MRVED Business

LAST DAY! MELT Call for Presentation

The MRVED is once again looking for people to present at the annual MELT conference in January.  The 2015 installment of the MELT will be held at Lac Qui Parle Valley High School on January 19.  This is a great day to showcase some of the great things you are doing in your classrooms.  Presenters will be paid a small stipend for their efforts.  If you are interested in providing a session, please click on the link below and fill out the form.  Filling out the form does not guarantee or bind you to providing a session.  If you don't want to present, but have great ideas for possible sessions, email Brandon at braymo@mrved.net.

If you are willing to present and provide a session click HERE


Title I Best Practice Update
The Title I teachers came to the MRVED for their meeting on Thursday, October 30.  The morning was spent looking at high impact vocabulary words as well as researching, finding, and sharing intervention resources.  Lunch was great as usual.  The group then had the opportunity to network with a group of their peers.  The day ended with an activity on motivation.  Overall, it was a great day of learning.


Upcoming Meetings

November 4, 2014 - Guidance Counselors
November 5, 2014 - Phy Ed/Health
November 13, 2014 - Social Workers
November 18, 2014 - FACS CANCELED - RESCHEDULED FOR DECEMBER 16, 2014
November 20, 2014 - Industrial Tech

Repair Kit for Grading - Fix 7

The information for this series comes from Ken O'Connor's book A Repair Kit for Grading: 15 Fixes for Broken Grades.  During this series you will get a "taste" of each fix, but I highly recommend investing in this quick read.  O'Connor offers very practical fixes to the grading system.  If all else, he will get you to think about how you currently are grading your students.

The first 6 fixes were fixes that were focused on fixing practices that distort achievement:

1. Don't include student behaviors in grades; include only achievement.
2. Don't reduce marks on "work" submitted late; provide support for the learner.
3. Don't give points for extra credit or use bonus points; seek only evidence that more work has resulted in a higher level of achievement.
4. Don't punish academic dishonesty with reduced grades; apply other consequences and reassess to determine actual level of achievement.
5. Don't consider attendance in grade determination; report absences separately.
6. Don't include group scores in grades; use only individual achievement evidence.

Fixes 7-10 focus on fixes for low-quality or poorly organized evidence.  The first of these fixes is:

Fix 7: Don't organize information in grading records by assessment methods or simply summarize into a single grade; organize and report evidence by standards/learning goals.

In simple terms this means creating a standards-based report card.  I dread the day my daughter comes home with a "B" in math, because what does that really mean?  Does it mean she knows all her standards, but lacks in some behavior?  Did she really earn a "C" and then do extra credit to get a "B"?  As a parent, I want to know what she does and does not know.  I loved her kindergarten report card.  It listed all the math concepts, letter sounds, and star words she needed to know.  The teacher was then able to assess those standards and report if she did or did not know it.  As a former high school social studies teacher, I thought to myself, what do the letter grades I give my students really mean?  A parent would get the report card and it would say "Johnny" got a "D" in social studies.  As Johnny's teacher I would then get an email from mom and dad asking what he was "missing".  In a standards-based report card world, the discussion is no longer what is he "missing", but rather what does he not know.

In the elementary classroom the standards-based report cards make sense and seems to be a much easier sell than the high school classroom.  When switching to a standards-based report card in the high school many questions arise, such as:

• What about GPA and colleges?
• Elementary has 30 kids, high school teachers can see up to 150

I think these are questions that can be worked out.  A formula can be developed to translate into a GPA and a system can be established where 150 standards-based report cards are not insurmountable.  In the end, we are here for the students and to see what they know and are able to do.

A Repair Kit for Grading: 15 Fixes for Broken Grades by Ken O'Connor

Tech Tip - Minnesota Partnership for Collaborative Curriculum

The Minnesota Partnership for Collaborative Curriculum is a grassroots initiative to promote the creation of open digital curriculum. The goal is to leverage the power of collaboration and digital resources to launch teachers and students into new learning frontiers. The goal is to create course work in a digital format in the four core subject areas for grades 3-12. At the conclusion of the development project, all materials will be shared publicly under a creative common license.

Check out the website for more information and to see a list of courses that are already created and/or are currently in the works.

If you would like more information, Brandon can point you in the correct direction.

TEACHERS WANTED!!

MELT Call for Presentation

The MRVED is once again looking for people to present at the annual MELT conference in January.  The 2015 installment of the MELT will be held at Lac Qui Parle Valley High School on January 19.  This is a great day to showcase some of the great things you are doing in your classrooms.  Presenters will be paid a small stipend for their efforts.  If you are interested in providing a session, please click on the link below and fill out the form.  Filling out the form does not guarantee or bind you to providing a session.  If you don't want to present, but have great ideas for possible sessions, email Brandon at braymo@mrved.net.

If you are willing to present and provide a session click HERE

Repair Kit for Grading - Fix 6

Fix 6: Don't include group scores in grades; use only individual achievement evidence.

Cooperative learning is a great teaching strategy and research has proven that through cooperative learning student learning can dramatically increase.  However, O'Connor suggests that cooperative learning should be used as a form of formative assessment and not be graded.  After the cooperative learning activity, students can then individually be assessed for a better determination of learning.

Group scoring can be unfair and not accurately reflect what a student knows and is able to do.  For example, there are four members of a group.  Their task is to cooperatively create a presentation, three of the four members could work very hard and complete the task and receive an "A".  Does the fourth member deserve the "A"?  Therefore, group grading is unfair and not all students are accountable for the learning.

MRVED Business

Meeting Updates

Art Best Practice Meeting
The Art teachers met at the Ben Lecy farm in rural Belview, MN for their annual best practice meeting.  Dean Baldry and Ben Lecy (YME) planned the day and it was spent learning about smudging, fire pitting, talking sticks, dream catchers, local history, and many other outdoor art activities.  Ben treated us to a traditional soup as well as a fresh vegetable soup straight from his garden.  After lunch Ben gave us a tour of his beautiful place in rural Belview.  It was a great day of learning for our local art teachers and we are very fortunate to have someone like Ben Lecy in our area.  See the slideshow of pictures by clicking HERE.

Math Best Practice Meeting
The Math teachers assembled at the MRVED on Tuesday, October 21, for their annual best practice meeting.  The day started off with a presentation from Chris Sieling and Eric Schwankl, math teachers from Lakeview.  Their topic of presentation was revamping grading practices in the math classroom.  Both teachers shared practical advice that can be applied to the classroom.  The next activity the group did was provide feedback to the state on the math standards.  The Math standards are set to be under review in the coming year, and part of the state mandate is soliciting feedback from the public.  This feedback piece is built directly into the curriculum review and development cycle.  Lunch was fabulous as always.  The afternoon was spent networking and sharing ideas and a short presentation on SAMR by Brandon.  Overall another great day of learning!

MRVED Meetings

October 29, 2014  Superintendents'  Council
October 30, 2014  Title I Teachers
November 4, 2014  Guidance Counselors
November 5, 2014  Phy Ed/Health
November 13, 2014  Social Workers