Introduction

Teachers Without Borders welcomes you to our Certificate of Teaching Mastery!

At 59 million, teachers are the largest professional group on the planet. Together, we have the ability to significantly improve the quality of life for our children, our communities, and our earth.

The Certificate of Teaching Mastery provides hands-on experiences coupled with theory and educational innovations from around the globe. In the end, you'll create an electronic Teaching Portfolio to showcase your work and develop a culminating Service Project - a professional gift to your community.

Thank you for making the commitment to join us and for connecting with a widening web of global colleagues and kindred spirits. Our grandest wish is that you take what you learn and use it for the greatest common good - apply it with heart, with mind, with hospitality, gratitude, and celebration.

HOW TO NAVIGATE THROUGH THE COURSE

One Way is to go Page by Page:

To get to the next page, look at the right side of this screen. You'll see a blue horizontal bar and just to its right is an orange-brown colored bar with the word "Next" written inside in black letters. Click on the word "Next." This takes you to the next page.

Another Way is to view the entire Course Outline:

This way allows you to see the whole course at once and to go anywhere. Courses are divided into several "Modules," which contain reading material, assignments, and access points to the TWB Learning Cafe. If you look at the blue horizontal bar to the right you will see that it says, "Module: 1 Page: 1 of 6." This tells you what module you're in and what page you're on out of the total number of pages in that module.

To get the "big picture" of the course, look underneath the blue horizontal bar and click on the word "Outline." If you click on "Outline," a screen will come up that will show you the outline for this course. Click on the second topic (in the long list of black words) that says, "Outline of Certificate of Teaching Mastery." This will get you to the next page, OR click on any other title in black and it will take you to that part of the course.

Whenever you wish to go back to a previous page, look to the left of the blue horizontal bar and click on the word "Previous." This takes you back one page. (You can also use the "Outline" button described above to take you back one page or to any other page in the course.)

Outline of Certificate of Teaching Mastery

The Certificate of Teaching Mastery is made up of 5 distinct online courses that are practical, interactive, and oriented for educators who teach children ages 5 to 18. They are as follows:

Course 1: Education for the New Millennium

Course 2: Teaching Methods

Course 3: Assessment Practices

Course 4: Culture for Understanding

Course 5: Educating for Civil Societies

These courses can be taken in any order, and upon successful completion of all 5 courses, a teacher earns a Teachers Without Borders Certificate of Teaching Mastery.

Courses Can Be Taken Individually

For teachers who do not wish to earn the Certificate of Teaching Mastery, Courses 1 - 4 are available to be taken as separate, "stand-alone" courses. Given the distinct nature and focus of each course, a teacher may choose to take only 1 or 2 courses, 3 or 4 as needed to support the work that they are doing in their classsroom. This kind of course flexibility allows teachers to choose what they need and to enter any course at any time.

TWB Learning Cafe

Each course has access to our TWB Learning Cafe - an interactive cyperspace where teachers can meet; gain practical tips for their classrooms; discuss ideas; share assignments; and see examples of "what works" from colleagues around the world.

HOW TO VISIT THE TWB LEARNING CAFE:

To go to the TWB Learning Cafe, click here.

Once you arrive, read the welcome page first and then look at the bottom of it and click on "What I See." Read what has been written, and add what you see from YOUR window. Click on the "Question Wall," and add a question to it.

At certain points within the course, you'll specifically be instructed to go to the TWB Learning Cafe to deepen your understanding of the course material through conversations with global colleagues. Please know, however, that you may enter the TWB Learning Cafe at any time you wish - read what's there and share your thoughts. You can also enter the TWB Learning Cafe even if you are not navigating within a course but you're on the internet by typing the following URL into your browser: http://oneface.typepad.com/lois/1_welcome_to_course_1/index.html

A Closer Look

Find the course(s) that works best for you:

Course 1: Education for the New Millennium - Bringing New Thinking in Education into Classroom Practice

In this course, you'll be introduced to educational theories and approaches to learning and how to apply them to your classroom; aspects of effective teaching; and contemporary issues in education. The material reflects a pattern of inclusive, discovery-oriented, culturally-attuned, and globally-aware teaching.

Course 2: Teaching Methods - Looking at Theory, Planning, and Management

In this course, you'll be introduced to thematic learning and cooperative learning and you'll have a chance to develop lesson plans with these ideas in mind. You are given practical tools for classroom management and ways in which you can guide students to think about their own process of learning.

