Grading for equity : what it is, why it matters, and how it can transform schools and classrooms / Joe Feldman.

Includes bibliographical references (pages 247-255) and index.

"For some time, traditional (A - F) grading practices have been under fire from a wide range of stakeholder. Grading policies are wildly inconsistent from classroom to classroom, frequently misguided, uninformed, and frequently based on subjective judgments. Of even more concern, our grading practices exacerbate the achievement gap. It is well-documented that African-American and Latino students, boys, as well as special education students, are disproportionately suspended and expelled, influenced by teachers' unconscious but biased judgments of student behavior. Virtually ignored is how teachers' incorporate subjective and non-academic criteria into their grades (through criteria such as student attitude, 'participation', and 'effort'), and how approach to grading contributes to these same students' disproportionately high course failure rates and disproportionately low placement in advanced academic tracks"--Provided by publisher.

'Joe Feldman shows us how we can use grading to help students become the leaders of their own learning and lift the veil on how to succeed.... This must-have book will help teachers learn to implement improved, equity-focused grading for impact.'--Zaretta Hammond, Author of Culturally Responsive Teaching & The Brain Crack open the grading conversation Here at last--and none too soon--is a resource that delivers the research base, tools, and courage to tackle one of the most challenging and emotionally charged conversations in today's schools: our inconsistent grading practices and the ways they can inadvertently perpetuate the achievement and opportunity gaps among our students. With Grading for Equity, Joe Feldman cuts to the core of the conversation, revealing how grading practices that are accurate, bias-resistant, and motivational will improve learning, minimize grade inflation, reduce failure rates, and become a lever for creating stronger teacher-student relationships and more caring classrooms. Essential reading for schoolwide and individual book study or for student advocates, Grading for Equity provides A critical historical backdrop, describing how our inherited system of grading was originally set up as a sorting mechanism to provide or deny opportunity, control students, and endorse a 'fixed mindset' about students' academic potential--practices that are still in place a century later A summary of the research on motivation and equitable teaching and learning, establishing a rock-solid foundation and a 'true north' orientation toward equitable grading practices Specific grading practices that are more equitable, along with teacher examples, strategies to solve common hiccups and concerns, and evidence of effectiveness Reflection tools for facilitating individual or group engagement and understanding As Joe writes, 'Grading practices are a mirror not just for students, but for us as their teachers.' Each one of us should start by asking, 'What do my grading practices say about who I am and what I believe?' Then, let's make the choice to do things differently... with Grading for Equity as a dog-eared reference.

Description based on print version record.

Prologue: Mallory's dilemma -- Foundations. What makes grading so difficult to talk about (and even harder to change)? ; A brief history of grading -- The case for change : how traditional grading thwarts effective and equitable teaching and learning. How traditional grading stifles risk-taking and supports the "commodity of grades" ; Traditional grading hides information, invites biases, and provides misleading information ; Traditional grading demotivates and disempowers ; A new vision of grading -- Equitable grading practices. Practices that are mathematically accurate ; Practices that value knowledge, not environment or behavior ; Practices that support hope and a growth mindset ; Practices that "lift the veil" ; Practices that build "soft skills" without including them in the grade ; Putting it all together : Nick and Cathy -- Epilogue : A return to Mallory's school.

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