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Addressing the concerns and providing some strategies for implementing alternative grading practices
Traditionally, assessing and grading students in science has been an exercise centered around points and percentages (Feldman, Kropf, and Alibrandi 1989; Prøitz 2013). However, with the introduction of the NGSS and the need to revisit grading practices stemming from the COVID-19 pandemic, an increasing number of schools have begun to revise their grading practices (Guskey 2021; Zalaznick 2022). One of these alternative assessment and grading systems is known as standard-based grading (SBG), which encompasses three deviations from traditional grading and assessment (Townsley and Wear 2020).
* The grade book reports learning goals, closely connected to the NGSS, rather than an assortment of points accumulated from various tasks and assessments, points, or percentages (Figure 1).
* The assessment and grading structures provide multiple opportunities for students to demonstrate what they have learned.
* Homework and formative assessment are repurposed as ungraded practice.
Recent research suggests that when grade books transparently display students' current understanding, students have a better understanding of their knowledge and skills and can continue to improve them (Guskey 2020; Noschese 2011; O'Connor, Jung, and Reeves 2018; Wilcox 2011). This approach is consistent with the NGSS and its goal to "actively engage [students] in scientific and engineering practices and apply crosscutting concepts to deepen their understanding of the core ideas in [science] (NRC 2012, p. 10).
However, many myths and barriers accompanying these alternative science grading practices can make shifting toward SBG difficult. The purpose of this article is to address these myths and provide strategies for effectively implementing SBG in the science classroom.
Myth 1: "The real world isn't like this."
Within the typical science classroom, if a student does not do well on a test, the score is permanently recorded in the grade book. The only way for the student to improve his/her grade is to do better on the next assignment, lab, or assessment. In an SBG classroom, students are provided with multiple opportunities to demonstrate their understanding of the course standards. A common myth is that students' ability to not be penalized for late work or to redo a lab or take another version of a test is "not like the real world." The "real world" does...