Course 3: Assessment Practices - Improving Student Performance

You'll discover a new way of designing curriculum so that you get the results you want. This course includes an introduction to student portfolios, problem-based learning, and rubrics that assess different aspects of student work such as mastery of the material, or the ability to apply what one has learned to real-life experiences.

Course 4: Culture for Understanding - Understanding Our Students

In this course, you'll explore your own cultural competence in the classroom; apply multiculturalism to problem-solving; receive training on service learning; and discuss how to create and sustain connections with classrooms around the world.

Course 5: Educating for Civil Societies - Teaching as Research and Action

This course is a culminating experience with two outcomes: 1) The creation of an electronic Teaching Portfolio (E-Portfolio) that showcases your work from Courses 1 - 4 of the Certificate of Teaching Mastery; and 2) A Service Project - a professional gift to your community that applies what you have learned in the previous four courses to address a local, national, or global need in one of the following areas:

E-Portfolio

Teachers who successfully complete Courses 1 - 4 will gain access to our Teachers Without Borders Electroninc Teaching Portfolio (E-Portfolio) as part of Course 5.

As you know, a portfolio is a powerful assessment tool, and includes evidence from your work on major topics - successes, challenges, and questions. The key word is evidence that can show - far more than tests - what you know and what you need to do in order to improve. Portfolios are a professional way of demonstrating your competence and showing employers your achievements.

Traditional portfolios in the form of folders, boxes, or 3-ring binders hold papers, pictures, cassette tapes, and more. With an electronic Teaching Portfolio, known as an "E-Portfolio," information can be stored digitally, taking up little physical space, and is easily accessed from anywhere in the world.

Teachers Without Borders is pioneering E-Portfolios for teachers, and we have provided a way for you to design one. Your electronic Teaching Portfolio will contain the following elements:

You will be able to complete all of the E-Portfolio elements by completing your assignments within each course as you go along.

To view the electronic Teaching Portfolio, click here.

HOW TO GET TO THE NEXT MODULE:

Usually, you just click "Next" to go to the next page. However, if you look at the blue horizontal bar to the right, you will see that it says, "Module: 1 Page: 6 of 6." This means that you have finished all six pages of that six-page module. When you finish a module, you need to click on the "Outline" button, which is on the bottom, right-hand side of the page. Look underneath the blue horizontal bar and click on the word "Outline."

When you click on "Outline," a screen will come up that will show you the outline for Course 3. Look for the next section to read and click on the first topic in that next section. For example, when you get to the outline now, look under the next section called "Introduction" and look for the first topic in black lettering called "Learning Objective." Click on "Learning Objective."

Learning Objective

In Course 3 you'll explore:

Resources

Course material; Conversations with global colleagues.

Assignments

Assignment 1: Identifying Outcomes - Creating Learning Objectives

Assignment 2: Understanding by Design and Learning Objectives ABCD

Assignment 3: Active Reading and Creating Dialogue

Assignment 4: Your Current and Future Assessment Tools

Assignment 5: Reflecting on What's Gathered

Assignment 6: Helping Students Reflect

Assignment 7: Designing Your Rubric

Assignment 8: Co-Creating a Rubric with Students

Assignment 9: 4 Elements of Effective Feedback

Assignment 10: Active Reading and Dialogue

Assignment 11: Survey for Course 3

Timeline

4 weeks

A-REEF

In this course, we will look at various types of assessments. We will also broaden our understanding of assessment and evaluation with an exploration of the broader process encapsulated in the acronym "A-REEF," which stands for:

A ssessment

R eflection

E valuation

E ffective F eedback

And like "a reef" in the ocean, this larger process of "Assessment, Reflection, Evaluation, and Effective Feedback" is an abundant place teeming with life and possibility.

Casting the Net

To think about Assessment, imagine that you are casting a large fishing net into fertile waters. After a while, you pull in the net to see what you've "caught."

Assessment is like collecting information - taking stock or making an inventory of what you see - and then reflecting upon or processing that information.

What do you see enmeshed in the net? You reflect on what you've "caught" and use the information to help you to decided what's next. For example, if students take a test or complete a project (and with your rubric), you find few results in the net, you might realize that individual students need help in certain areas OR if most of your students come up with a scarce or barren net, you might consider revising your original lesson plan or method of teaching.

