[MOSAIC] All-or-nothing grading

[Bill Roberts]

About the knowledge is overrated comment....that's nonsense.  Why are we in 
Iraq?  Weapons of Mass Destruction.  That's knowledge, but it's not 
intelligence.  The war in Iraq goes beyond WMDs and 9/11, but too many 
people use their "knowledge" to give an answer to something, but not 
understand the depth of a subject.  In 1492, Columbus sailed the ocean blue. 
Was he an explorer or an invader?  What was his motivation besides money? 
What were the repercussions of his landing in the "New" world?  Sure, anyone 
can look it up, BUT WILL THEY?  Not my kids....

Knowing stuff isn't the same as comprehending stuff.  That's where the 
strategies come in.  It's the same idea that if a child can read a selection 
orally in class and pronounce the words correctly then he must be 
comprehending what he is reading.  NOT!!!  That applies for ALL content 
classes.  Why is it important to know how to find the area of a square? 
Sure, Johnny might be able to do the math, but can he apply it later when he 
is trying to buy a carpet for his bedroom?

In a READING CLASS, using a skill can be graded differently.  If Johnny 
can't use the same skill as effectively as Suzy, then you can grade based on 
the skill and how they have improved.  I have a grade based on their fluency 
and reading levels where I compare their beginning of the year scores to the 
end of the year ones.  If they go up, they get a grade.  If they go down, 
they don't.  But that is a skill.  The same thing as doing pushups or situps 
in PE.  If they can't do them in the beginning of the year, but you work on 
them, the student should be able to do more sit-ups at the end of the year. 
You don't give Johnny an F because he can't do 10 push-ups, but if he works 
at it and improves, then you can give him a score based on his performance. 
The same can be said for playing an instrument, tying one's shoes, etc.  ANY 
SKILL can be judged based on improvement.

Knowledge of a subject is not the same as having skill in performance.  We 
tend to treat all subjects as knowledge-based when some are 
performance-based.  Art, music, writing, reading, PE, math, etc. are mostly 
performance based.  Science, social studies, geography, etc. are mostly 
knowledge based.  Do the disciplines overlap?   At times, but that's what 
life is all about.  We don't separate our lives into compartments or classes 
like in a school environment, it all overlaps.  A good music teacher doesn't 
just teach scales, but he also teaches Beethoven, Opera, and Hip-Hop.  A 
good reading teacher doesn't just read, but also introduces concepts and 
background information.  A good history teacher doesn't just teach dates and 
names, but also delves into the why's and ramifications of actions.  So 
depending on what you are teaching or aiming for, you may give a grade for 
performance or you may give a grade for knowledge.  You just have to 
establish the difference so the kids know what you are looking for when 
giving a grade.  There is no "ALL GRADES" or "A's, B's, or 
INCOMPLETES".....there is only whatever standard you are trying to teach.

Bill