I share the following video every time I talk about reassessments. It's a "must watch" 8 minute segment where
+Rick Wormeli explains his reasoning behind various highly enlightened educational approaches.
Don't Give Up
I love the idea that no student should be allowed to fail. Being the grown up means owning the responsibility and when we are in charge of group of young people it make sense that its ultimately up to us to ensure their success. After watching the video it was really clear that, especially in middle school, it is unrealistic for students to have the maturity or insights to willingly hurt their futures.
The Growth Mindset
We should be creating structures where students can develop their understandings in a safe environment. When students know that they have an ally who will stand beside them the whole way, even then they don't understand builds upon where learning and growth is valued. My journey towards providing reassessment all started with this video. It just makes sense to me that students should be able to review, then relearn topics and demonstrate growth on any topic.
Every Assignment Gets Done
Perhaps the biggest takeaway for me was the notion Rick expresses towards the end of this video about completing assignments vs. allowing students to skip them. In our classroom, this means that each activity is meaningful and most, if not all, of the students
want to do their work. Activities result in unique outcomes which would be impossible to copy and a many are done without mention of grades or grading. When frequent timely, descriptive feedback within the formative assessment framework helps students understanding of their own proficiency levels they take interest in building their expertise without the carrot and stick approach.
Whats Is Your Take?
To say that this video influenced my current educational philosophies is an understatement. I find myself nodding in agreement along with everything Rick says each time I watch it. How did you feel about his main points?
