Hello Students and Parents:
What is the purpose of assessment (tests, projects, quizzes, etc.)? As I explain to the students, assessment is about two things. First, it helps the teacher find out about a class’s learning needs and to better address them through planning of activities. Second, it helps the student and parents know areas of strength and areas of growth so they know what to work on next!
Marks can cause a lot of stress, but the stress is counterproductive. What I mean is, if a student is so preoccupied with the single mark, they end up not reading any of the feedback. If they worry about how the mark will be perceived, then they take less risks, which results, overall, in less creativity and learning. This is why I try NOT to have as many marks in MACC, because students have been trained to work for the mark as opposed to working for their own learning, joy, and personal development.
So, when you bring home a mark, please take the time to read the feedback. If you can’t read my writing, please let me know. If something doesn’t make sense, please ask and I will explain. Do reflect on your learning and think about what you can do to improve, but don’t beat yourself up for a single mark. The single mark itself does not tell the whole story of your learning!
Also, for those in grade four, we talked about what marks mean. On your grade three report card, you received marks that somewhat translate like this in grade four:
- Exceeding Expectations — Is like receiving an A
- Fully Meeting Expectations — Is like receiving a B
- Meeting Expectations — Is like a C+
If you were hoping for an “A” on everything, then ask yourself: On the grade three report card, did you receive exceeding expectations on everything?
Rubrics will show how projects are broken down into parts. You may receive an overall mark, but the project had separate parts in different subject areas you see on report cards.
If you were hoping for a higher mark, don’t worry, this one assignment or project is not the only way I find out marks. We have a TED TALK coming up, a math project we started today, our unit health game, and then a whole other unit to start! Plus all the daily participation and work you do. I look at the whole picture — not just one assignment.
Everyone is at a different point in their learning. We CAN all do things and all have strengths and areas of growth. You will see me refer to what a student is ABLE to do, what they CAN do, rather than the things they cannot. We all work better looking at what we can do and changing our language about our performance to more positive terms.
Reprogram your thinking, kind of like we program a computer! For example, instead of saying:
- I can’t do something — say, I can do that with some practice or guidance.
- I am terrible at something — say, I find this more challenging, and with practice I will develop a new skill.
- I will never be good at that — say: Everyone has different strengths, and I will focus on how my strengths will best get a project done
- I am awesome at that — say, I’m on the right track. I think I will take on some new challenges to stretch my thinking.
- I won’t ever need to do that. I am not interested in that because it is boring. — say, I wonder how this is connected to something I am passionate about? I wonder why they teach this? Why might it be important?
- I made a mistake — say, Mistakes are how I improve, so I can get feedback.
- It’s good enough. I can’t ever make it better than that. — say, Is this really my best work?
Self-Assessment, not self-punishment, is the key. It isn’t helpful for any student to perseverate on what went wrong. As educators and parents we need to help young students focus on their strengths and what went right, first! Then, we need to guide them in using positive and realistic language as they make personal goals for how to improve. I hope every student grows in their ability to recognize their strengths AND talk about their areas of growth in a positive way that helps rather than hurts their progress.
Thank you for listening and thinking about assessment with me. If you have any questions about this, please do let me know.
Kindly,
Ms. D
