Grading From the Inside Out by Tom Schimmer

Author:Tom Schimmer
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Solution Tree Press
Published: 2016-02-14T16:00:00+00:00

What About Group Work?

With teachers moving toward more project-based learning and the renewed emphasis on collaboration as an essential competency, the prospect of students working together for a singular purpose has never been more relevant. But this increase in collaboration also increases teacher responsibility for delineating individual achievement from group results. Again, the issue is accuracy, and while collaborative learning experiences may be desirable—even necessary—we have to protect the integrity of the individual student’s proficiency grade.

Assigning group scores is wrought with accuracy issues (O’Connor, 2013). To be clear, it is possible for students working within the same group to earn the same score, but that should occur only after the teacher has verified that each student has earned that score; simply defaulting to a group score and entering it under each student’s name can lead to inaccuracies. The work in collaborative efforts is often not evenly distributed, and while fair is not always equal, we expect that overall, students will contribute equally to the task.

But we know that doesn’t always happen, and what’s worse is that we can’t always detect these inequities. One student might complete the majority of a project (or all of it) in exchange for an invitation to a party the following weekend; another student may take it all on for fear that the others will negatively influence her overall grade. Defaulting to group scores compounds the issues of inaccuracy since many group projects carry significant weight within the gradebook. Without verification, students could receive inflated or deflated credit for factors beyond their control.

The separation of individual achievement is easier said than done. There are two ways we can account for individual achievement within a group result.

1.Require an individual component: While the result of the group work may be a collaborative product, teachers could also require students to submit an individual component to supplement the group project. This could be a reflection paragraph, a specific explanation, or a summary piece that allows the teacher to collect individual evidence of student understanding.

2.Assess individuals separately: Remember the goal is to assess standards, so teachers could create assessments that verify and validate the group score. Rather than making these individual assessments a part of the project, have them stand alone (maybe do them in class) and cover the same standards as the group work.

It also makes sense sometimes to just ask students about individual roles in group work, although we can never be sure if a hidden agenda or pressure is at play. The bottom line is to avoid group scores wherever possible; where it’s not, then we should consider supplemental assessments to validate the group score.

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