Outlier Practices Make or Break the Learning Experience

We learn, and remember for that matter, from experience.  Thus, it is critical that the culture in your classroom and school positively impacts learners while adequately preparing them for their future, not our past.  I shared the following in Chapter 7 of Disruptive Thinking in Our Classrooms:

Almost all of us have heard the phrase, “Experience is the best teacher.” Growing up, I heard it a great deal. At the time, I didn’t appre¬ciate it or fully understand its meaning, but now I wholeheartedly con¬cur. Of course, there are some experiences I wish I could have avoided that resulted in negative outcomes, but they are still a significant com¬ponent of my story. The driving force behind the decisions we make is the innate beliefs we have about ourselves. Our experiences, positive and negative, shape who we are. They become an integral part of us and create our story.

Think about why you went into the field of education.  For many of us, the answer lies in the relationships that were forged by amazing teachers, administrators, coaches, custodians, bus drivers, or other support staff.  It was the experience that each provided that helped shape us into who we are today.  For me, there were several standout teachers that impacted me in ways that I am forever grateful for. Here is what I shared in Disrutive Thinking:

These teachers—and a handful of others throughout my own K-12 educational journey—engaged in practices that were memorable and perhaps even outside the norm. They did not focus on grades and homework; instead, they focused on learning and creating experiences designed to enhance students’ learning and push our thinking. In many ways, they were “outlier” educators who engaged in “outlier” practices which resulted in outside-the-box thinking and learning on the part of the students with whom they interacted. Pockets of excellence such as these examples are no longer good enough.

Many practices in education can fall into the outlier category. For the intents of this post, I want to focus on those that are either overused, underused, or ineffective, and that can either make or break a student’s experience.  They are as follows:

• Grades
• Zeros
• Homework
• Feedback
• Reflection 

Grades

Numbers and letters are synonymous with education. While I am not opposed to grades, I do feel that they often lack true clarity in terms of what a student has learned but are still an overused element in a traditional classroom.  The key is to make them as meaningful as possible through the use of multiple means of assessment, including rubrics and scaffolded tasks aligned to relevant application.  Assigning arbitrary points for participation and behavior as a part of scoring guides or on research papers should be avoided. These do not reflect what has been learned.  

Zeros

The practice of assigning a zero is ineffective as the only role it serves is to punish kids. Once given, it will completely distort a student’s grade, which will no longer represent what has been learned.  It is essential to determine first and foremost why the task is not being completed in the first place. In almost all cases, the assignment should be marked as incomplete until it is done. In my opinion, a zero should only be considered in the cases of cheating or if all other strategies have been exhausted. 

Homework

Rarely does a child come home excited to complete homework, yet it represents another overused outlier strategy. It tends to diminish excitement and appreciation for learning.  Many times, it is assigned because that’s the way it has always been.  In moderation, homework can be an effective strategy if it allows for the authentic application of key concepts learned in a timely manner.  You also can’t go wrong with reading. It should not be graded as there are equity issues or take hours of time to complete. Kids need to be kids. 

Feedback

While a grade might be the final indicator of what has been learned, it’s the feedback that helps students along the way.  This is an underused strategy where there is always room for growth.  Effective feedback is delivered promptly, involves learners in the process, and articulates how to advance towards a goal in relation to standards or concepts. 

Reflection

John Dewey said, “We don’t learn from experience…we learn from reflecting on experience.” Reflective learning allows kids to step back from their learning experience to help them develop disruptive thinking and improve future performance by analyzing their experience. It assists them in moving from surface to deep learning. Writing, video, peer interaction, and closure questions are a great way to incorporate reflection regularly. 

Outlier practices, depending on how they are implemented, can either promote or inhibit disruptive thinking. As you reflect on the outlier practices above where do you see an opportunity to grow or improve? What action steps will you take? The main takeaway is how they are implemented in ways that support or enhance learning while helping to build powerful relationships in the process. 

Students Remember Experiences, Rarely Grades

As a kid, my parents used to take me to professional baseball and hockey games all the time.  Even though I was an avid sports fan, I think I looked forward to the food and walking around the venue more than watching the sport that was being played.  Over time this changed, but as a kid eating junk food all day and not worrying about calories, sugar, or fat was the life. Herein lies my point. I vividly remember the food and atmosphere, but not the score of each game.  The same can be said for a variety of other experiences that have shaped my life and influenced my thinking over the years.