Assessment, therefore, is about gathering information that ultimately informs your teaching and helps students reflect upon their own process of learning.

3 Things to Consider

As you begin your exploration of A-REEF - "Assessment, Reflection, Evaluation, and Effective Feedback" - consider the following:

Then, let this process inform your teaching practice.

HOW TO GET TO THE NEXT MODULE:

Usually, you just click "Next" to go to the next page. When you finish a section, however, (as you're about to do when you finish reading these two paragraphs), you need to click on the "Outline" button, which is on the bottom, right-hand side of the page. Look underneath the blue bar and click on the word "Outline."

When you click on "Outline," a screen will come up that will show you the outline for Course 3. Look for the next section to read and click on the first topic in that next section. For example, when you get to the outline now, look under the next section called "Start with the Ending in Mind" and look for the first topic in black lettering called "Overview." Click on "Overview."

Overview

Think about your goals. Where do you want students to end up? What behaviors do you wish your students to be able to demonstrate as a result of your instruction?

This section is about creating clearly defined and attainable outcomes for your students.

The article below is an excellent overview of how to begin; it includes practical guidance for teachers and theory in the form of Bloom's taxonomy. The assignments that follow will help you to apply what you learn to your classrom practice.

Required Reading:

The article called "Assessing Student Learning" can be found here and below, as a PDF file.

Assessing Student Learning

Assignment 1: Identifying Outcomes - Creating Learning Objectives

Assignment 1: Identifying Outcomes - Creating Learning Objectives

HOW TO GET TO ASSIGNMENT 1:

One Way

Click on the link in color at the top of the page. When it appears, press "Save" and name the file so that you can work on this assignment "off-line." You can type right on the assignment template. Be sure to save your assignment on a disk or on your computer hard drive.

Another Way

You can also copy the text below, and save it to your disk or computer.

GOAL: To create Learning Objectives using the "ABCD" model and Bloom's taxonomy as desribed in the article on the previous page called "Assessing Student Leaning."

GIVE: Feedback to others on their assignments at the TWB Learning Cafe.

Assignment 1: Identifying Outcomes - Creating Learning Objectives

Please answer the following:

Assignment 2: Understanding by Design and Learning Objectives ABCD

Assignment 2: Understanding by Design and Learning Objectives ABCD

HOW TO GET TO ASSIGNMENT 2:

One Way

To do this assignment, click on the link in color at the top of the page. When it appears, press "Save" and name the file so that you can work on this assignment "off-line." You can type right on the assignment template. Be sure to save your assignment on a disk or on your computer hard drive.

Another Way

You can also copy the text below, and save it to your disk or computer.

GOAL: To connect your Learning Objective ABCD model with another

"start-with-the-ending" process called "Understanding by Design." This time, you will consider an entire unit of study.

GIVE: Feedback to others on their assignments at the TWB Learning Cafe.

To do this assignment, please refer to the Understanding by Design template below:

Understanding By Design Template

Assignment 2: Understanding by Design and Learning Objectives ABCD

Required Reading

Assessment as a Tool for Learning (online)

This article is an excellent overview on assessment and how we can use it to inform our teaching practices, and improve communication amongst students, faculty, parents, and schools.

PDF version below:

Assessment as a Tool for Learning

Toward Genuine Accountability: The Case for a New State Assessment System (online)

Grant Wiggens, a curriculum and assessment specialist, has written about the role of assessment in learning. His argument is persuasive. He believes that teachers must connect assessment with the learning process itself, rather than serve as a judgment placed on the material and the student at the end.

Are the Best Curricular Designs "Backward"? (online)

The Understanding by Design Exchange is an excellent resource for learning more about this "start-with-the-ending" process of curriculum design.

To access an in-depth Understanding by Design template click here.

To see how teachers have applied Understanding by Design to specific units of study click here.

Assignment 3: Active Reading and Creating Dialogue

Assignment 3: Active Reading and Creating Dialogue

HOW TO GET TO ASSIGNMENT 3:

One Way

To do this assignment, click on the link in color at the top of the page. When it appears, press "Save" and name the file so that you can work on this assignment "off-line." You can type right on the assignment template. Be sure to save your assignment on a disk or on your computer hard drive.

