Blog – Page 13 – Path 2 Proficiency

Mid-year checkup

It’s December, folks. In case you haven’t heard the announcements about upcoming concerts, special assemblies, fire drills, and semester exams, the close of the first semester is upon us. In the midst of all of these deadlines and Secret Santa lists, it’s easy to lose track of the path to proficiency. I know it’d be easy to just talk about holiday celebrations in the target language countries for now and just pick up with real lessons in January at the start of the second semester, but we all know that proficiency takes time to build.

So, how can we take time to enjoy the holiday season, prepare students for exams, and still enjoy ourselves? It’s so difficult because we teachers are often overachievers. In fact, that may be why we became teachers in the first place–we were those students who loved every minute of school, and we want to the share that with the next generation.

Here are some tips on how to beat the December Doldrums:

1. Celebrate with your students.

Celebrate all they’ve accomplished over the course of the semester in terms of proficiency. Take some time to reflect on what they could do at the start of the semester, and compare that with all they can do now. What more can they say? How much more can they write? How are they utilizing follow up questions? Take some time, before the exam, to reflect on their growth and to praise them for how far they’ve come. Often, I have thought I wasn’t really getting through to my students until I was grading assessments, and I saw they used a certain complex structure or were using more advanced vocabulary. I was focusing on what they hadn’t learned rather than what they had.

2. Reorient your students.

Remind your students of your targets at the end of the year and how you are going to reach them. Start talking about the next year of study, and encourage them to think about expanding their skills over the next year. That kind of goal-setting is encouraging to students because they see what they’ve accomplished already, so they are certain they can reach the next target. You have built so much into your students so far; don’t let the momentum subside at the sight of cookies and egg nog.

3. Pace yourself.

There are going to be plenty of holiday parties coming up after school in addition to the parties at school from PTA, student groups and clubs, as well as gifts from parents. And all of this is going on while you’re planning for lessons, reviews, and exams. Not to mention grading. So remember to pace yourself. Have a cookie or two while planning. Dip into the egg nog as a reward after those grading sessions. And remember to keep up with your exercise routine, too. Just because the weather is colder and the sun is setting sooner doesn’t mean there’s not a beautiful world out there to discover. Set your timers, live your life, and remember that the break is coming soon.

4. Collaborate with colleagues.

It’s so easy to have tunnel vision about finishing our classes this time of year that we forget to check in with our colleagues. Remember to keep up that collaboration on an activity, lesson planning (we could all use a few extra minutes on this one, am I right?), and reviewing for exams. We don’t go it alone the other times in the semester, so we can lean on our colleagues during this time, too. And remember, like Bill Withers said, “Lean on Me.” This is the perfect time of year to take a cup of coffee to that colleague who might be new on the team or to say “Thank you” to that administrator you’ve worked closely with this semester.

5. Have fun.

Things will not go exactly as you thought. Despite everything you’ve planned or how you’ve planned around potential distractors for class, sometimes things come up that we cannot avoid, so have fun and laugh when life throws those curve balls your way. You and your students have worked incredibly hard this semester. When all else fails, remember what you’ve learned about your students in order to start next semester strong knowing that you can reach them even better. The holidays should bring us joy, so revel in that even while teaching.

How do you beat the December Doldrums? The Fall Frownies? The Midterm Mishaps? The Semester Sadness? Remember, proficiency is a path, so enjoy the journey! Let’s encourage each other along the way.

Gear up for ACTFL!

The ACTFL Annual Convention & World Languages Expo is gearing up for an exciting weekend in San Diego, California! Many are already there to take part in pre-conference workshops, as well as to participate in the NCSSFL and NADSFL conferences.

Since the ACTFL convention is so large, and there are so many great sessions happening at the same time, we have a couple of tools for you.

Take a look at Thomas Sauer’s post on Creating Your Conference Path.
Sign up for text alerts from the TELL Project on upcoming sessions and giveaways!
Visit us at Booth 1330 for mini sessions, to talk with teacher leaders, and learn from world language experts.
Follow us on Facebook and Twitter!
Use #path2actfl on social media as you’re on your way throughout the weekend.

We are so excited to join you this at ACTFL, as well as on the path to proficiency!

