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Case: Unfair Assessment I have been a successful middle school teacher. I know it sounds strange when I call myself successful, but I have received recognitions at the school and county levels for the quality of my teaching. I have a big dilemma this year. I have two students who are not your ordinary students. Selena is a Hispanic student who is an English Language Learner, but her English proficiency is quite high. She fully participates in all class activities, she functions well in group and individual work, and she is always motivated. She is an ideal student. However, she never makes passing grades on tests. Her current grade is an F. Shelly is a White student. She shows no interest in course activities. You cannot even know if she listening or not most of the time. She chooses not to do group work. If I force her, she does not really contribute. She also does not turn in any assignments. What puzzles me is that she usually receives the highest grades in tests. Her current grade in my course is a high B. If she had turned in the assignments, her grade would be an A. The course grade in my class is determined mainly based on what students make on tests, because I feel that tests are the only means for me to know whether students have retained what they learned or not. Lately I have been thinking that my grading is not doing justice to Selena. At the same time, I think Shelly does not deserve a B with the attitude she has displayed. I need to revise my assessment system. Please help me with this. Solution: (Rates are posted for this solution!) First, I do not feel that your class should be determined mainly by test grades. I have learned that there are all different types of learners in the classroom and only relying heavily on test scores can be detrimental to those students like Selena. I think you should reevaluate your weighting of your grades. For the two students, I would try to test Selena on reading comprehension and test-taking skills. I know that some students with IEPs have their tests read aloud to them and that seems to improve their test scores. Maybe that is all Selena needs or maybe there is something a test will reveal that will help her get some help outside of your classroom. For Shelly, it seems like a typical case of someone functioning at a higher level than the rest of the class and has no motivation to try because she can make a B without doing so. I would try giving her alternate assignments that may stimulate her brain and be more challenging. I would also test her to see if she could possibly be put in advanced classes or higher grade classes to stimulate her thinking. |
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