Issue link: http://osercommunicationsgroup.uberflip.com/i/255373
E d Te c h S h o w D a i l y Th u r s d a y, J a n u a r y 3 0 , 2 0 1 4 1 0 CLEARING UP CONFUSION ON STANDARDS-BASED GRADING Over the last few years, there's been a slow but steady change in K-12 grading practices. Driven in part by a renewed focus on standards as part of Common Core adoption, districts are increasingly looking to measure what their students know on specific standards, rather than relying on letter grades. Technology vendors have been responding, offering a range of stan- dards-based gradebooks that are often bundled with the Student Information System (SIS). While many vendors are adopting the standards-based grading terminology, relatively few are provid- ing the full range of features that are required to accurately measure students by standard. How can you tell whether a grade- book really is standards-based? What are the characteristics of a true standards- based gradebook that make it different from a standards-referenced gradebook? There are three key areas where differ- ences can occur. Measuring Standards vs. Assignments In a true standards-based gradebook, measurements are entered into the grade- book directly against specific standards. While the source of that measurement may also be noted, e.g. a quiz or an observation, it is more of a comment. Standards-referenced gradebooks, on the other hand, are assignment-based. While they may tag or reference standards against an assignment, the score is given for the assignment, not for the standard. This may seem like a subtle difference, but it has profound implications when grades are summarized and appear on report cards, as standards-referenced gradebooks struggle to accurately calcu- late student knowledge by standard. Averaging In a standards-based gradebook, scores are rarely averaged across a marking period. Student knowl- edge grows over time, and more recent scores are better indicators of what a student knows today, compared to measurements taken at the beginning of term. That's why standards-based grade- books often use the last score, or an aver- age of the last three scores, to determine a student's level of knowledge. Standards-referenced gradebooks, by contrast, often continue to average scores across all of the assignments, as they are unable to differentiate between earlier and more recent measurements. Behavior In a traditional gradebook, grades often include elements of behavior, in addi- tion to academics. For example, handing in homework on time, gaining extra credit or perfect attendance can all improve a student's grade. However, such practices may obscure the student's underlying academic achievement, as an academically-gifted child may frequent- ly forget to turn in his or her homework on time, while a more average student may regularly do extra credit assign- ments in order to boost his or her grade. Standards- based gradebooks help to differentiate between those two types of students, as they can establish separate standards for behavior and aca- demics. This helps teachers more clear- ly communicate academic and behav- ioral progress and areas for improve- ment in ways that standards-referenced gradebooks can struggle with. As the company behind Pinnacle Gradebook, one of the most widely used standards-based gradebooks, Scantron has considerable experience working with districts transitioning to standards-based grading. Scantron helps its customers cut through the con- fusion surrounding standards-based gradebooks and understand what capa- bilities are most important in measuring student knowledge. Visit Scantron at booth 401. For more information, visit www.scantron.com, call 800-SCANTRON or email events@scantron.com. STUDY SHOWS HIGHER ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT AMONG STUDENTS USING DISCOVERY EDUCATION TECHBOOKS A recently released study found that usage of Discovery Education's digital science textbook is associated with high- er achievement scores. Specifically, the research suggests that the Discovery Education Science Techbook™ increases student science achievement and bolsters the effectiveness of instruction when teachers with one or more years of expe- rience use it in classroom practice. Conducted by independent research firm Merola Research, LLC, the study reviewed results on the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test (FCAT) in science for fifth and eighth grade students in Collier County, Fla. During the 2011-2012 school year, Collier County Public schools partnered with Discovery Education to implement Discovery Education Science Techbook, a digital textbook for their science cur- riculum. Included in the implementation was in-depth, customized professional development from Discovery Education's professional development team, which supported educators as they integrated the Science Techbook into classroom instruction. The researchers concluded that stu- dents whose teachers had one or more years of teaching experience and used Science Techbook for instruction scored higher on the FCAT than students whose teachers had similar levels of experience but had not used Science Techbook. Additionally, fifth grade English Language Learner (ELL) students whose teachers used Science Techbook for instruction were 66 percent more likely to score at the proficient level or higher on the FCAT, compared to ELL students whose teachers were not using Science Techbook. Other key findings from the study include: at the fifth grade level, FCAT scores were on average 4.36 points higher among students whose teachers had more than one year of teaching experience and used Science Techbook than for students with similar teachers who did not use Science Techbook; at the eighth grade level, FCAT scores were on average 16.54 points higher for students whose teach- ers had more than one year of teaching experience and used Science Techbook than for students whose teachers had similar levels of experience who did not use Science Techbook; and fifth grade ELL students with teachers who used Science Techbook scored about 14 points higher on the Science FCAT on average than ELL students whose teach- ers did not use Techbook. "We are proud to partner with Discovery Education to provide our teachers the high-quality resources cre- ating the dynamic learning environ- ments we know are criti- cal to student success," said Dr. Kamela Patton, Superintendent of Collier County Public Schools. Discovery Education Science Techbook series is a complete digital solution that replaces traditional text- books and features compelling video, interactive text, digital simulations and explorations, virtual and hands-on labs, and an interactive glossary with anima- tions, audio and video. The series is available for K–8 science and high school courses including Biology, Chemistry, Earth and Space Science and Physics. "When educators have the resources to create interactive learning experiences that support a variety of learning styles, abilities and languages, they can create an environment that supports academic success and the skills necessary for col- lege, careers and global citizenship," said Andy Schaefer, Vice President, Discovery Education. To review a full copy of the study, visit www.discoveryeducation.com/collier. CLEAN SLATE SUPERIOR AT PROTECTING SCHOOL COMPUTERS Achieve reliable Windows computer security to reduce support costs and elim- inate computer downtime. Clean Slate is ideal to secure school computers. Students are allowed full computer access to learn and explore, then at log off and reboot, the computers return to the original configuration, removing all changes the user made. Keeping your lab and 1:1 computers free of accidental or mischievous changes is an ongoing bat- tle. With Clean Slate desktop protection software, your computers are secure all day, every day—really. The benefits of using Clean Slate to protect school computers are: user changes are cleared at reboot and logoff, providing a clean and trouble free com- puter for every user; students have full computer access to learn; computers are safe from accidental or mischievous use; computers are virus free; computers look and act the same for every user, no mat- ter what changes the previous user made; drastically reduces help desk calls; ideal for 1:1 computing; and the computers always work. Compare Clean Slate to other pro- tection software by trying the 30 day demo at www.fortresgrand.com. Clean Slate provides flexibility and security that cannot be found in similar products. Clean Slate offers many advantages over traditional reboot to restore products: all user changes are cleared at log off providing a clean, consistent, and virus free computer for every user instantly, no need to waste time to reboot to restore; Windows Updates run normally and are permanently saved while security is on, no configuration or security downtime needed; perfect for 1:1 computers because no security downtime is needed leaving the computers vulnerable to security risks; zero-day rootkit and mas- ter boot record (MBR) protection; antivirus updates run properly and are permanently saved while security is on, no configuration or security downtime needed; works well with third party administrative software while security is on (SCCM, LANDesk, Altiris, Zenworks); computer security is disabled, enabled, and altered on the fly—no time is wasted rebooting the computer to make security changes; can easily restrict executables running from flash drives with the flexibility to still allow saving to the drive; free technical support. Achieve 24/7 security. Never again leave computers vulnerable. Keep securi- ty consistently on, even when running Windows Updates, antivirus updates or using third party administration tools like Altiris or LANDesk. Visit Fortres Grand at booth 1465. For more information, visit www.fortres grand.com or call 800-331-0372.