Creating Your Conference Path

There is not a doubt in my mind that attending professional conferences early in my career has strongly influenced my beliefs and practices as an educator. I can still recall the intellectual cloud nine I would be floating on after returning from a conference. There is a giant pile of free bags stuffed with handouts and materials that I picked up at each conference. Did I use any of it in my own teaching? Not likely. And yet it made a difference. Of course it’s 2015 and going to a conference doesn’t quite have the same appeal anymore as it did 10-20 years ago. In 2015 I can find handouts, materials and resources any day of the week just by opening up my #langchat tab on the computer or browsing the many amazing world language teacher blogs. Why do I still go and how can you get even more value out of a conference? Well there is just something to be said about having a face-to-face conversation. To ensure you have a bunch of those conversations, allow me to share my conference plan with you.

Step 1: Set some professional goals for yourself.

Even if you did this at the beginning of the school, now is probably a good time to take stock of where you are as a teacher this year. Taking one of the many TELL (Teacher Effectiveness for Language Learning) self-assessments will provide you with a pretty good picture of who you are as a world language teacher. Be sure to really think about your answer. Remember this is a self-assessment and not an evaluation. Be honest with yourself and try to think about it this way: Where is the evidence in my work that I’m meeting one of these TELL criterion. If you can’t think of the evidence, you probably aren’t doing it. Once you have completed the self-assessment set a couple of goals for yourself. Research says that anything more than two goals is not realistic and you’ll likely end up not meeting any of them. What is your goal for THIS conference?

Step 2: Read the conference program with a critical eye.

It’s easy to get overwhelmed by conference programs these days, especially if it is a big national or regional conference. Hundreds of sessions and you just keep thinking if you pick one, you’ll miss something amazing by not going to another. Most of us pick sessions about topics that we already know something about. I’m good at xyz, I’m going to go to xyz session to learn more about it or to validate what I already know. Some of us, pick sessions based on the names of the presenters. I heard so-and-so is a great presenter, so I’ll go and see so-and-so. The problem with identifying sessions this way is that you’ll end up in a session given by so-and-so talking about xyz and even though you may learn something and are engaged in the session, it’s not helping you become a better teacher because it’s not connected to the goal you identified. Instead mark only those sessions in the program that will actually help you reach your goals and provide you with just the right input to improve your practice. If you are trying to use more target language more of the time, then only go to those sessions. If you are trying to provide your learners with better feedback, then only go to those sessions. Just because so-and-so is a popular speaker, doesn’t mean they can help you learn. Don’t feel like you are missing out by not going to his or her session. Likely, so-and-so will be back next year and who knows what your goals will be by then. And if you don’t want to know what you are “missing” how about just using the search feature on a conference program since so many of them are now shared digitally or via a mobile app. Not only will you find the session that you really need, but you will save some time reading the program.

Step 3: Skip a session.

This is going to be a hard one, I know. You or your school paid a lot of money for you to attend the conference and you are determined to get as much input as possible from every single session that is offered. You are running up and down the stairs from session to session and squeezing in some time in the exhibit hall hoping to score a free poster for your classroom. Unfortunately, most conferences don’t organize their schedules in a way to allow you even a moment to breath, never mind think and process what you have just learned. Sure, you can say you are going to implement that awesome idea you just learned about in the session next week or next year, but without taking the time to reflect on your new learning that idea will quickly fall into the darkness of your overflowing teacher mind and you’ll end up not implementing any new ideas. After you have attended a session, sit down for a few minutes and try to answer these question:

How do you FEEL about your learning in this session? What is your emotional response? Are you excited about the possibilities? Are you uncomfortable with what the presenter was suggesting? Are you scared about what this could mean for your teaching?
What did you LEARN in this sessions? Even if you took notes, or got a comprehensive handout, try to draw out some of the larger lessons or principles from this session, learning both from the actual experience, as well as your emotional responses to it.
What if? How does what you’ve learned tie back into your teaching situation? Consider how you might apply it when you get back home.
What are the NEXT steps you are going to take? Consider what actions you’ll take next as a result of your learning and reflection. Identify at least one next step you will take in your teaching situation. Consider how you will know that you have been successful in your implementation of a new idea.
What ELSE do you need to learn? Now that you have a micro plan what else do you need to learn about this idea? Are there other sessions that you could attend to help you get a better understanding? Do you need to revise your schedule and find a different session?