Another Way

You can also copy the text below, and save it to your disk or computer.

GOAL: To reflect on assessment issues through the use of a tool known as "Focused Freewriting."

GIVE: Feedback to others on their assignments at the TWB Learning Cafe.

Assignment 3: Active Reading and Creating Dialogue

HOW TO GET TO THE NEXT MODULE:

Usually, you just click "Next" to go to the next page. When you finish a section, however, (as you're about to do when you finish reading these two paragraphs), you need to click on the "Outline" button, which is on the bottom, right-hand side of the page. Look underneath the blue bar and click on the word "Outline."

When you click on "Outline," a screen will come up that will show you the outline for Course 3. Look for the next section to read and click on the first topic in that next section. For example, when you get to the outline now, look under the next section called "A-REEF: Assessment" and look for the first topic in black lettering called "Overview." Click on "Overview."

Overview

We started this course with the image of a reef (and the acronym A-REEF) because a reef is a place teeming with life and possibility, as is this process.

The first letter of the acronymn A -REEF stands for A ssessment.

Assessment is the process of gathering information about what students know and can do. (Evaluating - the third letter in the acronym - is the process of interpreting and making judgements about that assessment information.)

There are numerous assessment models. The three most often used are:

Examples of Assessment

Asking What do I know? What do I want to know? What have I learned? is an informal way to assess students' knowledge and learning.

Here are some ways to approach the answers to those questions:

Student journal entries (pre and post) can be compared. If a focus question is used in the journal, the post-unit question should have the same form, but reflect time that has passed (i.e. "What do I know about [this topic]... now?")

Interpreting a picture (drawing or photograph) of a scene before and after a unit of study can be a tool of assessment. For example, students see a picture of a woodland scene and are asked, "How would this scene change if humans settled here?" Then students are asked the same question after studying ecosystems and humans impacts on them. The students' interpretations can be very revealing.

Document science attitudes and skills using a checklist system before a unit and after it. In the same way, compare student data tables or lab reports from the beginning of the year and the end.

A teacher or a student can perform the same simple task at the beginning and at the end of a unit and the class can use the same worksheet to explain or describe the task. The responses and explanations can be compared.

Have students create a concept map as a class and then compare it to the map students make at the end of a unit. Accept both correct and incorrect information for the first map. When the second map is created, try to reflect all information gleaned from a unit of study and ferret out all inaccurate information (without exposing students who provide incorrect information to censure). Pose this as a process of discovery, not a search for an error-free first document.

Student self-evaluations encourage self-reflection and better learning for students. They can encompass a variety of formats. The content of self-evaluations should never be graded. However, there is a kind of evaluation that can be graded for depth of analysis - i.e., how seriously did you take this task? Did you attempt to understand you own thinking and writing processes? Were you able to contextualize your own acts as a writer and thinker within course themes? The grade is for the application of insight and course themes to his/her own practice.

FOR EXAMPLES, click here

More Examples

In addition to pre and post assessments, teachers can institute many other types of alternative assessment.

Post-unit assessments can include "lab tests." Student interpretation of data (especially data which they collected) can expose their understanding. Hands-on experiments that replicate a process used in the unit allow teachers to measure ability to use skills that were taught. Given certain materials, students can construct a model of the current topic of study , i.e. the cell. Students could work alone or in pairs to design and/or carry out an experiment.

A culminating activity such as a presentation, skit or teaching of others allows exhibition of student learning. The teacher should use the rehearsal for the public activity as the actual assessment, so that any nervousness won't hinder an accurate assessment of students' knowledge.

Things to Consider

When you start using alternative assessment, start small. One example of this is to use an old multiple choice question without providing the answers. This eliminates the "guessing factor" for which multiple choice tests are famous.

Look for things that you already do to find evidence of students' thinking and learning.

Be realistic about the values of your school community.

If graded report cards are emphasized, be sure that you can translate your assessments into traditional grades.

Assignment 4: Your Current and Future Assessment Tools

Assignment 4: Your Current and Future Assessment Tools

HOW TO GET TO ASSIGNMENT 4:

One Way

Click on the link in color at the top of this page. When it appears, press "Save" and name the file so that you can work on this assignment "off-line." You can type right on the assignment template. Be sure to save your assignment on a disk or on your computer hard drive.

Another Way

Copy the text below, and save it to your disk or computer.

