Standards-Based Learning in Action: Moving from Theory to Practice

This two-day workshop will focus on the foundations of standards-based learning. First, participants will understand the critical role identifying the cognitive rigor of the standards plays in developing learning progressions and an assessment plan that balances both the formative and summative purposes of assessment. Then, creating clear criteria from the standards that lead to transferrable feedback will ensure deeper, more long-lasting learning.

Participants will also explore the role student agency plays in deeper learning and why critical competencies are an essential focal point. Finally, the essentials of standards-based grading will be highlighted to create a seamlessness between what is true of learners in the classroom and what ends up in any reporting system.

Note: A laptop is required for these sessions.

CONNECT & ENGAGE

There will be several group-based activities that will allow participants to engage with one another and connect the ideas presented to their own practice. Group discussions as well as a collaborative brainstorming activity will allow participants to work with different attendees not from their school teams.

LEARN

This will depend on each participant's level of assessment competence, but generally, the learning will focus on the fundamentals of standards-based learning and how they all seamlessly fit together to create an overall assessment plan.

Specifically, we'll focus on how the cognitive rigor of the standards, the criteria determined to meet those standards, the feedback that moves learning forward, and ultimately, the grades students earn, are connected.

REFLECT & APPLY

There will be time throughout the workshop for application. Rather than the usual "turn and talk" for 5-10 minutes, participants will be allotted 15-20 minutes (or longer) to apply the concepts at each stage to their classes/subjects. They will be given opportunities to reflect on current practices and apply the new learning to revise or refine what they already do.

OUTCOMES

Participants will...

• understand the importance of assessment planning alongside unit planning;
• create an assessment plan for a current or upcoming unit;
• explore the fundamentals of constructing a rubric;
• plan both formal and informal formative assessment strategies;
• plan for ways to avoid the "grading trap" and how it can sabotage good teaching.