Step 4: Be social.

Probably one of the biggest benefits of attending a conference, aren’t necessarily the wonderful sessions, but meeting so many people who are there for the same reasons as you are: to be better teacher. But not just any teacher: to be a better world language teacher. Take advantage of this incredible opportunity to meet new friends, reconnect with old ones and just be empowered by being with like-minded people. There is no other professional rush, then hanging out with other teachers. And if you are not the chatty type, consider meeting people via social media. Twitter has made it so easy to connect teachers from all around the world, you should connect with other conference attendees. Who knows, they might even invite you to meet for a real cup of coffee.

On a personal note: it’s no secret that I’m not the biggest fan of conferences. I have even called conference programs the big book of opinions. Most presenter would like you believe that their idea is the greatest one since sliced bread and if only you do it exactly as they did it with their level 2 kids, you will be successful too. There are no magic bullets and no secret sauce to language teaching. Just because an idea is being shared at a national conference doesn’t mean it will work for you and for the learners entrusted to you. I’m hoping that by using the steps outlined above, you will try to personalize your conference experience by setting goals that are meaningful to you, find sessions that will help you reach your goals, and then reflect alone and perhaps with others on the new learning. Can’t wait to see you at a conference!

Classroom Connections

I think it would be fair to warn you, I am somewhat obsessed with my classroom. I love the empty, bare walls at the beginning of the year, and the possibility of the language learning that is going to happen. Crazy, right? I love that I get to be creative and prepare the best environment that I can for the 90+ kids I’m going to teach each semester. Even when it’s done, I’m not done. I am constantly updating and thinking of new ways to make it more inviting, student-friendly, and language-driven (I’ll show you my new and improved art posters another day).

I have beginning teachers visit all the time, and they walk in and are immediately overwhelmed by the amount of Spanish language and culture that covers pretty much every inch of my room. Once they get over the initial shock, they realize that my students are not overwhelmed, but rather engaged in language learning because of the setup of my room. My kids are trained to look to different places for different things that they need, and they are able to stay in the target language and even to produce more language because of the classroom environment. My room is not just a place where kids are located during Spanish instruction; it facilitates and enhances the learning that takes place. Let me show you what I mean, before you think “this woman is completely insane…what can a classroom possibly do to ‘facilitate learning’?”

[rule type=”basic”]

Nuestra Vida: Classroom Rules

I have this wall posted in my room and I keep it there the entire year. It has everything I need to reference to explain to anyone how and why my room runs the way it does. It also is a great reminder to the kids when I walk over to it and say “Now, which part of our contract are we breaking right now?” and they can tell me and we move forward from there. I have 4 pieces of the Classroom Contract: My Commitments, My Expectations, My Policies, and My Consequences.

[rule type=”basic”]

Agenda: Learning Sequence

The agenda is not, as I used to believe, an annoyance that I have to post every day to keep admin off my back. It’s actually really important for me, my students, and anyone walking through my room. It’s a concrete way for everyone to be on the same page and to know what’s going on. I teach 4 preps this semester, and without an agenda, I would not be able to hold together everything that I have planned for each class. I also think the agenda holds me accountable to the performance objectives because when I write out the activities on the board, I can see if/how they support my daily goals, or if I’m just trying to fill time. It also helps those students who need structure to know what is coming next, even though I only write down the big rocks, not every transitional piece of the class period. For my more game-oriented students, the agenda shows the games I have planned for later as an incentive to get through my direct instruction now.

[rule type=”basic”]

Learning Tools: Daily Slide & Supply Station

The Daily Slide and Supply Station form the basis for my entrance routine. I can’t stress enough how much this has helped me with the procedural flow of my class. I create the Daily Slide, and on it, I have the date in the target language, the materials my kids are going to need, labeled in the target language, the I Can statements for the day in English (personal preference) and instructions for the Warm Up. Starting on Day 1, I train my kids to come in, look at the Daily Slide and connect the supply words on the board to the supply words at the station. They form a line, get their supplies and papers for the day and sit down to do their Warm Up. Every. Single. Day.

