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Highlight Presentation:

Katie Mattaini

Inclusive Pedagogy

Resources, schedule, Zoom: thegradingconference.com �Slack community: tinyurl.com/join-alt-grading

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Recording and posting

We are recording this session.

We plan to post recordings and slides so you can review them later.

We retain the right to rebroadcast and distribute the recording.

By participating, you are agreeing that your contributions become part of the recording. This includes video, audio, chat, and Q&A.

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The Grading Conference is hosted by

college-bridge.org

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Today: Getting started with alternative grading

Now Inclusive Pedagogy: Katie Mattaini

4:45 - 5:00 Tea break (offline)

5:00 - 6:00 Keynote speaker: Rachel Weir

6:00 + Wrap-up and optional social events

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Katie Mattaini received her PhD in Biology from MIT in 2015, studying cancer metabolism. Since 2018 she has been a Lecturer in Biology at Roger Williams University in Bristol, RI, where she received a 2021-2022 Excellence in Teaching Award.��She teaches introductory biology and cancer biology, as well as leading the team teaching the intro bio lab sequence. Since uttering the fateful question “What kind of monster doesn’t give partial credit?!” in January 2020, she has enthusiastically adopted standards-based grading or ungrading in all her courses and become a co-organizer of The Grading Conference.��In her copious spare time, she enjoys purchasing far more pedagogy books than she could ever hope to read. You can follow her adventures on Twitter @katiemattaini and join the Bio Grading for Growth community of practice that she coordinates on Google Groups.

Katie Mattaini

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Katie Mattaini

�Lecturer in Biology

Roger Williams University

@katiemattaini

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Using alternative grading as part of an inclusive pedagogy

Katie Mattaini�Roger Williams University

@katiemattaini

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My core beliefs about teaching & learning:

Teaching and learning happens in the context of relationships; it is not transactional.
Equity considerations have to be built into every course from the ground up; they cannot be an afterthought.
All students can learn biology if they put in the work, use effective study techniques, and get expert help when that’s not enough.
Students are humans with complicated lives.
Learning takes practice, practice, practice.

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The embodied self

Please complete this exercise from your own perspective when you were a student.

Complete the sentence: “I am __________.”

Write down as many descriptors as you can think of in sixty seconds.

Beverly Daniel Tatum. Why Are All the Black Kids Sitting Together in the Cafeteria? Basic Books, 2017.

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The embodied self

In your list, pick the top two to three descriptors that have made you feel most comfortable or gave you an advantage in a class as a student.

Repeat for the descriptors that made you least comfortable/put you at a disadvantage.

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The embodied self

Students rarely respond with a descriptor of a majority or advantaged identity

Ex. Men rarely note their maleness, White students rarely mention being White, etc.�

“Our awareness of the complexity of our own identity develops over time. The salience of particular aspects of our identity varies at different moments in our lives.”

Beverly Daniel Tatum. Why Are All the Black Kids Sitting Together in the Cafeteria? Basic Books, 2017.

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Toxic rigor & STEM

Reflection 1: As an educator, am I here to rank students or to help students learn?

Reflection 2: Am I really assessing ONLY learning? �Have I checked how how race, gender, SES, disability, etc. affect my grade distributions? If there is an effect, what can I do about that?

“If it’s code for ‘some students deserve to be here, and some don’t,’ then it needs to go.” ~Jordynn Jack & Viji Sathy, “It’s Time to Cancel the Word ‘Rigor’”, Chronicle of Higher Education

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STEM is rife with grade inequity

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Example - RWU intro bio

Students: Matriculated & took BIO103 between FA17 - FA20

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Cognitive frames for considering grade inequity

Bensimon, E. M. 2005. Closing the achievement gap in higher education: An organizational learning perspective. New Directions for Higher Education 2005:99-111.

Students in group X just don’t spend enough time studying

Deficit frame

Blames students & their circumstances

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Cognitive frames for considering grade inequity

Bensimon, E. M. 2005. Closing the achievement gap in higher education: An organizational learning perspective. New Directions for Higher Education 2005:99-111.

Students in group X just don’t spend enough time studying

Deficit frame

Blames students & their circumstances

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Cognitive frames for considering grade inequity

Bensimon, E. M. 2005. Closing the achievement gap in higher education: An organizational learning perspective. New Directions for Higher Education 2005:99-111.

Deficit frame

Blames students & their circumstances

Due to inequities in K12, minority students are underprepared, so their grades are lower

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Cognitive frames for considering grade inequity

Bensimon, E. M. 2005. Closing the achievement gap in higher education: An organizational learning perspective. New Directions for Higher Education 2005:99-111.

Deficit frame

Blames students & their circumstances

What can I do

to remove systemic barriers to student success?

Equity frame

Focuses on what instructors & institutions can do

Due to inequities in K12, minority students are underprepared, so their grades are lower

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Inclusive pedagogy

Alternative grading

Mindset of constant learning about & examining how privilege influences systems in education

Actions taken to disrupt the systems & make them more equitable

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For whom is the system built? �Who is excluded or harmed by the system?

Some identities to consider:

Race, ethnicity, nation of origin, first language
Gender & sexual orientation
Physical or mental ability, incl. anxiety, neurodivergence
Socioeconomic status
Religion
Age

Beverly Daniel Tatum. Why Are All the Black Kids Sitting Together in the Cafeteria? Basic Books, 2017.

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Three essentials of equitable grading

Equitable grading practices…

Reflect student learning�- validly convey a student’s academic performance�
Are bias-resistant�- promote success of all students; do not replicate disparities in opportunity�
Are motivational�- support growth mindset; recognize the reality of learning through initial failure

Feldman, Joe. Grading for Equity: What It Is, Why It Matters, and How It Can Transform Schools and Classrooms. Corwin, a SAGE Publishing Company, 2019.

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Time to reflect!

Worksheet: bit.ly/GC-IncPed-2022

This link will allow you to make a copy that you can edit.

Timeline:

10 minutes to reflect on your own

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Discuss!

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Inclusive practice examples:

Is participation, preparation, etc. assessed?

Learning community objective:

Earn a certain # of learning community credits (LCCs) to meet objective

Who might be harmed?

If attendance is always required, students w/ chronic illness, parents, those who work jobs with unpredictable hours, etc.

Inclusive practice:

Allow many options for earning LCCs

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Inclusive practice examples:

How do reassessments/revisions work?

Who might be harmed?

Students w/ chronic illness, parents, those who work jobs with unpredictable hours, etc.

Inclusive practice:

Make reassessment accessible

Reassessments only available in office hours

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Inclusive practice examples:

How do I communicate with students about their grades?

Who might be harmed?

Any student who’s never had alternatively graded classes before, especially first gen students who may have trouble interpreting syllabi

Inclusive practice:

Building in grade check-ins

Post grades in gradebook and assume students will figure things out

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Inclusive practice examples:

What assessment tools do I use to measure competency?

Exclusively timed, high-stakes exams

Who might be harmed?

Students with test anxiety, dyslexia, ESL students, etc.

Inclusive practice:

Including other types of assessment

Take-home exams

Frequent smaller quizzes

Etc.

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Inclusive practice examples:

How is feedback given/grading performed?

Who might be harmed?

Anyone against whom we have implicit biases, even those biases contradict our consciously-held beliefs

Inclusive practice:

Grade work that is anonymized

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A reminder

We are all human!!

Doing equity work is exhausting. It is both important & urgent, and we can’t keep doing it if we are depleted.

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What’s next?

Now Tea break (offline until 5:00)

Next Keynote: Rachel Weir

5:00 - 6:00