The Book Professor blog provides the following perspective:

How often have you heard the saying, “Experience is the best teacher.” I used to hear that a lot, especially while growing up, and while I didn’t always appreciate it then, I now agree with it 100%. Although there are some experiences I wish I could have avoided due to the pain they caused, they’re still a part of my story. The innate beliefs we have about ourselves can be the driving force behind the decisions we make. Our experiences (good or bad) shape who we are. They become a part of us, a part of our story.

When it comes to school, what do students remember? In the short term, it might be grades. However, as the years pass, what was earned becomes a distant memory.  For the most part, I only remember the grades that I got in graduate school as I earned all A’s and one B. I don’t remember any of my marks from K-12, but do know that I was an above-average student.  What I do recollect are the amazing experiences that some of my teachers provided me in their classes that epitomize the many strategies and ideas presented in Uncommon Learning. 

Mrs. Williams had us draw pictures in Kindergarten that depicted what we wanted to be when we grew up. At the time, I wanted to be a farmer.  In art, Mr. Wynn was one of the coolest teachers I ever had. Since I went to a K-8 school, I had him as a teacher for years.  Even though I was a horrible artist, he was always able to provide some sort of positive reinforcement. Mr. South had us evaluate how we would colonize Mars as 7th graders and then create prototypes of inventions that would help us get there.  Dr. Hynoski used humor and showed compassion in high school chemistry and anatomy.  I struggled to earn a good grade in both classes, but because of the classroom culture he created, I worked hard. I never had Mrs. McDonald or Mrs. O’Neil as teachers per se, but they were both student government advisors who were always willing to lend an open ear, whether it was school or personal related.  

The teachers above, and many more, helped to mold me into the person I am today, not because of their grading practices but through the fantastic experiences they created for my classmates and me.  While grades might work for some students, they definitely don’t for all, especially those who:

• Feel ashamed by the stigma that a letter or number has (or had) on them.
• Don’t learn one particular way, but that is how their classes were structured. 
• Receive high marks for not trying or being challenged and thus walk away questioning what was really learned.
• Are punished through unfair grading practices such as zeros where their final grade doesn’t adequately reflect what they learned. 
• Lacked relevance and meaning during their time in a respective class or course.

The key takeaway here is that more often than not, it’s the engaging, relevant, meaningful, fun, awe-inspiring, practical, and empathetic experiences that kids will remember long after they have had a specific teacher or graduated. The result is the formation of relationships that serve students more than any letter or number ever will. For grades to really mean something, there has to be a deeper, more emotional connection beyond what is just seen on a report card or transcript. This is what learning can and should be. 

The Problem With Zeros

The dreaded zero. For many students, this number elicits a certain amount of fear and anxiety that all assignments are turned in on time. I, for one, felt this way and made sure that everything was turned in when it was due.  Compliance and following rules, even if I didn’t agree with them, were just natural parts of my view of school.  Unfortunately, the effect does not transcend to every kid. Sometimes they forget. Other times they just don’t care. Regardless of the reasons, I think it is essential to critically examine the message and lesson that we are imparting to our youth through this outdated and, quite frankly, insensitive practice. 

The policy for giving zeros to students who do not turn in assignments when they are due has pretty much been entrenched in schools across the world. It is one of many examples that fall into what I call the “death trap” in education – that’s the way we have always done it.  Just because something has been done in the past, or is a traditional component of school culture, does not mean it is an effective practice.  In my opinion, it is well beyond the time to revisit this practice and determine if it truly is in the best interests of our learners.  Take the scenario below shared by Powers Thaddeus “Teddy” Norrell.

Emily is an engaged student who always pays attention in class, has a high class rank, and has never made a grade lower than an A. Emily’s first four grades in physics are 100, 99, 99, and 98. Emily is set to have a 99 average for the term. However, she has had an unusually busy week, and when she arrives at school on the morning the final assignment is due, she realizes that she has completely forgotten to do it. She explains her situation to the teacher and begs to be allowed to turn it in the next day. The teacher is unsympathetic and assigns Emily a grade of zero for the final assignment, telling her that this will prepare her for the “real world.”