[rule type=”basic”]

Performance Objectives: I-Can Statements & Standards

Originally, I designated board space for my performance objectives and made boxes for them with painters tape. Every day I wrote up the I Can statements next to the Standard and tried to keep it all straight. I had multiple preps, and sometimes I would forget to write one, or they would all be squashed and small in the same box, as you see above. Not the best method, and the students surely couldn’t read them, but I was trying to do the right thing. Then, at some point, I got smart! I typed them all up, printed them, color coded them by level, and laminated them. I know it sounds like a lot of work, but once it’s done, it’s done. I used Velcro dots to stick them up to my whiteboard, but this year I use push pins, because I have a bulletin board instead. It can also be done with a hanging pocket chart in the classroom on a wall, or on one side of your cart. To keep them organized and easily accessible I got fancy with some plastic pocket tab dividers, and used them as folders, and stapled them to the board (an accordion file by your desk works just as well if you don’t have space). My “I-Can” statements are now manageable for each prep, big enough to be read by my kids, and I don’t lose any of them, which is a huge plus.

[rule type=”basic”]

Performance Objectives: Proficiency Posters

Another staple in my room is the proficiency poster continuum which I reference every time I give them any performance task, big or small. My kids know their proficiency levels, and what that looks like in all the modes because we’ve worked with them since Day 1. The posters are in order in the front of the room where we can see them and I can reference them easily. The posters help my kids own their work, and they know what it will take to “level up”. On the flip side, I can celebrate like crazy with them because I can show them examples of their work that is higher than their expected proficiency level for that particular task. Also, I made a second set and put them up in the hallway outside my room…I mean, it doesn’t hurt to educate everyone and promote my program, right?

[rule type=”basic”]

La Pared de Palabras: A Learning Tool

TL 90+ means that what the students see and interact with is in the target language 90% of the time. I want to supply them with as much language as possible, so I have multiple word walls. I use assorted Spanish verbs with pictures to represent them, not English words. I don’t want them to have to think about the word in English to pull the word in Spanish from their brains. I want them to see an image and associate a Spanish word. No middle man. No English translations. I wrote the Spanish word cards, and bought the picture cards at OfficeMax in the teacher area. I really love these because they’re all verbs. From the very beginning my students learn a few basic phrases and, using the word wall, feel empowered to speak simply on more topics.

I have another style of word wall as well, that uses our curriculum specific words organized by Unit with with Clip Art pictures specific to the words. I made each Unit in a PowerPoint and printed out the slides in color and laminated them to use as the Word Wall. I like the Clip Art because it shows a very bright, clear picture. There’s a reason kids are drawn to cartoons, right?

[rule type=”basic”]

La Pared de Cultura: Cultural Goals

At the beginning of the year, before the students know any content, I use all pictures of culturally relevant places and maps for focus walls. I love using pictures of places I’ve actually been, because then I can tell them stories in down time moments about the pictures that they see all the time. They connect to the culture through me, and I’m able to make a distant place seem real. Once they start learning content, and they are able to do some things in the language, they become responsible for the culture walls and I switch things around a bit. I choose a country each unit, and give them free reign to investigate their interests in that country, using language that they know to explain what they discovered. They also have to print out a little picture to go with their discovery so that we can put it up on the wall.

[rule type=”basic”]

La Pared de Estrellas: Student Work

Student work is an important thing to have in your classroom. I mean, everyone loves to see their name in lights! Having work posted in the classroom, and in the halls if you’re allowed to, gives my students a sense of ownership and buy-in. They know that if they do well, I am going to show off what they are doing to anyone who steps into my classroom. Also, admin love to see proof I’m actually doing something, and they know they can tour people past my classroom to show off the language program.

Untitled-2 — I make sure that when I put up work that it shows the best examples of what I asked for in the assignment. I keep a few lousy examples to show future classes what not to do, but I only post the high-quality work. When I post the work, I include the assignment description and the rubric I used for grading. That way, certain students can see why theirs isn’t up there, and the admin know what you were asking for.

