Information on grading from Renaissance.

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Information on grading from Renaissance.

by Yes, you can grade.

Jun 19, 2010

Here is the information on grading. It came from one of their manuals. It's exactly what people have been trying to tell the nay-sayers. I'm sure they still won't listen, but here goes.

Accelerated Reader and Grades

We do not recommend giving grades for reading practice; however, we do know many schools, especially high schools, choose to do so. If you must give grades for AR work, we encourage you to follow these guidelines:

* Do base a student’s grade on the amount of progress made toward personalized goals. Don’t give the highest grades to the highest point earners, which would unfairly penalize struggling readers. • Don’t grade students unless you are actively monitoring their work. Students who are scoring low on quizzes or accumulating few points usually need your guidance. They may be having trouble finding appropriate books, or they may be trying to read books that are too hard. Intervene first, and be sure students know what to do to be succ...See MoreHere is the information on grading. It came from one of their manuals. It's exactly what people have been trying to tell the nay-sayers. I'm sure they still won't listen, but here goes.

Accelerated Reader and Grades

We do not recommend giving grades for reading practice; however, we do know many schools, especially high schools, choose to do so. If you must give grades for AR work, we encourage you to follow these guidelines:

* Do base a student’s grade on the amount of progress made toward personalized goals. Don’t give the highest grades to the highest point earners, which would unfairly penalize struggling readers. • Don’t grade students unless you are actively monitoring their work. Students who are scoring low on quizzes or accumulating few points usually need your guidance. They may be having trouble finding appropriate books, or they may be trying to read books that are too hard. Intervene first, and be sure students know what to do to be successful before evaluating their efforts. • Do build your library and quiz collection before instituting a grading policy. Don’t inadvertently turn students off to reading by forcing them to read books they aren’t interested in simply to earn a good grade. • Do make your library accessible so that students have ample opportunity to find books quickly and easily. • If a number of teachers are using AR, do decide on a grading formula together.

For more information about Accelerated Reader and grades, attend one of our professional-development seminars.

And there you go. Grading recommendations from AR. And if you think that an AR program in elementary school bears any resemblance whatsoever to an AR program in middle and high school, you are sadly mistaken.

If the company did not want the program to be graded ever, under any circumstances, then they would not have issued the grading guidelines. And if you attend one of their two- day workshops, you will get actual practice in how to set grades appropriately.

I'm sire there will be an argument from people who just want to complain about something, but for the rest of you, here you go.

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innercityteacher I use AR as a grade, but I grade by points. All students need to earn so many points in a semester to earn an A in reading. I do not take the comprehension scores and use those as a grade because every child is at a different level. I teach in a school that has low comprehension scores, and students that don't read. I work hard to instill a love of...See MoreI use AR as a grade, but I grade by points. All students need to earn so many points in a semester to earn an A in reading. I do not take the comprehension scores and use those as a grade because every child is at a different level. I teach in a school that has low comprehension scores, and students that don't read. I work hard to instill a love of reading within my students. I do that by reading to them, and promoting good children's literature in my classroom. However, reading skills don't get any better if the child doesn't read, and test scores don't go up (yes, that is what teaching has come to today). So how do I get kids to read at home? I put a grade on how many AR points they have a semester and magically kids begin reading.

On 10/04/10, Parent wrote: > Another good read is "Does AR Work?" by Stephen Krashen. > > > On 9/29/10, Reading Coach wrote: >> How does a competition for AR champion class promote >> the love of reading? >> Read what research says about the effects of AR in >> Smart Answers to the Tough Questions by Elaine M. Garan >> >> >>>> >>>> Ok, so it looks as if this has been some sort of >>>> long running debate. I haves seen some of the >>>> posts, but never found the original comment. It >>>> looks like a parent is not happy with the fact that >>>> some teachers use AR as a grade and some defensive >>>> teachers are lashing back because clearly they use >>>> AR as a grade and seem to be personally offended. >>>> Soooo.... I am going to give my two cents which at >>>> this point probaly no one cares about but oh well, >>>> here goes. I am a teacher. I have been teaching 10 >>>> years. I use AR in my class and I do encourage it >>>> because as a school we compete against other >>>> classes for the title of AR winner. However, and >>>> this is where the debate occurs, I do not give a >>>> grade for AR. I was tought that it was not to be >>>> used as a grade. Now, some teachers at my site >>>> actually use it as one and they have been given the >>>> freedom to do so, but I have not jumped on that >>>> bandwagon because it wass originally stated as we >>>> were not allowed to grade it. Now, I do make it >>>> mandatory for them to take the tests and I do have >>>> AR silent reading time and I even print out their >>>> reports and give them to the parents so they can >>>> see the child's progress. However, I do not believe >>>> AR was intended to be a grade and I do believe it >>>> can be a crutch for the teacher who has not >>>> directly taught anything to the child but still >>>> holds them accountable. I know I am not going to be >>>> popular here but I agree with "Parent."

Dec 22, 2010

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I use AR for motivational purposes only and it works spectacularly well for that. No, it does not give me a way to grade, but we know that the more kids read and read and read, the better they will get.

Dec 22, 2010

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You must teach a primary grade You obviously do not teach middle school because they are not motivated to read, expected to reach a goal, and then get nothing beneficial toward their grade if they do meet their goal. They'd much rather use that time to play video games, watch TV etc. Of course there may be a FEW exceptions to this, but not many. It's a fact-grades motivate them!...See More

Dec 23, 2010

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No, I have used AR in middle school for 13 years with NO grading. They just LOVE it.

Dec 23, 2010

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A Parent Wow, Isn't that the way Renlearn recommends to use their program??? No Grade

On 12/23/10, No, I have used AR in middle school for 13 years with NO wrote: > grading. They just LOVE it.

Dec 26, 2010

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