Let’s examine the last statement regarding preparation for the real world. Correct me if I am wrong, but in education, teachers and administrators don’t receive zeros if they:

• Don’t arrive to work on time.
• Fail to meet a determined deadline (i.e., turn in lesson plans, complete all observations/evaluations by a set date, etc.)
• Don’t read or respond to email and as a result, are unprepared for meetings or don’t get needed information to colleagues when required.
• Forget to call parents back

Now other professions might have stricter accountability, but more often than not, there is leeway.  The question then becomes what message or lesson are we really teaching students by giving zeros? If learning and growth is the goal, then it is our responsibility to tackle this issue as the negative impacts on our learners far outweigh the need to make an example or fall back on the “preparation for the real-world” rationale. 

As a principal, I worked with my staff to tackle this issue as well as the overall practice of grading. I’m not going to lie; it was one of the hardest change initiatives I ever engaged in during my tenure as principal. Now I am not saying our solution was perfect or the best by any means. However, it did represent a step in a better direction in that we focused more on learning as opposed to grades and marks. You can see the specific changes and associated rationale for our revamped grading philosophy HERE. Below is what the committee came to a consensus on in regard to zeros:

No zeros: Students are not to be assigned a grade of zero (0).  This not only reflects grading as punishment but also creates a hole that students cannot dig out of (Guskey, 2000; Reeves, 2004; Reeves, 2008; O'Conner and Wormeli, 2011).  This includes HW, quizzes, tests, projects, etc.  An exception to this would be cases that involved cheating, plagiarism, or a midterm/final exam no show without a justifiable excuse (i.e., doctor’s note, death in the family, etc.).

For some practical alternatives to dishing out zeros check out the latter portion of the article by Norrell titled Less Than Zero. It is important to determine why students don’t turn in specific assignments such as homework and projects as a way to mitigate even having to consider doling out zeros.  Consider the following questions:

• Is the assignment meaningful and relevant? 
• Does the learner see the purpose in it?
• Will feedback be given?

Reflecting on these questions can help lead to the creation of better assignments that are more relevant, and kids actually want to complete.  Punishing learners with zeros destroys both morale and a love of learning by digging a hole that many cannot recover from (nor do they have any aspirations to do so).  They also create a mirage in terms of what was actually learned.  If a grade does not reflect learning than what’s the point? We owe it to our students to pave a better path forward. 

Guskey, T. R. (2000). Grading policies that work against standards … and how to fix them. NASSP Bulletin, 84(620), 20–29.

O'Connor, K. (2007). A repair kit for grading: 15 fixes for broken grades. Portland, OR: Educational Testing Service.

O’Connor, K., & Wormeli, R. (2011). Reporting student learning. Educational Leadership, 69(3), 40-44.

Reeves, D. B. (2004). The case against zero. Phi Delta Kappan, 86(4), 324–325.

Reeves, D. B. (2008). Effective grading practices. Educational Leadership, 65(5), 85–87. 

Learning is the Reward

Let’s face it, school, as we know it is driven by grades as the main reflection of what students do, or do not, know.  What has resulted is a rat race of sorts where many kids and parents alike have their eye on the prize. The prize in this case is either a coveted letter or number grade that is celebrated above the most important aspect of education – whether a student actually learned and can apply this newly constructed knowledge in meaningful ways. Micro-credentials, although a step in a better direction as a means to make feedback more personal, can also perpetuate this problem.  

The process of grading is convoluted and fraught with errors and at times arbitrary decisions.  Just think about the inherent disaster of points systems. Many grades are determined using an accumulation of points over a set amount of time including homework (just checked for completeness), extra-credit, meeting (or failing to meet) behavioral expectations, participation, or a loss of points for late assignments.  The last example illustrates how many grades are nowhere close to indicating what a student has actually learned. The issues with grading are not new.  After an analysis of several research studies, Alfie Kohn (2011) concluded the following:

• Grades tend to diminish students’ interest in whatever they’re learning.  
• Grades create a preference for the easiest possible task.
• Grades tend to reduce the quality of students’ thinking.