Final Thoughts

So…now that you’ve taken this whirlwind tour through my classroom, let me share one last thought with you. My goal with my kids is to empower them as learners, and equip them with the tools they need to grow their proficiency in the language. That’s it. That’s all I do. My classroom is a huge part of that effort because it invites them in, supports them in their learning process, and allows for us to reflect on their performance and celebrate their success. I believe that if they’re in a space where they feel welcomed and supported, they’ll go above and beyond in their efforts. I hope this has inspired you to get a little more obsessed with your own classroom. Even a minor change can have a major impact on what you get from your students. Let me know if I can help!

Strategic Planning

Planning for a lesson in a world language classroom must include more than vocabulary. So often I have heard teachers talk only about the vocabulary that their students need to know for a certain unit, but these very teachers have been dismayed by how stilted their students sound while speaking in the target language. On the other hand, there have been teachers whose students felt comfortable speaking in the target language, but did not have a broad vocabulary. Add to the mix proficiency targets that more and more districts are including for their students, and there seems to be a swath of teachers who are planning for their lessons, though they may not be planning strategically for how their students will utilize the structures they need to in order to advance in their proficiency levels.

When my kitchen faucet started leaking a few months ago, I tried to just tighten the handle at the sink, but that didn’t fix the leak. Then the handle came right off with water bubbling up from where the stem connected to the sink. Trying to put the handle back on didn’t fix anything either. After searching the hardware store for a couple of different parts that might fix one part, I opted to replace the entire system. As I got under the sink to take off the old faucet, I tried to loosen the nuts with a standard wrench, but it was such a funny angle that I couldn’t get much leverage to make any movement. After hours of shifting, reconfiguring, and scraping a knuckle or two, my wife suggested I might want to get the specific tool–a basin wrench–in order to loosen the nuts and take off the faucet. As soon as I got back from the hardware store with the basin wrench, several hours after I started this project, the old faucet came off within seconds, and I was able to put on the new faucet. All in all, by using the specific tool designed for this task, I was able to replace the faucet within 30 minutes.

The key here is “specific tool designed for this task.” As language teachers, we are teaching our students how to use the target language as a tool for communication. If we provide our students with the tools to be able to effectively communicate inside the classroom, then they will be much more able to use those tools outside of the classroom and feel proud about it! That cycle of success will reinforce their desire to learn more in class, so they can communicate even more outside of class. Our learning targets, therefore, must match what our activities are for that class in order to achieve

As we embrace the ACTFL proficiency guidelines for language instruction across the country, we must also align our curriculum to meet certain targets along that continuum. It is simply not enough for our students to take two years of a language in high school or college, but not be able to move beyond the novice level. In order for our students to achieve those targets, however, we teachers must design tasks in order for our students to be able to progress and meet those targets. No, it’s not as tidy as providing fill-in-the-blank exercises, conjugation drills, or even reading comprehension questions. It might involve relinquishing the Grammar Police badge a little as the students make a mistake or two as they are sustaining a conversation. It might be a little noisier with students all talking at once rather than one-on-one with the teacher, but the gains are so much greater, and they are worth it!

As we teachers design our lessons around the functions our students should use more so than the vocabulary they should use, our students will wow as they perform at that higher level and keep progressing on their path to proficiency!

Back…for Good

Four years ago, I left the classroom abruptly in the middle of February to go to (what I thought at the time) was my dream job. While I don’t rue my decision, I definitely know that it led me to realize how much I value being in the classroom and how much I love my students. Someone once said the best teachers fall in love with their classes, and that was certainly true for me. As my former colleague told me, “You left too soon.”

Last May, I became department chair at Miami Dade College InterAmerican Campus, but what I loved even more than being a World Language administrator in higher education (my first full-time job at a college), was that I got to go back to the classroom and teach. In the three years that I was gone, I had learned a ton. I learned that most of what I did right, I did because of instinct. I learned that how you make students feel in your class is as important as what you do. I learned that if you don’t question that you do, you will never change. And most importantly, I learned that if you don’t embrace change, you will not grow – and stagnant is not a word I like.

In January, I got to teach students for the first time in four years, and, to be honest, I went back to 2011 me. I think I did a decent job with my Japanese 1120 and 1121 students, but I quickly realized that I was just getting by. I would say I tried innovation light – using an LMS for my class, creating meaningful projects that appealed to my students’ desire to be creators of products, but also relying on my textbook as my curriculum and unwilling to leave behind grading methods that tell students “You got an A” which, let’s face it, means next to nothing.

