Points vs. Mastery: The Effects of Standards Based Grading
Submission Type
Event
Faculty Advisor
Leah Nillas
Expected Graduation Date
2019
Location
Foyer, State Farm Hall, Illinois Wesleyan University
Start Date
4-13-2019 9:00 AM
End Date
4-13-2019 10:00 AM
Disciplines
Education
Abstract
Every few years, a new trend in education emerges that aims to help a greater number of students to succeed in the classroom. There was “No Child Left Behind Act” in 2001, followed by Common Core State Standards in 2009, and finally the newest innovation in standards-based grading, currently being implemented in classrooms. This grading style requires teachers to adhere to specific standards set by the state and school district. There has been a controversial debate in previous studies as to whether standards-based grading is beneficial towards students’ deeper learning (Jones, 2013) or distracts students from success (Peters, 2017). This study was conducted in an urban high school in a United States History classroom with twenty-two sophomore students. Formative assessments, summative assessments, and observational journals were analyzed to determine mastery of content and student reaction to the grading style. This study argues that although standards-based grading focuses on mastery of content, it has little effect on student learning.
Points vs. Mastery: The Effects of Standards Based Grading
Foyer, State Farm Hall, Illinois Wesleyan University
Every few years, a new trend in education emerges that aims to help a greater number of students to succeed in the classroom. There was “No Child Left Behind Act” in 2001, followed by Common Core State Standards in 2009, and finally the newest innovation in standards-based grading, currently being implemented in classrooms. This grading style requires teachers to adhere to specific standards set by the state and school district. There has been a controversial debate in previous studies as to whether standards-based grading is beneficial towards students’ deeper learning (Jones, 2013) or distracts students from success (Peters, 2017). This study was conducted in an urban high school in a United States History classroom with twenty-two sophomore students. Formative assessments, summative assessments, and observational journals were analyzed to determine mastery of content and student reaction to the grading style. This study argues that although standards-based grading focuses on mastery of content, it has little effect on student learning.