Product Details

• Author: Rick Wormeli
• Year: 2006
• Grade Range: 4-12

• Media: 224 pp/paper
• ISBN: 978-157110-424-3
• Item No.: WEB-0424

Differentiated instruction is a nice idea, but what happens when it comes to assessing and grading students? What's both fair and leads to real student learning?

Fair Isn't Always Equal answers that question and much more. Rick Wormeli offers the latest research and common sense thinking that teachers and administrators seek when it comes to assessment and grading in differentiated classes. Filled with real examples and “gray” areas that middle and high school educators will easily recognize, Rick tackles important and sometimes controversial assessment and grading issues constructively. The book covers high-level concepts, ranging from “rationale for differentiating assessment and grading” to “understanding mastery” as well as the nitty-gritty details of grading and assessment, such as:

• whether to incorporate effort, attendance, and behavior into academic grades;
• whether to grade homework;
• setting up grade books and report cards to reflect differentiated practices;
• principles of successful assessment;
• how to create useful and fair test questions, including how to grade such prompts efficiently;
• whether to allow students to re-do assessments for full credit.

This thorough and practical guide also includes a special section for teacher leaders that explores ways to support colleagues as they move toward successful assessment and grading practices for differentiated classrooms.

Table of Contents

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Contents
Contents
Preface
Acknowledgments
Section I Differentiation and Mastery
Chapter 1: The Differentiated Instruction Mind-set: Rationale and Definition
Chapter 2: Mastery
Section II Assessment
Chapter 3: Principles of Successful Assessment in the Differentiated Classroom
Chapter 4: Three Important Types of Assessment
Chapter 5: Tiering Assessments
Chapter 6: Creating Good Test Questions
Section III Grading
Chapter 7: The Relative Nature of Grades and Their Definitions
Chapter 8: Why Do We Grade, and What About Effort, Attendance, and Behavior?
Chapter 9: Ten Approaches to Avoid When Differentiating
Chapter 10: Conditions for Redoing Work for Full Credit
Chapter 11: Six Burning Grading Issues
Chapter 12: Grading Scales
Chapter 13: Gradebook Formats for the Differentiated Classroom
Chapter 14: Responsive Report Card Formats
Section IV Implementation and the Big Picture
Chapter 15: Thirty-Six Tips to Support Colleagues as They Move Toward Successful Practices for Differentiated Classrooms
Chapter 16: Putting It All Together: How Do Differentiating Teachers Assess and Grade Differently?
Glossary
Bibliography
Index

Rick Wormeli
Rick Wormeli is a National Board Certified Teacher and a columnist for Middle Ground magazine. The winner of Disney's American Teacher Award for English in 1996, Rick is an internationally known speaker on middle-level education, innovation...
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