To give students feedback on homework and quizzes, I am using a color coded system. The colors are: green=understanding of the standard, yellow=partial or developing understanding, and red=minimal understanding.
The way I translate this to points is I look at how much of each color is present for each standard. If a student has most, if not all, green they receive a 10. Green with a little yellow gets a 9 or 8. Mostly yellow with some red is a 7. Mostly red with a little yellow is a 6. Finally, all red would be a 5.
10 | 9-8 | 7 | 6 | 5 |
Demonstrates thorough understanding of the standard | Demonstrates understanding of the standard | Demonstrates a developing understanding of the standard | Demonstrates a partial understanding of the standard | Demonstrates minimal understanding of the standard |
I've even gotten to the point that my students grade their own homework using the colors! I have this poster hanging in my room to remind them:
Here is how a quiz might look using the color system. Notice, there are no "point values" for each problem. Each question is simply marked with a color indicating the level of understanding. Students don't even ask me "what did I get on this quiz" anymore. They understand that each quiz might have multiple standards on it and each one is assessed individually.