I promised myself when the fall semester started in August that I would try things differently. German has always been my more comfortable teaching language, and it is the language that I more closely identify with when people ask me what I do. Now eight weeks into the semester, here is what I have learned so far:

Shared ownership of the learning process promotes success.
One of the most important things that I wanted to do in my classroom was to change the ownership of learning. I always said to teachers, “Do your students know what is going on in your classroom? If you ask them what they are doing and why, can they tell you?” In an effort to share ownership of learning, I changed the way I communicated with my students. Now, I use can do statements to frame the learning that we do. The focus of these statements is always on communication, never on linguistic structure. Be it using stamp sheets to let students know what is expected or sharing can do statements as a way of framing a lesson, our goal is always clear and measurable. I also changed my grading to standards-based grading by sharing rubrics with my students that describe what they can do with the language, rather than giving them a letter grade. Gone are the papers marked in red pen that point out all your errors, instead there is wording that focuses on what you can do and how you can grow in your proficiency. Not only do my students reflect and self-assess using these rubrics when they do an assessment, they also allow me to give them richer feedback on their performance. It’s messy, I’m not perfect at it, but it’s worth the try. And guess what? No one is failing – and, in the end, isn’t that what we all want?

Technology is a friend of change.
I am teaching my class using BlackBoard as my LMS in a web-enhanced format. We meet twice a week for an hour and forty minutes, but once we leave the classroom, I turn to technology. Using an LMS has allowed me to grow as a teacher, and my students are now used to asking, “What are we getting to try this week?” So far, some of the most popular things have been using the Conversations feature from to capture a simulated conversation with MSU’s Conversations, creating an interactive video about education in Germany using EdPuzzle, keeping a student Wiki which students update weekly (and which they peer edit) that includes recordings using Vocaroo, and using LMS features such as surveys, quizzes, and discussion boards to share ideas about learning German. I am constantly looking to learn about more tools to try out, and I am reminded of statistics that show that while millennials want more technology, many professors are digital immigrants working at analog institutions. I remind myself that technology cannot be an extension of old ways of teaching, but rather the vehicle that drives innovation to extend the time that you have with students beyond the four walls of the classroom.

Focusing on proficiency helps you focus on the why.
I have never been shy to ask myself, why am I teaching something? Early in my career, I never asked myself this question. After all, my teachers and professors never asked that either. They just did what they did. But I have come to realize that responsibility in the classroom means that you constantly ask why you are doing something. I have always loved teaching grammar because I love how language works, but I have always balanced it with using language via personalization to create meaning from grammar. This semester, I promised myself: “I will not teach grammar. I will teach pop-up grammar when my students need it.” Instead, I have focused on using the target language, focusing on functional chunks of language, and allowing my students to make mistakes to find their way. This is how six weeks into the semester students can create some language to talk about what happened (but wait, isn’t past tense level 2?), as well as play around with language. By focusing on how well they can communicate rather than on how accurately they do it, I find that I am much more impressed by my students’ progress. And just last week, I had one student tell me, “I love German. I feel like I say so much already.”

If you’re reading this, you are probably someone like me: someone who is looking to do something they do well even better. What I love about our profession is that when I reach out to people, their answer most often is, “Yes, how can I help?” So if that’s you, either the helper or the one who needs the help, give yourself a pat on the back for always wanting to do better, to keep growing and to learn more. I’m right there with you.

Proficiency and Grading Mashup

“I can’t put Intermediate 1 in the gradebook,” I declared to my class. “I wish I could, but I can’t.” I continued, “So how are we going to show the number equivalent to your proficiency rating?” It turns out that everyone’s fine with being on target unless it interferes with their GPA.

Shelby County Schools, where I work, has a built-in pre-unit on proficiency for every level to make sure the students, parents, and teachers are all on the same page in talking about what in the world it means to have a certain proficiency level, so the students–my students–can state the district target, my class target, and how they can achieve each level by the end of the year. That being said, I still can’t put in Intermediate 1 in the gradebook.