GOAL: To review forms of assessment you already use. To expand upon or try a new assessment (or combination of assessments) for an upcoming lesson or unit of study.

GIVE: Feedback to others on their assignments at the TWB Learning Cafe

Assignment 4: Your Current and Future Assessment Tools

Types of Assessments

Generative

Students and their teachers create the assessment criteria and/or tools so that they are meaningful and generate knowledge. For more on this subject, as well as example, click here.

Seamless and Ongoing

Instruction and assessment are integrated; assessment of the process and products occurs throughout the instruction. To read more about this subject, click here.

Authentic Assessment

Authentic assessment is geared toward assessment methods that correspond as closely as possible to real world experience. The instructor observes the student in the process of working on something real; provides feedback; monitors the student's use of the feedback; and adjusts instruction and evaluation accordingly. Authentic assessment takes this principle of evaluating real work into all areas of the curriculum.

Performance-Based

Assessments are meaningful, challenging experiences that involve presenting students with an authentic task, project, or investigation, and then observing, interviewing and/or examining their artifacts and presentations to assess what they actually know and can do. For an example using mathematics, click here.

Suggested Reading:

Performance Assessment: A strong overview of the field.

PDF version of Performance Assessment below:

Performance Assessment:

Portfolios

When we hear the name, "portfolio," we often think of artists carrying around a large valise of their creations, or of a business-person carrying around a thin briefcase of financial papers. The portfolio in education is a powerful assessment technique, as well, and includes evidence from one's work on major topics, successes, challenges, and questions. The key word is evidence that can show - far more than tests - what students know and what they need to do in order to improve.

What can be in a Portfolio?

Portfolios and Good Questions

A good question, serving as the central core of a course, is best combined with a portfolio from individual students - or a team - to demonstrate progress.

Here are some examples of core questions:

Examples of Portfolios

Below is a general outline for a portfolio's contents:

Porfolios are creative efforts and show the individuality of student work. They can take many forms and should tap into the cultural themes of the students themselves. Consider, too, how the forms below may fit into your subject:

Recommended Reading: Using Portfolios in the Classroom

PDF File below

Using Portfolios in the Classroom

This article talks about the ability to use the Internet and computers to create and edit student portfolios.

To see an example of a science-related student portfolio, click here.

To see examples of teacher portfolios, click here.

HOW TO GET TO THE NEXT MODULE:

Usually, you just click "Next" to go to the next page. When you finish a section, however, (as you're about to do when you finish reading these two paragraphs), you need to click on the "Outline" button, which is on the bottom, right-hand side of the page. Look underneath the blue bar and click on the word "Outline."

When you click on "Outline," a screen will come up that will show you the outline for Course 3. Look for the next section to read and click on the first topic in that next section. For example, when you get to the outline now, look under the next section called "A-REEF: Reflection" and look for the first topic in black lettering called "A Teacher's Story." Click on "A Teacher's Story."

A Teacher's Story

If we think about assessment as casting a net into fertile waters, reflection is about looking at what we have gathered and letting it guide us for "what's next" in our work with our students.

The best way to illustrate this is with A Teacher's Story:

An Example of Assessment and Reflection in Action

A fourth-grade teacher gave an end-of-the-year math test to her fourth-grade students (she cast the net). That same teacher then pulled the net in and collated the information into a meaningful format so that the fifth-grade teacher who would teach these students in the fifth-grade year could learn from what the fourth-grade teacher had gathered.

Click on the file below to see what was "gathered":

[INSERT documents here. A Teacher's Story: Math Assessment and Reflection.]

By looking at and reflecting upon the information gathered by the fourth-grade teacher (what questions students got correct and what questions they got wrong) the fifth-grade teacher could see individual student's strengths and weaknesses, and group strengths and areas the group needed to work on. The information gathered showed the fifth-grade teacher what to focus upon in the fifth-grade math program right from the start of the fifth-grade year.

Assignment 5: Reflecting on What's Gathered

Assignment 5: Reflecting on What's Gathered

HOW TO GET TO ASSIGNMENT 5:

One Way

To do this assignment, click on the link in color at the top of the page. When it appears, press "Save" and name the file so that you can work on this assignment "off-line." You can type right on the assignment template. Be sure to save your assignment on a disk or on your computer hard drive.

