Joey writes:
"My friend is the 7th grade social studies teacher and after a month of convincing, he has bought in and is also trying a ROLE's classroom.Joey is one of many teachers who either use some results-only strategies or are taking the complete plunge and building a Results Only Learning Environment.
"In my class there are no tests, quizzes, or homework. Now I have not completely stopped giving grades, but instead of me grading the kids, they are having one on one talks with me and grading themselves on individual projects and group projects. I really feel like I already know the students better and what they know in a better way. After 12 years of desks in rows, they are gone and my kids are in groups at tables everyday. I have gone to the beginnings of project based learning and navigating my way through that.
"I really have not had rules in my class. It is funny about your post a couple of days ago about rules. I actually tell my kids the exact same thing. You have been in school for 7 - 8 years and you know what is expected. I have two requests for the kids.....Do your best (which covers pretty much everything) and persistence. Other than that I am pretty laid back and just enjoy teaching."
So, what kinds of ROLE strategies are you using?
Hello Mark,
ReplyDeleteI am the 7th grade social studies teacher working with Joey Till. I have a similar format in my room. My class is self paced (with some "grading days" to help give structure). Activities are either completion graded or self-evaluated. Like Joey, I have to put grades in my grade book at this point. I don't give quizzes, tests, homework, worksheets, etc. I do give diagnostics--a 5 point (low stakes) content assessment to evaluate my activities and student learning. I only assign a point value otherwise it won't appear in the grade book (for parents). I love my new class, my students are slowly learning the new culture, struggling a bit with the pacing, but its an incredible turn for the better!
Wow! This is fantastic. I'm thrilled to hear it. I, too, struggled at the beginning with the appearance of a grade in our online system. I was able to circumvent this by choosing a "comment" option in the administrator tools. Now, the only thing my students and parents see is my narrative feedback. You may want to explore your program to see if you have this option.
ReplyDeleteI love your "low stakes" terminology, which is the opposite of "high stakes" testing.
Please take note of the new ROLE Stories page I've added to the top navigation panel of the blog. Hopefully, you and Joey will get a discussion going there.
Remember, by creating a ROLE, you are changing education and creating a new kind of learner. Thanks for having the courage to make this commitment.