How do we track proficiency? How do I measure my students’ grades? It’s a tricky thing because while students want to be measured solely on doing all of their work, there’s no way we, as teachers, can provide any kind of feedback based solely on that. If we want our students to be proficient–actually using the language–we must move beyond grading vocabulary or fill-in-the-blank grammar quizzes and assess them based on performance in using the language.

To get things rolling, take a look at what Whitehaven High School’s world languages department did last year. Or you can take a look at White Station’s scale for this year. It’s a move in the right direction, and it shifts per language level.

It is important to remember that the proficiency markers are our anchors, no matter what number or letter grade equivalent you choose to use. The proficiency markers might not change much from year to year, though the grading scale might from one district to another. It is also important to reassure students (and parents) that we’re on the right path, but we’re all in this together.

Some thoughts about the “g word”

No matter what group of teachers. No matter what the original topic of the conference session, workshop, or professional learning training. Without fail, at some point someone is going to ask the dreaded question: “But how do I grade this?” While I try to be as helpful as possible and provide some solutions for the grading issue, my initial answer usually is “proficiency and grading don’t mix well.” I also know that’s not the answer that people want to hear as it ignores a teacher reality of having to give grades in the current system. Is there a way to combine the need to assign grades to please the system with the real purpose of assessment in a world language classroom: performance & feedback? A recent Musicentos post got me once again thinking about this question. Sara-Elizabeth’s post makes reference to the JCPS Performance rubric, so I will try to explain our thought processes in developing the rubric as well as one of the biggest challenges of rubric.

ORIGINAL JCPS RUBRIC WAS A COMPROMISE

“So what is it I don’t like? I always wondered why task completion was listed as a minor focus, almost in such a way that it would not affect the overall grade at all.”

Developed about five years ago by a cohort of brave world language teaches in Louisville, our original rubric didn’t have a task completion section on the rubric at all and all the criteria were based on the language performance using LinguaFolio and Performance Guidelines (this is pre NCSSFL-ACTFL Can-Do Statements). As more and more teachers began using it, they noticed that sometimes students would be able to use great vocabulary, using all kinds of structures, but it had nothing to do with the actual task. So we added the task completion box really as a compromise and to remind students of the importance to read, plan for, and complete the actual assignment. So it really was added as a response to teacher realities, but of course as with most compromises something is being left on the table. In this case it was the original intent and purpose of a rubric.

WHAT’S THE REAL PURPOSE OF A RUBRIC?

It’s no secret that rubrics have become widely accepted in the teaching field, however I’m concerned that we perhaps have forgotten why rubrics are such a good tool. Too many people are designing and using rubrics as a grading instrument: clearly explaining what it takes for a student to earn an A, B, or C. Explaining expectations to learners is of course a very good thing, especially if the rubric is shared with them ahead of time as it will help learners to not be as surprised by their final grade. However, it is not the main reason a teacher should be using rubrics and most certainly it was not the intent of the original JCPS rubric. That rubric was designed for one purpose only: to provide students with feedback on their language performance so that they 1) know how well they are doing and 2) understand what they have to do to get better. I still belief we can accomplish both of those goals with criteria that are in the major focus area. The questions were designed so that a teacher and a learner can sit down together and have a feedback conversation.

What language do I use? (Vocabulary)
How do I use the language? (Function & Structure)
How well am I understood doing the task? (Comprehensibility)
How well do I understand? (Comprehension for interpersonal tasks)
SO WHAT ABOUT TASK COMPLETION THEN?

“How much will task completion be a part of the life I’m supposed to be preparing my students for?”

What a great question that reminded me of one of the standards-based grading models that is being piloted in several Kentucky schools. In those schools, students get two grades for each of their classes. One is grade all about their actual mastery of the skill/content in the class. This grade is based on meeting the standard and they call it “Achievement” (we would probably call it performance or proficiency in a language classroom) and one is for what they are calling “Approaches to Learning”. It’s the second grade that allows a teacher to provide students with feedback on things like meeting deadlines, academic honesty, and perhaps even task completion. Could we give students two grades on performance assessments in the world language classroom? What if one grade was assigned for their performance based on the proficiency criteria that are the focus of the learning and one grade was assigned for their approach to meeting the task?