Another Way

You can also copy the text below, and save it to your disk or computer.

GOAL: To experience how assessment information coupled with R eflection can inform "what's next" in classroom instruction.

GIVE: Feedback to others on their assignments at the TWB Learning Cafe.

Assignment 5: Reflecting on What's Gathered

How Assessment and Reflection Informs Practice

By processing the information gathered by the fourth-grade teacher, the fifth-grade teacher could see how to help certain students and in what areas because the fifth-grade teacher not only had the assessment results, but the original test as well. The fifth-grade teacher could also see that as a whole, the class was strong in computation skills, but that they could use more practice with word problems involving math.

The fifth-grade teacher at this school did, in fact, create math curriculum and lesson plans right from the start of the year to address the students' strengths and needs. The fifth-grade teacher reinforced computation skills, briefly, and then quickly exposed her new fifth-grade students to "problem-solving" experiences in math involving "real-life" activities and math-based word problems.

This Teacher's Story is an example of how an end-of-the-year math assessment helped another colleague to shape curriculum and focus lesson plans to meet the strengths and needs of the students. This can be done throughout the school year: Casting the net to gather information; reflecting upon the information gathered and letting it inform your curriculum.

Helping Students Reflect

Research in recent years has shown that learning improves significantly if students are able to think about their thinking, or, in other words, learn about their learning. Assessment methods that inspire this kind activity result in consistently higher performance.

Here are some examples of how to help students reflect upon their own process of learning:

Assignment 6: Helping Students Reflect

Assignment 6: Helping Students Reflect

HOW TO GET TO ASSIGNMENT 6:

One Way

To do this assignment, click on the link in color at the top of the page. When it appears, press "Save" and name the file so that you can work on this assignment "off-line." You can type right on the assignment template. Be sure to save your assignment on a disk or on your computer hard drive.

Another Way

You can also copy the text below, and save it to your disk or computer.

GOAL: To develop new ways in which you can help your students reflect upon the process of their own learning.

GIVE: Feedback to others on their assignments at the TWB Learning Cafe.

Assignment 6: Helping Students Reflect

Appreciative Inquiry as Group Assessment and Reflection

Appreciative Inquiry is a process by which students can reflect upon a situtation, their learning, or group dynamics in a way that takes stock of all of the assets and positives of a situation. In the sense that students are gathering information, Appreciative Inquiry can be considered a form of group assessment.

After students have "cast their group net" (through the Appreciative Inquiry process), together, they look to see what they have gathered. Then, they take the next step: they reflect upon what they have gathered and use it to inform their learning and future actions.

Here's an Example of How it Works:

A Net Full of Assests

We often begin by asking "What's the probem?" When you do that, you focus energy on what we want less of and work to "fix" things. Appreciative Inquiry is about focusing on what you want more of; knowing that what you want more of already exists; and amplifying what strengths and assests a group already has.

With Appreciative Inquiry students are heard, seen, and appreciated. It also enables students to be active participants in the thinking process and encourages them to amplify what strengths or qualities they already possess towards their learning or class environment.

Suggested Readings: (Online Only)

What is Appreciative Inquiry - A consultant gives a clear introduction to what it is.

Case Western Reserve University - One school's use of Appreciative Inquiry.

Appreciative Inquiry Commons- A place to learn more about Appreciatie Inquiry and to connect with others who practice it.

TALK AT THE TWB LEARNING CAFE:

How might you apply Appreciative Learning to your classroom experience? Read what others have said. Add your thoughts. Join your global colleagues in conversation at the TWB Learning Cafe.

HOW TO GET TO THE NEXT MODULE:

Usually, you just click "Next" to go to the next page. When you finish a section, however, (as you're about to do when you finish reading these two paragraphs), you need to click on the "Outline" button, which is on the bottom, right-hand side of the page. Look underneath the blue bar and click on the word "Outline."

When you click on "Outline," a screen will come up that will show you the outline for Course 3. Look for the next section to read and click on the first topic in that next section. For example, when you get to the outline now, look under the next section called "A-REEF: Evaluation" and look for the first topic in black lettering called "Overview." Click on "Overview."

Overview

As discussed earlier in this course, assessment is the process of gathering information about what students know and can do.

E valuating is the process of interpreting and making judgements about that assessment information.

