What is a Standards-Based Report Card?

In this article I will discuss why schools are reconsidering the way they do report cards, and how linking to educational standards help both students and parents.

One of the greatest dis-services we've done to children today, is placing greater emphasis on a letter grade rather than mastery of learning. I've heard it said this way, "We grade beef and eggs, we should not grade children." In my previous blog post, I discussed at length the idea of mastery learning and the importance of students taking agency over their learning in order to foster a growth mindset and a life-long love of learning.

The days of focusing on grades and downplaying the specifics about what students are learning, are over. Today's parents want to know more about standards and as a result, parents are getting more information about their students’ achievement than ever before.

For example, more than 80% of states have adopted the Common Core State Standards, which are educational standards (not curriculum) for English and Math in K-12 schools. Every state, including Oklahoma, has educational standards, and list skills that students should learn at each grade for all subject areas as well, including science, PE, social studies, technology, and fine arts. Today's teachers are responsible for teaching these skills to their students’ grade level, although the standards do not specify how teachers should teach. One internal advantage of using standards based report cards is that is helps schools communicate the standards they are teaching from grade-to-grade.

So what is a standards-based report card?
On traditional report cards, students receive one grade for reading, one for math, one for science, and so on. A standards-based report card lists the most important skills students should learn in each subject at a particular grade level. So when we use our report card for example, we see a list of skills under each subject.  And, instead of letter grades, students receive marks that show how well they have mastered each skill.

How does this help parents?
Since letter grades often factor in things like behavior, performance on tests, effort (good luck measuring that) in addition to the actual knowledge a student possesses about content, grades often do not speak to mastery of skills, but more to students in-class performance. Then there is the problem about what is taught in 3rd grade English from school-to-school. A traditional report card does not go far enough in providing details about mastery of skills or if the child (or teacher) have met the standards in their their particular state.

By using standards-based report cards we can provide more consistency between teachers than traditional report cards because all students are evaluated on the same grade-level skills. Parents can see exactly which skills and knowledge their child has acquired. This approach also allows us to measure skills like creativity and performance through project-based standards, and also provide standards for behavior through grade level standards for social emotional learning. This is a much more transparent approach to sharing students strengths and clearly informing parents of the specific areas where students are struggling and helping them see what students should be able to do at all grade levels, instead of hiding or nesting behavior assessments in a subject-area letter grade.

This approach and using mastery level grading allows us to work towards year-long goals and helps reduce anxiety when students haven't yet mastered and are in the first or second reporting period. Most students do not master all of the year's standards during the first reporting period, so this approach allows us to help better communicate areas to grow without assigning a permanent grade in the middle of the learning process. This allows for "eventual learning" to kick in and for students to be free from fear and condemnation that comes from anything less than an A.

On the high end of this approach, we are able to enrich and challenge students who are truly exemplary in their learning. One analogy I've used to explain the difference to a parents is: “You climb up the hill to be proficient, but you have to fly off to be exemplary.” Standards-based report cards provide the added benefit of keeping teachers and parents focused on student learning goals from the very beginning of the year and gives students a chance to get help when it’s most needed, sooner rather than later.

The SNU Lab School sees project-based learning, content area learning, and social emotional learning as equally important areas of emphasis. We assess student success in each area using a mastery learning model as part of our rich legacy. As a school who values diversity of thought, equal opportunity, and is built for belonging, we invite you to come learn more about us and consider joining our growing community!

What is Mastery Learning?

Mastery learning simply means allowing a student to continue to work on a concept until they master that concept or skill. You can tell a student has mastered a skill when they apply that skill to successfully complete a job, or task, that requires that skill.

This important concept applies to all of us, not just students, and it is for a lifetime. I love researching and discovering truth by building on previous discoveries from others. I'm constantly reminded that we see further when we stand on the shoulders of giants. In the next few paragraphs I want to discuss a couple of giants who have shared their research and have created a disruptive ripple in the fabric of what we might call traditional education.

Possibly one of the most significant discoveries related to mastery learning was made by a giant in educational psychology, Albert Bandura. His research on guided mastery focuses on performance anxiety and helps us understand the importance of creating learning environments where it is "safe to fail." All students are afraid of failing. They fear being ridiculed and possibly exposed at "not being good" at something. It is safer for them to lay low and do the bare minimum which greatly diminishes their ability to experience and learn deeply. 

