Read this tweet from author/educator Lee Ann Jung, and then respond in the Reply Box to the reflection question below:

Use these questions to guide your thoughts as you discuss this tweet with your colleagues and then formulate a response for the Reply Box below:

  • How does Lee Ann Jung's question strike you?  What thoughts come to mind?
  • What do you think about author Daniel Pink's statement on compliance v. engagement?
  • If you don't use points/grades to garner compliance, what do you use?
  • Can a grade reflect content/skill mastery AND be used to achieve compliance at the same time?  If so, how?  If not, why not?
  • Obviously we need young people to comply.  How do we balance this basic need for compliance with our desire to build independence and ownership in students and to take them to more meaningful places than compliance alone?

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Replies

  • We have an issue with the terms bribery and manipulation, because that is not what the grades are supposed to do.  These questions put us on the defensive, because we do not use grades for bribery or manipulation.  That is not their purpose.  Also, these questions seem to take some of the responsibility off of the student.  We also believe that compliance and content/skill mastery are two completely separate issues.

    Matt, Thad, Joe, Sarah, Robyn, Justin, Alex(andra)

  • Setting clear expectations and building relationships and rapport with students can garner compliance.  When students understand that doing assigned practice, following rules, paying attention in class, and participating in class will lead to better understanding of the class material, they will do those things.   Grades can then reflect mastery of material instead of whether or not a student does assignments.

    Table - Logan, Trayce, Alisa, Emily, Rick, Sarah

  • First---I think it would  be cool to get to teach more so based on student 'interest' as opposed to selected standards by the state. :) 

    As far as grades begin used to achieve compliance....Grades are a way of communicating progress to students and parents.  Grades shouldn't be used to communicate behavior or non compliance or laziness.  However; if you do put in an assignment that a student decided to not do, I feel that it should still be recorded in the grade book in a way that shows a parent or student what they haven't done, but it should be weighted so low that it doesn't really influence their grade because their grade should really reflect their level of mastery.  There should be enough other assignments or tests or quizzes to diagnose their mastery level.  

  • Engaging students and being aware of grades aren't mutually exclusive. Teachers should be able to do both. 

  • Our group discussed the difference between work based learning and content courses. Work based larning tends to lend itself more naturally to the idea that learning is a process and learning is important in that skill to receive a job. Where the other, content course, has an end of course assessment that the state of Virginia says you must know this information in this specific way via a multiple choice test etc. 

  • The question is presenting a false dichotomy (we stand with Gary). We need to balance risk and reward with engagement. A student's compliance is baseline expectation; engagement is what we are always working towards. 

  • I think the framing of compliance versus engagement as being at odds with each other is mostly a false dichotomy.  Engagement is important.  So is compliance.  Both need to be present.  Teachers should all be thinking of ways to make their work more engaging, but we should also have an expectation that students do the work we're asking them to do because as the subject area experts we recognize the work will help them learn the content and/or skills students need and should be expected to have after completing our courses.  A much better framing of this discussion is to simply ask if what we are asking students to do has benefits for them as they work towards becoming productive members of society, college students, and/or productive employees/employers.

    -Table 2

  • I feel like I have to model the enthusiasm to get a young mind exited to learn. We also have to look at each student differently and find out what makes them tick to be able to inspire learning. For a grade to reflect mastery we must first look at what we are grading and is it reflecting the level of expectation. 

  • The teacher is responsible for developing a framework in the classroom that fosters student ownership within guardrails that encourage compliance.  The classroom then becomes a safe place where individual strengths are honored, independence can be practiced, and student growth is evident.

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