Thursday, May 5, 2016

More extra credit thoughts...

So, if I grade by standard, what is the standard of the extra credit?  What is it that I value and what am I trying to promote. Essentially, if this is the carrot, what's the horse?

I've been thinking of what it is I value.  Team work, persistence, being complete, thoughtful and thorough.  Not just showing work, but showing reasoning and justification.  So in terms of extra credit, I believe that it can only be achieved in certain weighted grading categories.

I'm pretty sure that next year's grading weights will be:
•  5%  Participation
•  15%  Homework
•  30% Quizzes, exit tickets, and learning logs
•  50%  Tests and projects


Extra credit will only be available in the participation category, and only through team points.  I'm estimating that a team will generate about 15-20 points per week.  I think the lowest a team can score will be 15 points, and the highest will be 20 points, with a potential for up to 3 extra credit points per week.  Participation points will be awarded when a team is randomly asked to share their responses, on a 3-point rubric.
1.  Bravery.  Thanks for trying
2.  Correct answer.
3.  Correct answer with justification and academic language.

One team would probably get called on no more than once a day, and they can earn a bonus point if the entire team did their homework, so 4x5 = 20.  If I make a lower-bound at 15, it shouldn't hurt their grade too much if they with a subpar team, and they can have extra credit with a better team to make up for it.  If I give them up to 3 extra points as a team, I think I won't get push back from parents who are only interested in independent work.

Thinking this through makes me feel a lot better.  I think I'm content.