Tradition classrooms foster an educational standard where being perfect on the first try is the expectation. If a student does not master the concept, they get a bad grade and we move on. This is not good enough. We need schools that embody the idea I first heard from design giant David Kelley, the founder of Stanford University's Hasso Plattner Institute of Design, known as the d.school and the global design and innovation company IDEO, whose motto was "fail early and fail often." We need students to wrestle with concepts and ideas to the point of understanding and mastery. Students need built-in opportunities to develop grit, determination, and perseverance; character traits that will serve them well regardless of what life throws at them.

If you've heard the term "growth mindset" then you can thank another giant in the field of psychology, Carolyn Dweck. Her book, Mindset,  reinforces these concepts and it contrasts a fixed mindset (only one way, only one try) with a growth mindset where students take more of a human centered design approach. They incorporate trial-and-error is a part their learning and world. They also know that learning is a marathon, not a sprint. Growth oriented people tend to be more patient with themselves and others and recognize we grow from our mistakes when we try again.

Lastly, successful mastery learning environments are ones where students take agency of themselves and their learning. Taking responsibility and action for their effort and learning is live-giving. According to education giant, Ruby Payne, when a student takes agency of their learning they break through the barrier of a poverty mindset. This empowers the learner with a 'high' perceived self efficacy (PSE). Research shows that students who experience high PSE are the least likely to stay in poverty and are most likely to become life long learners.

The SNU Lab School sees project-based learning, content area learning, and social emotional learning as equally important areas of emphasis. We assess student success in each area using a mastery learning model as part of our rich legacy. As a school who values diversity of thought, equal opportunity, and is built for belonging, we invite you to come learn more about us and consider joining our growing community!

What is Project-Based Learning?

Project-based learning is a dynamic classroom approach in which students actively explore real-world problems and challenges and acquire a deeper knowledge. In this process students use empathy to connect with an iterative human centered design approach that gives them freedom to practice applying a growth mindset as they develop grit.

Inter-disciplinary
PBL focuses on engaging students with real-world problems. This is an interdisciplinary approach because real-world challenges are rarely solved using information or skills from a single subject area. Projects require students to engage in inquiry, solution building, and product construction to help address the real-world issue or challenge presented. As students do the work, they often use content knowledge and skills from multiple academic domains to successfully complete the project.

Rigorous
Project-Based Learning requires the application of knowledge and skills, not just recall or recognition. Unlike rote learning that assesses a single fact, PBL is more complex and can be used to assess how students apply a variety of academic content in new contexts. As students engage in the work of a project they follow a process that begins with inquiry. Inquiry leads to deeper learning, not just related to academic content, but also related to the use of content in real world applications. Inquiry processes can help lead to the development of solutions that address the problem/challenge of the project and the creation of products to communicate solutions to an audience based upon the application of content and skills.

Student-centered
In PBL, the role of the teacher shifts from content-deliverer to facilitator/ project manager. Students work more independently through the PBL process, with the teacher providing support only when needed. Students are encouraged to make their own decisions about how best to do their work and demonstrate their understanding. The PBL process fosters student independence, ownership of his/her work, and the development of 21st century/workplace skills. Project Based Learning provides students with meaningful hands-on learning.

The SNU Lab School sees project-based learning, content area learning, and social emotional learning as equally important areas of emphasis. We assess student success in each area using a mastery learning model as part of our rich legacy. As a school who values diversity of thought, equal opportunity, and is built for belonging, we invite you to come learn more about us and consider joining our growing community!

What is Social Emotional Learning?

With the high-stakes competitive nature of GPAs, college entrance exams, and standardized test scores, schools have moved away from aesthetics, the arts, and prioritizing social and emotional development. In most schools it's an after-thought. High stress and peer pressure have seemingly become an acceptable by-product created by this environment. And the answer far too often is "deal with it."

Social Emotional Learning (SEL), as defined by the Collaborative for Academic, Social and Emotional Learning (CASEL), is the process through which children and adults acquire and effectively apply the knowledge, attitudes, and skills necessary to understand and manage emotions, set and achieve positive goals, feel and show empathy for others, establish and maintain positive relationships, and make responsible decisions.

