FIAE+B1+Chapter+10

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Abstract
Grading assignments is a complex issue for many educators when they have to think about the student’s grade received versus [|mastery of the content]. Thus, the question of redoing assignments is raised. When should redoing assignments be allowed, should they be allowed? The chapter outlines a policy on when redos should be allowed and under what circumstances they may be allowed. [|Having parents involved] via signature on the work and establishing a criteria as the teacher on the first day as to what will be allowed is only the beginning in a policy that student’s will be expected to follow in the classroom.

Damian’s Synthesis
Many of us agree with the policy outlined in the chapter, fewer disagree, the entirety of us agree that at the very least the chapter got us to think about the redo theory and [|how it might apply to us as teachers]. While half the class seems to agree with the material presented the other half seems content to disagree entirely or at the least pick and choose which elements fit their personal methodology. Overall we seem to unanimously feel that a grade does not reflect mastery and despite our personal qualms over [|lackadaisical students] we all see //some// value in redoing assignments.

Amy
CH. 10 Allowing students the option of redoing poorly done or missing work has long been a dilemma for many teachers. Some teachers feel that allowing students the chance to redo work is a way of getting by without putting in the same amount of work as the students that did well on the original task. In differentiated classes however, redoing assignments gives students that learn at a slower rate, as well as students that simply need more time to do quality work, the chance to show the teacher what they know and understand. All redoing does for students, is allow them to have a second chance to review the material and get a better understanding. What is the difference if a student gets “it” the first time, or gets “it” the second time around? The point is, the grade book will show a more accurate depiction of what the students have learned if redoing assignments and tests are allowed. There are six things teachers can do to allow students to get redoes, without taking advantage of the system. For example, “offering compassion to students who have felt overwhelmed by deadlines, and other priorities, can be refreshing and effective” (132). Some other “rules” include, asking parents to sign off on assignments and tests that students would like to redo, that way, students may obtain help from their parents. Teachers can also change the format of assignments to save on time if students excel in certain parts, and will benefit more from increased time spent working on something else. When giving students the opportunity to redo work, teachers should also plan to help the student manage their time so they can redo their assignment on time, as well as work on current work. Lastly, teachers should require students to staple the original assignment to the redone version in order to track improvement and growth.

Dan
I love that this book breaks down different dilemma's in full chapter form that will arise early and often in our teaching careers. This chapter goes into depth about under what conditions a student should be able to redo work. The book gave a straight forward policy and broke it down keeping all pieces aligned to their original policy. If I was writing in my syllabus and I was the book (I totally agree with all this. So this will look a lot like my syllabus) it would look something like this. Redo's: I the teacher am allowed to say whether work can be done over or not. (this is to avoid a student abusing the policy) Before student can redo work they must have it signed by a parent or guardian. This is to allow the parent to see progress that has been made by students. Students will not just redo the old work with new ideas/answers. There may be cases where they might, but I reserve the right to change the assignment but keeping the same mastery ideas. For every redo students will need to write a paragraph on what in their mind happened on the first try. What was different about the second try? I believe as a teacher that the most important thing for students is that they master the content in my class. With that said, I will not allow students to abuse my system. If you are coming back every week then we have larger issues. We will need to have a meeting to talk about better techniques for mastery if student starts relying on redo's all the time.

Cassandra
Do not just give studnets a wide open option of redoing school work. There should be guidelines that prevent studnets from cheating or making things too hard for the teacher. One guideline that is especially important for all quizes and tests that need to be redone is that the teacher can change the test and quiz. This is important so that students are not just memorizing answers, but instead that they are actually learning from their mistakes and completing new problems with their understanding. I also think it is prudent to have them write a reflection on the poor graded work. This assures that they are actually analyzing their work and learning from their mistakes. Also, there is one that I already had put in my syllabus: don't let students give you redone homework in the last week of grading. This prevents for another redo if you find lots of mistakes, and it also puts even more stress on you while you are trying to wrap up the unit and file all the grades. And lastly, respect your students and be understanding. Remember that teachers aren't perfect and that students know that. If teachers extend an understanding to students then they will give it back.

Andy
A nice short chapter, but it brings up some good points. The first one I would like to comment on is the bit about if it is a character issue. This means that if a student is being dishonest, not being mature, having self-discipline problems, or just integrity then the author mentions that it will be a greater gift to not allow them to redo it. This can make the student smarten up a bit for next time. On the other hand sometimes when a student just completely spaces off an assignment and has really never done it before treating them like an adult may be best. I agree with the author on this too. Knowing that things come up without any warning and allowing the student to redo the assignment because they had to rush to hand it in on time for next class will show them that you care and that you want them to do a good job and take their time.

Sean
Something that I about while reading was what to do with a student who shows blatant disrespect to my role as teacher, to my class, to the rest of the school? In my overly optimistic mind, I thought I could find some nifty way to turn it into a real teachable moment. The small realist in me reminded myself that in the heat of the moment, that's not so easy to do. So the question remains. Aside from that, I just thought about how to make those who don't do something right the first time have a second chance. Those who redo a test will get a different one that has the same value. Those who turn in a homework assignment that isn't up to snuff, then I will give them something of equal value to do that can make up for it.

