This is a brief excerpt from my presentation at NTPRS 2018.
Things to keep in mind:
1) If I did not have to assess notebooks, I would not.
2) I have to assess something so that my class "looks like school". Because it doesn't really. So this is what I do.
3) There is some value in holding students accountable for their learning. But I don't think there is value in a language class for holding students accountable for what they have not yet acquired. Thus, I do not mark errors.
4) Notebooks are graded as "work", or in my case, "Language Participation."
5) If I assign summative assessments (e.g. reading quizzes), I have students turn in the quiz to me so I can grade it quickly (and not have a stack of notebooks). When I return the quizzes, they glue them in.
Assessment Logistics
· Graded twice within a marking period (but I tell them it
is random)
·
Worth 50 points each time: 40 points content, 10 points
organization
·
Each page is between 2-10 points, depending on what it
is.
·
Grade on a rubric (click here for an editable version)
·
Grade for completion, not accuracy
·
Do not mark errors
·
Accept late/missing content up until the Hard Deadline.
Assessment Tips
·
At the beginning of each marking period, plan out when
you are going to collect, grade, and return notebooks. Also make note of your own deadlines (grades
due, etc.) and decide when your hard deadlines will be.
·
Use a reliable student to keep track of handouts for
absent students and keep them in an "absent student" folder.
·
Don't worry about keeping a "master" notebook
for each class. Instead, when you grade,
chose a student who is never absent and fairly organized, and use theirs as a
model.
·
It is worth keeping track of what pages you grade each
marking period, and any notes about assignments