Self-awareness
The ability to accurately recognize one's own emotions, thoughts, and values and how they influence behavior. The ability to accurately assess one's strengths and limitations, with a well-grounded sense of confidence, optimism, and a growth mindset.

Self-management
The ability to successfully regulate one's emotions, thoughts, and behaviors in different situations — effectively managing stress, controlling impulses, and motivating oneself. The ability to set and work toward personal and academic goals.

Social awareness
The ability to take the perspective of and empathize with others, including those from diverse backgrounds and cultures. The ability to understand social and ethical norms for behavior and to recognize family, school, and community resources and supports.

Relationship skills
The ability to establish and maintain healthy and rewarding relationships with diverse individuals and groups. The ability to communicate clearly, listen well, cooperate with others, resist inappropriate social pressure, negotiate conflict constructively, and seek and offer help when needed.

Responsible decision-making
The ability to make constructive choices about personal behavior and social interactions based on ethical standards, safety concerns, and social norms. The realistic evaluation of consequences of various actions, and a consideration of the well-being of oneself and others.

Social Emotional Learning is more important in today's world than ever before. Helping children and adults develop emotional resilience and skills to manage social interactions is paramount.

The SNU Lab School sees project-based learning, content area learning, and social emotional learning as equally important areas of emphasis. We assess student success in each area using a mastery learning model as part of our rich legacy. As a school who values diversity of thought, equal opportunity, and is built for belonging, we invite you to come learn more about us and consider joining our growing community!

What is Purpose Learning?

The goal of purpose learning is to equip the next generation with the tools needed to unleash purpose in their lives so they can contribute in a meaningful way to the world they are a part of. By serving as mentors, our teachers accomplish this by routinely guiding students through self exploration and self discovery activities built into the curriculum. So many schools see this as "touchy-feely fluff" and juxtapose it to developing "grit" and hard work. The truth is understanding purpose and developing grit are both needed and they are not mutually exclusive.

Dr. Bill Damon, Director of the Stanford Center for Adolescence is quoted as saying “The biggest problem growing up today is not actually stress; it’s meaninglessness.” He goes on to write about the mental health crisis brewing amongst our youth. Nearly one in three adolescents (31.9%) will meet criteria for an anxiety disorder by the age of 18. While school is in session, high school students are the single most stressed out population in the US. Youth depression and anxiety are rising at alarming rates. In 2016 an estimated 3.1 million adolescents aged 12 to 17 in the United States had at least one major depressive episode.

By discovering what moves them, identifying needs they care about, and uncovering personal strengths, students are able to find direction and make meaningful contributions by servicing a need in their community and world.

Purpose draws from three critical areas:

What You Love - That thing you do for fun, but it might look like work to others. The thing that gives you energy and allows you to engage.

Your Strengths - What are you really good at? Not the things that get graded but the areas that provide growth opportunities.

What Moves You - What causes you to take action? Not your passions, but rather those things within you that have deep meaning for you personally.

Discovering one's purpose isn't something that students figure out when they go to college. It is a life-long quest, one in which students need the adults in their lives providing guidance and encouraging them to learn and explore more about who they are and what they have been made for.

The SNU Lab School sees project-based learning, content area learning, and social emotional learning as equally important areas of emphasis. We assess student success in each area using a mastery learning model as part of our rich legacy. As a school who values diversity of thought, equal opportunity, and is built for belonging, we invite you to come learn more about us and consider joining our growing community!

What should "education" look like?

What a great privilege it is to be called to education. Certainly the primary responsibility to educate children falls on the parent. As a parent I've experienced the pressure of raising my son in a manner that is not only pleasing to God but one that will prepare his mind to be sharp and able to wrestle life's problems long after I'm gone. I also recognize my need for like-minded teachers with a diverse knowledge base to speak truth into his life. A passage that speaks to me as an educator is found in Deuteronomy 6:4-9.

"Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates."

So the job of educating is a 24/7/365 thing. All the time, always. As I parse this passage of scripture I think about the importance of teaching my son "how" to think not so much "what" to think. Education is not indoctrination or brainwashing. God is not afraid of intellectual inquiry and we shouldn't be either. No question is "out of bounds" or "not allowed." As a parent and an educator, I know it is my responsibility to develop an independent thinker, and that my goal is not to raise children but to raise young adults.