Grading perpetuates a bigger problem.  If students come through our doors each day to just "do school" then we have already failed them. By failure I mean a blatant disregard for providing them with the necessary skills, behaviors, and qualities that a grade could never quantify.  Grading is a major component compelling kids to just go through the motions and “do” school. Learning, not grades, should be the reward for students. Helping them recognize this is the challenge we must all accept. I recently came across the learning pit concept and it immediately resonated with me.  With learning as not only the goal, but also the final outcome, students are guided through a process that illustrates how learning is the ultimate reward. When grades are thrown into the mix the focus becomes a path of least resistance, negating the positive outcomes associated with students experiencing the learning pit. 

Image credit: http://francinemassue.weebly.com/

What is the hard truth about traditional grades and how they are currently used? In this day and age I think grades are more for parents and schools than they are for the students we are trying to serve. Learning is not only a messy process, but it the path also varies greatly from student to student. All kids learn differently and possess different and unique abilities to show us that they understand concepts. Makerspace work and projects that students engage in are a great example of this point. Students do to learn through trial and error, failure, collaboration, cross-disciplinary connections, taking risks, and overcoming certain fears that grades bring about. The ultimate reward is making something that does something and in many cases this is a workable solution to a problem they identified. 

I think we are a long way off from abolishing all grades.  That doesn’t mean we can’t critically reflect on the role grades play and how they are calculated.  If the true goal of schools is learning then that should be reflected somehow in a grade.  We must begin by developing better formative and summative assessments that move away from students telling us what they know and instead show us that they understand. A mindset shift is also needed where students work and think in ways that allow them to experience the inherent rewards of entering and exiting the learning pit.  This is Quad D learning at its finest. 

Recognizing the Valedictorian in All

Yesterday I attended the Bergen County Valedictorian breakfast where New Milford High School's top student was honored.  It was a great event and I am so proud of the accomplishments that are clearly apparent amongst all of the top students in my area.  The valedictorians and salutatorians for that matter are recognized for their achievement of academic greatness at events like this and commencement ceremonies across the country.  Quite frankly I am in awe of their commitment to learning.

While I was at the breakfast I began to think about all of the other students at my school and their respective achievements.  Shouldn't they all be recognized and treated like valedictorians?  I am not taking anything away from the incredible accomplishments of students that finish overall in their class, but the overwhelming desire to inspire all students to mature into life-long learners calls out to me. 

There is consistent talk around education circles about the relevance of grades as a reinforcer or indicator of academic excellence.  I'll be the first one to admit that this is the only criteria used to determine our top 10 students each year, all of whom are recognized at our yearly senior awards dinner.  Recognizing the valedictorian in all students requires a shift from traditional awards ceremonies and acknowledgment acts.  So what does this vision entail?  Here are my thoughts on other ways to acknowledge great achievements of students to make all of them feel worthy and appreciated for their dedication to learning:

1. Developing a philosophy that supports a school culture where every student is made to feel special. 
2. Utilizing more positive reinforcement.  This is probably the easiest strategy to employ.  It is not that hard or much to ask of educators to tell students consistently that they are doing a great job. 
3. Developing alternative recognition programs that acknowledge all students as they exhibit growth, determination, engagement, effort, and a focus towards learning.  After all, aren't these significant attributes that lead to a love for learning?  Learning and achievement are always tied together.  There must be a stronger emphasis on behalf of schools to acknowledge those students that are learning, but not necessarily achieving at the highest levels (as determined by grading systems). 
4. Involvement, not just success, in non-curricular initiatives such as community service, athletics, the arts, and other extra-curricular activities. 
5. Inviting the Administration, Central Office, BOE members, parents, as well as other teachers and students to be a part of these new recognition programs.  By doing so the students will feel that their work and commitment in and out of school has value.
6. New systems, in conjunction with current grading schemes, that provide all students with meaningful feedback and instill a sense of accomplishment and self-worth.

I understand that the list above is no magic bullet by any means.  However, I feel that the field of education must design innovative ways to acknowledge all students in ways that make them feel as important as valedictorians.  The process begins with a commitment to help all students see that their respective successes are just as important as their peers.  This is not an easy task bestowed upon us, and I look forward to hearing about your ideas.