Rubrics

Rubric- The word that used to make me cringe!!! Before taking Teaching Language Arts and learning about the amazing Rubistar, creating a rubric meant sitting at a blank Word document for hours with no clue how or where to start! I was never that familiar with rubrics. In High School and elementary school I seldom seen one. Sometimes I would hear teachers mention they were using a grading scale but had no idea what was on it. And the only professors that used rubrics were for my education courses, go figure! Rubrics are a great way to assess students fairly and show them exactly what you are looking for. I'm not sure about giving a 1st grader a rubric before an assignment, but for older grades handing out a rubric before a paper or presentation is due allows the students to know EXACTLY what you are looking for. It doesn't give them an easy push towards a better grade. In my opinion, what teachers don't want their students to get good grades?! Rubrics are great guides and very beneficial for everyone. Rubistar changed my whole opinion about rubrics, and while this is the first rubric that I am going to make using the website, it definately won't be my last!

Fairness, Assessment and Learning Targets!

Fairness and Assessement and Learning Targets!

I'm a little late with this blog post but better late then never I suppose!! I strongly believe that fairness in assessment is the most crucial aspect of assessing a students performance. Teachers need to assess students based on their PERFORMANCE, not on anything else, such as gender, race, or even how they feel about that particular student. It wouldn't be right if a teacher favored a student and always looked past their mistakes but the student they don't favor gets judged even harder. Teachers should also be aware that students each have their own strengths and learn things differently, so if only one teaching style is used, it can hinder a student's performance. That is why teachers need to address the multiple intelligences while teaching, so that all students can work to their potential and be assessed fairly. Rubrics are a good way to assess fairly because the guidelines are the same for all students!

All teachers should have learning targets in the classroom. This lets the teacher set goals and outcomes for what they are about to teach. They should be used in all grade levels as well as subjects. If teachers just taught things with no idea what they expect the students to learn, it woudn't make any sense and would be a waste of time for everyone. Learning targets are a fgood way for teachers to let the students know what is expected of them and what they may need to work on.