penalize student grade.

9. The Reasoning

10. Manitoba Report Card Subjects & Categories
This is what we report, this is not the curriculum. This is.

11. In my opinion, the report card policy for Manitoba
is quite good. I like how it’s not based on
standardized tests, focuses on learning
categories, and separates of learning behaviours
from academic reporting.

12. English Language Arts (ELA)
This is not the ELA
curriculum. It is,
however, simple to
transpose the
curriculum's general
outcomes into these
learning categories.
Detailed breakdown.

13. Students receive a 1-4
score for each learning
category (academic
achievement column).
An overall percentage for
the subject is also
required.

14. A large dilemma was how to
synchronize the reporting of
categories and percentages.

15. I started here.
The report card title
page with the grade
scale and descriptors.

16. Now here’s a nifty draft of
a rubric teachers from my
division collaborated to
create for ELA.
We kept consistency with
language and 1-4 scale.
This is not how the rubric
needs to be presented to
students.
It’s a guide for teachers.
A strong confidence in
curriculum knowledge
and professional
judgment is required.

17. I figured out that if I “marked” things out of 5,
(including half-marks) I could make the 1-4 of the
categories correspond to the percentage score.
Take note of this table. Screen-cap it. Whatever.
I created it to help see how the numbers work
together.

18. Level of Student
Understanding
(based on curriculum, rubric,
standard)
Category Score Mark out of 5 %
Very Good - Mastery 4 4 4.5 5
(5)100
(4.5)90
(4)80
Good 3 3.5 70-79
Basic 2 3 60-69
Limited 1 2.5 50-59
ND
(not demonstrated)
ND 2 less than 50
4 = Very good 4.5 = Excellent 5 = 'Mastery'

19. No ZEROS
Consistent numbers and language.
Also, 5/5 is reserved for truly special skill demonstration.

20. I have my gradebook set up so that so every
assessment is out of 5 marks. When I input the
student’s score, the gradebook generates a standard
score.

21. Red - Reading Blue - Writing Green - Speaking & Representing
Purple - Listening & Viewing Yellow - Critical Thinking
Over the course
of studying
When You
Reach Me by
Rebecca Stead,
I gathered
assessment for
all ELA reporting
categories.
SAMPLE

22. 1. Assess student on a 1-4 scale, based on some standard (curriculum,
rubric, student generated, etc.)
2. Input the corresponding mark out of 5 (as shown in table previously) into
gradebook.
3. Gradebook automatically enters the standard score you used to assess
the student.
My Assessment Workflow

23. This setup makes observing patterns and
tendencies as simple as glancing the
gradebook.
Everything is out of 5. The scale of the
marks don’t change over the year.
Consistency!

24. When I switched to assessing on a 1-4
scale, it took a huge burden off
marking. No bean counting, but still
valuable data. Assessment was
specific to what students can learn
and do, not just recall.

25. Well, that’s about it.
Thanks to,
Gregory Chomichuk for showing his 1-3 assessment for high school.
His was based on a provincial exam rubric.
Vasilios Kavadas for jumping on board with this method and rocking it.

26. – All teachers
“But what about large projects?!”

27. –Brent Schmidt
“Hahahaha. Come talk to me about it."