One simple way to interpret and make judgements about student work is to create a rubric (guidelines). In this section you will have a chance to see rubric samples and you will have an opportunity to create your own rubric.

The Eyeglasses We Create

If we think about assessment as "casting a net into fertile waters and gathering information", a rubric is like the eyeglasses we create and use when we look into the net. Rubrics help us to see; they help us to look for certain things we deem important.

A rubric can be issued from a pre-made template or inspired by school or national standards. A rubric can be created by a teacher or group of teachers. It can even be co-created with students.

A rubric can be created before the instruction has taken place in keeping with the "start-with-the-ending" design or during or after the instruction is complete if taking a "constructivist approach."

If a rubric is created before the instruction, it will dictate what we see - or what we look for in our fishing net. In this sense, the rubric becomes a bit like Escher's painting of the "hand drawing the hand" in that the very rubric we use influences the instruction and the teaching process itself.

Why Use Rubrics

The advantages of using rubrics (guidelines) in assessment are that they:

What is it?

A rubric is a consistent form of evaluation applied to all students. Rubrics may be used "as-is" or they may be combined and modified in any way that is appropriate for your students. You may find it helpful to review the suggestions for evaluating and selecting rubrics. These items may be used as a checklist.

A rubric is the right one for your school if:

A good way to find out which rubric is best for you is to pick a few likely candidates; try them out on actual examples of student work; and modify them if necessary. This is often best done in a group setting, so all of the teachers who will be using the rubric can be involved. It's worth taking your time to find a rubric that works well at your school because that rubric will make scoring your students' work easier and quicker.

Most rubrics are focused on particular subjects and grade level(s); if available, that information is often included in the rubric listing. Although subject areas and grades are specified for many of the rubrics, you may find that some rubrics can be applied to other subjects and grades with little or no modification; so if a rubric looks promising, don't be too concerned about the stated grade level or subject. For example, reading rubrics may often be used to assess listening, and writing rubrics can be used to assess speaking content and organization (you would need to add scales for vocal delivery and physical gestures and behavior).

Rubrics for art, music, drama, and dance may sometimes be used for a different art form with little modification. For example, an art rubric that deals with the artistic sensory elements of line, shape, value, color, and texture might be used as a music rubric by substituting musical sensory elements, such as rhythm, tempo, pitch, timbre, and dynamics.

Suggeted Reading:

Rubric Generators (online only).

When you get to this site, "scroll down" to see the information on types of rubrics and how to generate templates.

Examples

Please read the following websites focusing on rubrics:

Online

Oral Communication Assessment (an example)

Reading Rubric (an example)

Math Rubric (an example)

Science Rubric (an example)

Social Studies Rubric (an example)

Fine Arts (an example)

Speaking (an example)

Writing (an example)

PDFs

Oral Communication Assessment (an example)

Reading Rubric (an example)

Math Assessment

Science Rubric (an example)

Social Studies Rubric (an example)

Fine Arts (an example)

Speaking (an example)

Writing (an example)

Assignment 7: Designing Your Rubric

Assignment 7: Designing Your Rubric

HOW TO GET TO ASSIGNMENT 7:

One Way

To do this assignment, click on the link in color at the top of the page. When it appears, press "Save" and name the file so that you can work on this assignment "off-line." You can type right on the assignment template. Be sure to save your assignment on a disk or on your computer hard drive.

Another Way

You can also copy the text below, and save it to your disk or computer.

GOAL: To create a rubric for an upcoming project, activity, or assignment.

GIVE: Feedback to others on their assignments at the TWB Learning Cafe.

Assignment 7: Designing Your Rubric

1) Name an upcoming project, activity, or assignment for your class.

2) Design a rubric using any of the rubric models from the previous two pages.

Things to Keep in Mind:

3) Pick one item you disagree with from the original rubric you chose. Revise it to fit your philosophy of learning. Explain the theory behind your disagreement, and how your changes will promote student learning.

4) Now that you have created a rubric, try the rubric out on some actual samples of student work. What do you notice?

5) Ask colleagues to use the rubric on the same samples of student work. See if you and your colleagues can arrive at consensus about what scores to assign a piece of student work. What do you notice?

6) How might you revise your rubric now?

7) Place your rubric below:

8) Reflect upon the process of creating a rubric using steps 1 - 7 from above.