Interestingly enough, the reason that I liked and still like the major focus of the JCPS rubric, is because it tries to take a similar dual approach. I can see that labeling the two sections major and minor focus can be confusing. For now I’m ok with it, because it still sends the message that in language learning what should be important is what students can do with the language they have learned.

WHAT’S YOUR FAVORITE RUBRIC?

Do you have a favorite rubric? I would encourage you to take a second look to see what message your rubric is sending to the leaners. Is it all about grading or is it about reflection and feedback? Unfortunately, most rubrics that I encounter value “Approaches to Learning” (how many pictures, how much effort, how much creativity, when it was turned in, how many words the students produced) more than what we should be valuing: performance.

Tracking Proficiency

When I taught in a charter middle school, the administration wanted us teachers to post summative data about our students–how they did on what test and what the criteria were. I was always behind on posting mine because we did so much formative assessment in class. As the only Spanish teacher in the school at that time, my numbers always looked different because my assessments didn’t look like the other teachers’.

Fast forward several years where I’m teaching in a high school and with a greater knowledge of proficiency, I now post students’ proficiency ratings on performance assessments, and it’s worked as a great way to track their progress as an individual student and as a class.

For my students, I have six columns left to right: Novice Low and Intermediate Low are on the left; Novice Mid and Intermediate Mid in the center, and Novice High and Intermediate High on the right. I’m giving myself room to add another column for Advanced if I need. In each box is a list of criteria that the students need to meet in order to get that rating.

Each student is given a random number, which they will use for their performance assessments instead of their names, much like they do for the AP test. The numbers are assigned randomly and NOT in alphabetical order, so if J. Smith has number 526, K. Smith will not have number 527. This way the ratings are public, but stay anonymous. One trick I found was to have the same basic list of numbers, but to change the first number to match the class period; this way I don’t have to go crazy making sure the numbers stay randomly assigned. For example, I can have students with the numbers 222, 322 and 722 in period 2, 3, and 7. In the example above, I have 2 students in Intermediate Low, and 4 students in Intermediate Mid in 5th period.

In the space to the right, I’d like to have what the assessment was and a breakdown by class of percentages–how many scored NH, IL, IM on the particular assessment, for example.

“How will you track the students’ overall proficiency level if they score differently on various assessments and you change the magnets after each assessment?” you might ask. I’m glad you did! I will track the students’ ratings on my own, and I want the students to track their own progress, too, which will become part of their quarterly reflection on their blogs. I’ll report back at the end of the first quarter with an update!

It’s a work in progress, but I’m excited about giving my students some more specific feedback than “Good job!” or “Keep it up!”

How do you track proficiency in your classroom?

TELL Collab takeaway

“I feel like I cannot open my brain big enough to absorb all the information. I’m overwhelmed and excited,” I texted my wife about the TELL Collab. “:)” she replied.

On June 26th and 27th, I had the great professional privilege of participating in the very first TELL Collab at the COERLL at University of Texas at Austin. It was a fulfilling and rewarding experience to not only participate with like-minded teachers, but to also hug in real life two of my Twitter besties–Amy and John. I’ve been moved by how they moderate #langchat and how they provide feedback to others. Also, they both are reflective of their own practice, so I was glad to have time to “just be” with them!

On Saturday morning, Amy was in the hot seat, and I totally stoked that fire! She talked about her blogging process and said something I hadn’t considered before: I have to make time and a concerted effort to reflect–truly reflect–on my practice. She said that in order to grow, we must b be reflective of ourselves, but also to search out feedback–true and honest and sometimes heartbreaking. But, it’s through that pain that we can grow. She remarked how she’s grown over the course of her career and how she’s been given opportunities to provide that true and honest feedback to others, but it’s been so worthwhile. I admire her for putting herself out there for that, and I set myself a recurring reminder to blog. Thanks, Amy!

This is the first step to processing my experience at the TELL Collab–blogging. Regularly. About a variety of topics. And not always polished because life is not always polished. But the biggest thing that I learned from the Collab this past weekend is that I have something to say, and people are listening. I’ll be sharing more of my learning and more of how I intend to apply it–as well as how it plays out starting in August–but I wanted to get things kicked off with this post.

Thank you, TELL Project, for an amazing step in my career! – See more at: http://profepj3.weebly.com/#sthash.sBLdJqzR.dpuf