In the process of educating critical thinkers I have learned a valuable way of teaching "how to think" that has it's underpinnings in revering the authority of scripture. The process goes something like this:

• Imagine your arm extended holding a crystal ball as the student is asking you a question. Your job is to create clarity and guide the student in defining exactly what we're talking about. In this example I'll use evolution as it can be a challenging topic for many to answer. The goal is to narrow it down. Are we talking about Darwinian evolution, theistic evolution, or the concept of evolution in a broader sense? Helping the student find their question is an important part of this process.

• Once clarity has been gained the next step is to imagine several different spheres orbiting the crystal ball. Each sphere represents a differing perspective. If we are truly interested in educating then we will present each perspective accurately without bias, so the learner is able to understand and appreciate the different ways people view the world they live in.

• Lastly, once all perspectives have been fairly and accurately presented, students should be challenged to consider what God's word has to say about it. Challenge them to hold up the Bible like a magnifying glass that serves as a lens for us to view truth. God does not need our endorsement or acceptance of His word for it to be true. God's word is authoritative and edifying and it helps us to recognize those perspectives that ring true from those that do not.

So in the larger scheme of things we need to be about guiding students to be clear and specific with their questions, to fairly and accurately represent differing perspectives, and to rely on the authority of scripture to reveal truth. In so doing, we help students develop a critical lens by which they are able to seek truth in their lives.

The SNU Lab School sees project-based learning, content area learning, and social emotional learning as equally important areas of emphasis. We assess student success in each area using a mastery learning model as part of our rich legacy. As a school who values diversity of thought, equal opportunity, and is built for belonging, we invite you to come learn more about us and consider joining our growing community!

What exactly is a Lab School?

Historically speaking, lab schools are connected to universities and serve three fundamental purposes:

• Teach every student through experiential learning.
• Train future teachers on how to create effective learning environments.
• Guide research and apply "best practices" for student-centered learning.

Teach every student through experiential learning.

Experiential learning is the process of learning through experience, and is more specifically defined as "learning through reflection or doing." Project Based Learning (PBL) is a form of experiential learning but does not necessarily involve students reflecting on their product as much as valuing the process. Experiential learning is distinctly different from passive learning where students in traditional classroom sit in desks and take notes from lecturers. It is a form of active learning and related to, but not synonymous with, other forms of active learning such as action learning, adventure learning, free-choice learning, cooperative learning, service-learning, and situated learning.

Train future teachers on how to create an effective learning environment.

Research supports cultivating learning environments where students have guided instruction with equal opportunities to experiment and synthesize with new concepts and ideas as they learn. The intellectual and emotional lives of young children develop best in a setting in which teachers, the environment, and the program support play and exploration and the construction of relationships and ideas. It is not enough for children to understand, they must be given the opportunity to integrate new knowledge into their base of experiences. This is accomplished by skilled teacher creating an environment and having a mindset that is conducive to this type of learning.

Guide research and apply "best practices" for student-centered learning.

Evidence-based, student-centered instructional practices provide a strong rationale for applying current research to support and shape instruction. Learner-centered instructional practices promote interaction, engagement, and language acquisition. However, not all practitioners fully understand why these practices are effective or how to best implement them. Labs schools understand the human-centered design process is an iterative one. The more we learn, the more the school adapts and grows, and the more students benefit.

Labs schools set themselves apart by intentionally growing in these three distinctive areas. The major benefit of a lab school is their connection with a university. This type of pedagogy lends itself to sustaining a more active learning environment. This continuous improvement approach lends itself perfectly to university research around identifying best practices that are implemented to create world-class learning opportunities for students.

Developing creative Christ-centered critical thinkers. 

Through application of educational research in human-centered design, social emotional learning, and project based learning, the SNU Lab School is becoming increasingly relevant in today's world. Since 1971, our DNA has valued these principles and we are positioned to authentically grow in a direction that will help young people belong and contribute to a world where creative and critical thinkers are needed and valued. SNU Lab School is indeed a school whose time has come.

The SNU Lab School sees project-based learning, content area learning, and social emotional learning as equally important areas of emphasis. We assess student success in each area using a mastery learning model as part of our rich legacy. As a school who values diversity of thought, equal opportunity, and is built for belonging, we invite you to come learn more about us and consider joining our growing community!