(2 - 3 paragraphs)

Creating a Rubric with Students

Steps:

Assignment 8: Co-Creating a Rubric with Students

Assignment 8: Co-creating a Rubric with Students

HOW TO GET TO ASSIGNMENT 8:

One Way

To do this assignment, click on the link in color at the top of the page. When it appears, press "Save" and name the file so that you can work on this assignment "off-line." You can type right on the assignment template. Be sure to save your assignment on a disk or on your computer hard drive.

Another Way

You can also copy the text below, and save it to your disk or computer.

GOAL: To co-create two rubrics with your students - the first is after they have completed a project; the second is designed before you even start the instruction.

GIVE: Feedback to others on their assignments at the TWB Learning Cafe.

Assignment 8: Co-Creating a Rubric with Students

HOW TO GET TO THE NEXT MODULE:

Usually, you just click "Next" to go to the next page. When you finish a section, however, (as you're about to do when you finish reading these two paragraphs), you need to click on the "Outline" button, which is on the bottom, right-hand side of the page. Look underneath the blue bar and click on the word "Outline."

When you click on "Outline," a screen will come up that will show you the outline for Course 2. Look for the next section to read and click on the first topic in that next section. For example, when you get to the outline now, look under the next section called "A-REEF: E ffective F eedback" and look for the first topic in black lettering called "Overview." Click on "Overview."

Overview

Effective Feedback happens when students discover their own strengths and weaknesses.

For example, when students take a test, provide an answer key and let them correct their own tests. Ask the students to then write notes to themselves in a learning log about what they got right and what they got wrong and what they noticed.

Effective Feedback happens naturally when students are engaged throughout the evaluation process.

The very nature of Assignment 8 (from the last section) has a built-in feedback loop because the students are continually engaged in the evaluation process from beginning to end. The final student reflection is an act of discovery and it paves the way for dialogue between teacher and student. The final student reflection, too, can serve as effective feedback when conferencing with parents.

Effective Feedback on Assignments

As teachers, we have a choice about how to offer feedback to our students on specific assignments. We can take the route of "the doubting game" the predominant western model that includes "argument, debate, criticism, and extrication of the self" as a way of knowing, or we can take the route of the "believing game," which challenges us "to listen, affirm, enter in, try to put ourselves into the skin of people with other perceptions and asks us to share our experience with others." In Writing Without Teachers Peter Elbow discusses these two games - the need for both, and the realms in which each game works best.

Most likely you will need to utilize a bit of both "games " in your role as a teacher. For giving feedback on assignments, however, we emphasize the "believing game."

We ask teachers to develop and use their "believing muscle" - that is "to understand ideas from the inside." As Peter Elbow writes, "The believing game is constant practice in getting the mind to see or think what is new, different...[the believing game] emphasizes a model of knowing as an act of constructing, an act of investment, an act of involvement..." (p. 173, )

The Believing Game

What does it mean to "listen, affirm, enter in" when we speak of giving feedback to students?

For starters, the important thing is to read your student's assignment thoroughly - perhaps two or three times to allow the words to sink in and make an impression upon you.

Then, tell what you experienced as a reader when you read your student's words.

4 Elements of Effective Feedback

In this spirit of engagement, we have identified 4 Elements of Effective Feedback that can be used when giving your students feedback on assignments. The first two elements are inspired from Peter Elbow's work and are a part of exercising your "believing muscle." The other two are developed from "what works" in coaching. They are as follows:

Elements 1 and 2

As you read your student's completed assignment, here are the first two elements to consider:

Each are described fully by Peter Elbow in his book called Writing Without Teachers, a book we highly recommend. The excerpts provided here are a useful starting point, especially the section called "Giving Movies of Your Mind," which includes Pointing and Sumarizing.

Element #1 of Effective Feedback

Pointing

Elbow writes:

"Start by simply pointing to the words and phrases which most succcessfully penetrated your skull...somehow they rang true; or they carried special conviction. Any kind of getting through...Also point to any words or phrases which strike you as particularly weak or empty. Somehow they ring false, hollow, plastic. They bounce ineffectually off your skull." (p. 85)

"As a reader giving your reactions, keep in mind that you are not answering a timeless, theorectical question about the objective qualities of those words on that page. You are answering a time-bound, subjective but factual question: what happened to you when you read the words this time." (p.85)

Element #2 of Effective Feedback