Ethan
This section talks about what to do when dealing with students who wish to redo an assignment or test. Many of the points made make a lot of sense. I particularly like the point made that as a teacher it is helpful to sit down with a student and lay out a plan of study to ensure the same mistakes are not made twice. Nothing is more discouraging then getting a worse grade on the retake. It also lets the student know that you care about the outcome of their retake. Another great point was that you should not let students make up work during the last week of the grading period. It is hard as a teacher to cram a lot of grading into the last week of the term when you have to submit your grades. Overall I feel I will use all the ideas presented in this chapter in my classroom. As a math teacher, I feel like most will apply to retaking of tests and quizzes.

George
Chapter 10 was the Mulligan chapter, or redos. The major thing to keep mindful of is to keep strict guidelines in the event of redoing work. You don't want students turning in half baked work and then asking to “redo” it and get it graded. I believe a redo is only applicable in the event of students who you know have been busting their tails working but they fell short of were tragically confused. I am also a fan of the suggestion of having the parent sign the work to be redone so they know what is going on. Coming up with a system for redos is something else I will need to come up with, because I want to be fair, but I also don't want students to try and play me like a chump.

Jennifer
As a teacher, I want to be careful when having students redo an assignment. I need to take into account the number of times they have asked to redo an assignment or test, observe them and how well they are doing in class, there could be many reasons why a students wants to redo an assignment. However, sometimes it should not be an option. Having the parents sign the original task or assessment seems like a good idea, it keeps the parents involved and aware of their child's school work. Also changing the format of the homework or assessment is something that should always be done, that way you can see whether or not they really understand the material and can apply it or if they do not. If you give them the same assignment, then they could just memorize the correct information and copy it down. Helping the students make a schedule for studying, when it comes to redoing tests, or a schedule of completion for an assignment will help them stay focused and get the work done on time and have the time to learn it.

Darren
My approach to giving students opportunities to complete unfinished work or redo certain assignments relies on the student's ability to contact me and set up a meeting. I am literally going to include a portion about these meetings in my class syllabus. I feel like a student should be able to make up an assignment if it is missed or they did not complete it adequately. The meetings would allow the student to discuss their problems with the assignment or making class on a one-to-one basis. From here, different options would be available for the situation. I don't feel like a chapter can cover the subjectivity of missed and "bad" assignments. However, the book did point out good ideas. For example, students should certainly not have to do the same test as the one before. There should be variety. This stresses content mastery, which is supposed to be the biggest factor in a student's grade. Even if something is turned in and there has been little work done on it and the students ask for a redo, it is very possible to determine that a redo does not make sense in this student's case once the teacher meets with him/her on a one-to-one basis. Overall, though a lot of the ideas were very good in this chapter, it completely depends on the situation.

Liz
I find it interesting that this chapter asks why in a classroom all students should be ready for a test at the same time if the classroom is differentiated! It is such an obvious question that I feel that I should have seen it before. Most of our learning done this semester regards the differentiated classroom and to not have differentiated tests does not seem to fit. The other opportunity for students is doing the work again in agreement with the teacher for a better understanding and for FULL credit. I believe that this is acceptable and makes sense. The use of partial credit does not make students want to redo the project but to abandon it. If the student can justify their new work by correcting the old then they are to be commended and learned from.

Zack
Personally I do not believe that students should be able to redo work that they received credit on. This will only encouarge them to wait for the later tries to actually try on an assignment. Rather make students redo it for participation points. To obtain all of the particpation points in a class a student must redo their work until it is of a status that is exemplary. Students need to realize that yes it is impossible for us to think that they will know it after one try, their best work is also expected. A student who shows the effort in trying to learn the material should get more particpation points than someone who does not try.

Brian
Redo’s, redo’s, redo’s… Where do we start? Should we re-do it? Ah hah hah hah. No, but seriously, redo’s can be a very effective tool that educators can use to let students prove their mastery. If a student did not successfully convey the fact that he has mastered the content, and wants a legitimate chance at showing us that (s)he has in fact mastered the content, who are we to say no? Obviously the “legitimacy” is a very arbitrary word. I believe that redone work is not something to be offered to all students all the time. Nor should it be for full-credit, pending some unforeseen incident. Again we’re getting into specifics. What I think is important when determining whether a student should be allowed to redo work, is when it is clear, that by redoing a project or assignment will ultimately lead to a higher knowledge of the content; which is what we’re always looking for!

Josh
Wormeli advises that teachers allow students to re-do work and assignments for full credit. This allows students to build mastery on the content and skills, if they did not understand it the first time around. Wormeli stresses that teachers need to have compassion for the student and their circumstances, and that as adults in life we get extra times or re-do's as well. However, the offer to complete re-do's on assignments should not be granted if students don't try the first time or wait till the last minute and come out with a product that does not show their full capability. When a student does this with the mindset that they can blow it off because they can always re-do it when they feel like it, then a re-do should not be an option. If students or a particular student show effort but constantly need to utilize the opportunity for re-dos, it can be an indicator to the teacher that the method they are using needs to be modified. I fully believe that students should have the ability to re-do an assignment. First, because students can have bad days or bad weeks that affect the quality of their work, or they may not have learned the content or built the skills at the same rate as other students.

Damian
As a teacher, you will have perhaps the most valuable insight into your students. Reconcile yourself to the fact early that you will have students who understand certain things better than others. How will you handle re-doing assignments? On one hand, repeating an assignment can further the learning on the point of the lesson. Wouldn’t that be great if by just allowing a student to repeat the assignment they actually understood the point? Maybe just a little more review in class and talking over the original assignment allowed something to click for them. Don’t let students take advantage of the system though, turning in truly substandard work knowing they can make it up later thus getting an extension on the assignment.