SBG 101

What is Standards-Based Grading?  This is a critical question that needs to be answered for students and parents as well as teachers exploring its use.  As I've done my research and spoken with colleagues, I've found that this is a very muddy topic with many teachers claiming to use standards-based grading, but ultimately they are just re-labeling (and sometimes re-arranging) what they have always done.

SBG is a shift in how we think about grades.
Traditional grading requires students to acquire points or scores on various types of activities, such as homework, quizzes, tests, participation, attendance, etc.  However, students can learn to "play school" by completing assignments and being a "good student", thereby passing or even earning a good grade in a class in which very little learning and mastery actually took place.  Meanwhile, students that  learn and master the material can still earn a poor grade due to a lack of participation, often resulting from boredom and disinterest as the pace of the class is too slow for them.  Moreover, students that begin the year with poor performance can be discouraged from trying to master the material because their grade will still be less than satisfactory even if they do master the material by the end of the semester or year.

SBG seeks to remedy these issues by changing the way we view student mastery and how it is reported.  Students are graded solely based on their mastery of specific and clearly-defined learning goals (standards). In a purely SBG-classroom, there is no place for "completion" or even "homework" grades, since these are not evidence of student-ability.  Rather, students are asked to perform on assessments of their ability, and their grade is based on how well they meet the standards set forth.  An example of the grade-breakdown for a SBG classroom may include "Advanced", "Proficient", "Basic", or "Below Basic."  In addition, students are given the opportunity to re-assess throughout the grading period to improve (or digress) on the standards.  In a purely SBG-classroom, the most recent assessment is used as the measure of student-achievement.  Thus, we are teaching students for mastery by a deadline and students practice these standards and asses through the deadline.  We are "teaching for June" - we have the end in mind, and where students arrive by the end is what matters.

SBG clarifies learning goals.
If the purpose of SBG is to grade students on their mastery of specific abilities, these must be defined for teachers and students at the beginning of the year.  We need to know where we're heading.  What will we learn this year?  Hopefully teachers already have a clearly defined plan for their school year - but do students know what they're expected to learn this year?  SBG defines these learning outcomes in specific and student-friendly language that students will be assessed against.  For example, in my subject-area of Spanish, "Reading" would not be a clearly defined goal, although this is a major aspect of language-acquisition.  How do students know they are reading at the expected level?  Do they need to understand what they read?  How do they know they understood it?  How do I know?  Rather, a much better standard would be "Read a passage of text and answer questions with answers found explicitly within the text."  For students, this also clarifies the level of comprehension my students will need.  For instance, they know that they will need to identify where the answers are located within the text rather than apply the information to answer questions where the answers are not found explicitly in the text and must be inferred.

Clearly, rubrics could (and should!) play a critical role in assessing students against the standards set forth and should be available to students.  This allows them to not only identify what they need to know, but also what they need to do to demonstrate their knowledge.  For example, to demonstrate their mastery of the standard "Recognize key vocabulary words", do students need to match vocabulary to their definitions or translate them?  How many vocabulary words do they need to know to achieve each mastery level?  In my class, translating 90% of the words (given only the Spanish word) will be required for the "Advanced" level.  However, translating 80% of the words AND/OR matching 90% of the words to their English translation would be sufficient for the "Proficient" level.  With this information in their hands, students will be able to identify exactly what is expected of them and what they can do to achieve their desired grade.

SBG relies on feedback, not "grades".
To receive their desired grade, students first need to know where they currently stand.  Though some students may be able to do this independently, teacher-facilitated assessments are necessary for both teachers and students to be aware of their current status in the class.  Depending on the subject and manner in which assessments are given, scores may be sufficient or teacher comments may be necessary for students to fully understand their current mastery level and what they can change or continue to do to achieve the mastery level desired.  Everything is an assessment!  In addition to quizzes and tests, homework, class activities, games, and even in-class questioning are all indicators of student mastery, and therefore can be counted as assessments.

However, not every assessment needs to be put into the grade book.  In fact, very few should be entered.  Only the assessments that should serve as indicators of student ability should be recorded - this means no homework grades!  Students may need feedback on these items, as they are practice.  When you are ready to assess mastery is when grades should be recorded and entered.

SBG allows second- (and third- and fourth- and so on...) chances, up to a point.
Student mastery can change.  Therefore, grades should change to reflect students' current level of mastery.  This means grades can go up... and down.  There is an argument to be made for recording these changes throughout the semester, but only the most recent grades should count as they are the best indicator of what students can do.  At a minimum, these should be determined from teacher-initiated assessments, planned and facilitated in a pre-determined manner at a designated time.  However, there is also the option of student-initiated assessments, in which students can voluntarily re-assess.  If students can demonstrate the mastery of the standard in a variety of ways, this also opens up the option of students testing in various ways.  For example, the standard "Identify the Spanish-speaking countries and their capitals" could be assessed by a traditional paper-and-pencil matching quiz, or by the student singing a song that names all the countries and their capitals.

Eventually, however, there must be a deadline.  Depending on the subject area, this may vary.  In Spanish, my material builds upon itself and is constantly used throughout the year.  Thus, my deadline is simply determined by the end of the grading period.  Arguments could be made for unit-end deadlines or even a combination of various deadlines, but that is a topic for another post.

SBG promotes long-term learning.
Since student grades on each standard can change throughout the semester, students must continually review the information to be prepared for its appearance on the most recent assessment.  Just because a student passed the assessment immediately following the presentation of the material does not mean they truly mastered the material.  Rather, they must continue to prove mastery on the material as it appears on assessments throughout the grading period.  Thus, the final cannot "sneak up" on them, particularly when students are expected to record and keep track of their progress on each standard.  If a summative is used at the end of the semester, students will be prepared as they have been revisiting information and re-assessing throughout the semester.

SBG encourages intrinsic motivation for achievement and dissolves point-addiction.
Students cannot accumulate countless points in an effort to get the highest grade possible.  And there is absolutely no grade inflation from things like etra credit.  Instead, students have to prove they can actually demonstrate knowledge of the information and are given ample opportunity to do so.  Either they are Proficient, or they aren't.  There is no in-between.  If students want to get a particular grade, they must learn what you expected them to and explained to them from the beginning.

In addition, SBG gives students the opportunity to experience success.  Through work and effort, and with guidance from their teacher, they will hopefully connect these to achievement.  This serves to foster intrinsic motivation and the desire to succeed as students discover their own abilities and strategies for achievement and success.

SBG prepares students for life after high school.
Adults are expected to meet certain expectations and do so by specific deadlines.  Adults are expected to take the initiative and do the work required to meet their responsibilities.  As they do so, they receive feedback on their progress from a variety of sources, including peers, coworkers, and employers.  However, if adults fail to meet their responsibilities by these given deadlines, they must live with real consequences.  SBG models this real-life experience by empowering students with the expectations teachers have of them, providing them with feedback, and giving students the responsibility to work for their grade.  In my class, I hope to teach students about the life-long skills of work and effort and how it is connected to achievement.  Specifically concerning academics, a key component of my curriculum is teaching students how, what, and why to study.  Thus, I will have effectively prepared them for life beyond my classroom.