Grading for Choice and Process

I am not a fan of grading (really, who is?) but, over years of trial and error, I’ve found some grading practices that work for me. I like them because they reinforce my values, help students grow as artists, build relationships, and check off the requirements I have to meet as a teacher.

Before I share my current grading practices with you, a bit about my teaching context. I’m part of a department of three visual arts teachers. We have agreed that all students will post images of work and written reflections on digital portfolios that they add to in every art class. This is my “have to” for grading. I teach multiple classes, but the one I’m writing about here is “Studio”, an entirely choice-based, intermediate-level class.

I give mainly formative grades. Many art teachers give grades at the end of projects, which assigns value to finished work as the product of learning. In my class, taking ownership of the art-making process is where the teaching is centered, and I want to guide and help students along the way. My grading practices reflect this and reinforce the value of the process of making art, along with goal setting and growth.

Formative assessment grades

I grade students’ planning, artwork, and progress toward meeting their goals through quick conferences with me at my desk. I do these short conferences weekly or every other week, depending on the needs of the class, the number of students, and how much time I have. I look for two things: planning and artwork/ goals.

• Planning -  25% of the class grade

I spend quite a bit of time teaching students about four different types of work they can do in the Studio. I support them by requiring them to fill out a Studio Planning form for the type of work they want to do. The forms are teaching tools that walk them through setting a goal for work and developing a process that fits their needs. I have used a digital form in the past (here: Studio Planning Form) but plan to use printed forms for students to write on this year to minimize technology use (see the printable forms here).

• Artwork/ Goals - 25% of the class grade

I also ask students to show me artwork and other evidence of how they are growing artistically, learning, and meeting the goals they set. I ask them to fill out this Artwork & Goals Check-in form to be prepared with artwork and examples to share as evidence. The artwork can be finished but does not have to be.

It’s important to note that since these are formative assessments I give students help and advice during these conferences. They always have the option to do more work and try again if they are missing a component, which can result in a higher grade. These two grades combine to be fifty percent of the class grade.

• Studio Work - 30% of the class grade

I also grade process through an every-other-week digital portfolio post where I ask students to post images of what they are working on each day and, at the end of each two weeks, answer a reflective question they choose from a list. This grade meets the agreement my department made that every student keeps a digital portfolio in each art class we offer. We use Google Sites to make them and it works well. I wrote more about this here.

Summative Grades

• Final Project - 20% of the class grade

I give one summative grade, which I call the Final Project (which sounds kind of ominous as I type it!) where I ask students to apply what they learned in the course to make a collection of three artworks or one large project and share it with the class. I give them that last month to work on this and I find that the time limit and requirement to share work in class give students motivation and create a sense of productive urgency. It’s a good change of pace at the end of the semester. This is twenty percent of the course grade. Here are the instructions and grading checklist I use.