NMS Grading Task Force -- 1st Meeting Wed 6/8 at 2:45 PM in Media Center

Taking a Look at How We Do Grading at NMS

Dear NMS Parents/Guardians/Community Members:

I want to invite you to be on a Task Force for NMS.

A couple of weeks ago, I presented our NMS School Improvement Plan for 2016-2017 to the School Committee, on Thursday, May 12.

In our plan, I kept a point that we will continue to look at our grading practices here at the Nichols.  I explained to the School Committee that we had had some teachers who had piloted Standards-Based Grading (SBG) but at this time, we were going to pull back a little and truly investigate how we might move forward with grading.

I discussed that we did a really nice job as a community starting the conversation about grading from our faculty's book study of Leaders of Their Own Learning and the piloting, but that we weren't ready for a change school-wide.  I said that we would continue to look at where we could improve, but at this moment, we were going to take a little slower path.

With this, I have created a Task Force to help us look at our Grading Practices.  This is not just about "traditional grading" and/or "standards-based grading"; this is about grading overall.  

It is to look at:  How can we look at grading/reporting and do it better?  That is our Essential Question.

Attached is a Google Doc with the plan for this coming year as well as below.  

If you are interested in being a part of this Task Force, please let me know.

Ms. Andrea Borges, NMS English Language Arts Department Leader, is going to co-chair this committee, and I know we can do some amazing things as we continue to work together and look at all elements of education from different lenses.

Just let me know if you are interested, or if you have any questions: mgeoghegan@middleboro.k12.ma.us.  

The first meeting will be on Wednesday, June 8, at 2:45 in the NMS PD Center (3rd Floor, A-Cluster, A306).

Thanks again; have a great day,

Mr. G

JOHN T. NICHOLS, JR. MIDDLE SCHOOL

Grading Practices Action Plan

Goals:

• Build a common understanding of the research related to grading practices
• Develop a shared set of beliefs on grading practices and use these to guide the work of the Exploration Committee and pilot
• Establish a formal Grading Exploration Committee to determine the viability of embedding different grading practices at the Nichols Middle School
• Formally pilot in a class, standards-based reporting
• Engage the community in learning and discussing grading practices that support student learning
• Develop a multi-year plan related to grading and reporting practices at the conclusion of 2016 - 2017 school year

Action Steps:

1. Establish formal Exploration Committee co-chaired by Mr. Marty Geoghegan and Mrs. Andrea Borges
1. Recruit Staff Members, Parents, and a School Committee Representative starting May 18th through May 27th.
2. Meet on June 8, at 2:45 PM, to prepare for 2016 - 2017 exploration and formal pilot of standards-based report cards and set forth meeting dates.
3. A formal pilot will occur with models of report cards established by members of the Grading Exploration Committee.
4. Create a Community Engagement Sub-Committee focused on learning about grading and best practices to enhance student learning.
5. Community Engagement Sub-Committee will in turn focus on building community engagement on their learnings related to different grading practices, including Standards-Based Grading by developing opportunities to collaborate with community members.
6. The SBG Exploration Committee will meet every other month with Google Hangout meetings, as needed, to:
1. Develop a common understanding of the best practices related to grading
2. Formulate guiding beliefs related to grading practices
3. Implement a formal pilot and a feedback system regarding the pilot for students, teachers, and families
4. Construct a multi-year plan related to grading and reporting practices starting in the 2017-2018 school year

7th Grade ELA2 Celebration of Learning with the Performance of "Gossip"

A Play to Learn from and Celebrate

This year the seventh grade ELA2: Journalism and the Media classes with Ms. LaPerriere and Ms. Weaver performed the play “Gossip.” 

“Gossip” is a short play about the effect that gossip can have on friendships, school environment, and self-esteem.  This play takes place in a middle school and uses symbolism to help students learn to say no to gossip.

Each year our ELA2 classes work on the 21st Century standards that help students hone their presentation and collaboration skills.  Also, they have learned about an author's purpose and theme in an authentic way. By performing for parents, guardians, family members, peers, and sixth graders, our students are able to see how their hard work pays off in ways that benefit the learning of others while they learn as well.

The play was performed throughout the day on Tuesday, May 31.  The lessons beyond reading, learning lines, and performing were all on display as the students talked about not giving in to gossip and being a true friend.

Here are some pictures from the performance:

Ms. LaPerriere

Ms. Weaver