Standards Based Grading

1. Historical Comprehension -This is the Category of the gradebook which reports students' ability to recall historical events and processes needed to score well on free response questions that we will see on AP History Exam in May. 

   1. Students will have reading quizzes to cover this information they need to show during the AP Exam in May. If the kiddos do not know the content, I can not help them use that evidence in their essays.

2. Historical Analysis- This is the Category of the gradebook which reports students' ability to analyze documents on stimulus-based multiple choice tests in the same format we will see on AP History Exam in May. 

   1. We will use document-based study guides to prepare students for document-based multiple choice tests every unit. On the AP exam the stimulus-based multiple choice questions account for 40% of their AP score.

3. Historical Argumentation- This is the Category of the gradebook which reports students' ability to create a nuanced response to writing prompts similar to those found on the AP exam. The rubrics associated with these essays are complex and so to help students with this challenge we will tackle the essays in pieces. 

   1. We will work on introductory paragraphs in August and September and move to body paragraphs in September and October. We will also expand the amount of evidence students will analyze through the semester beginning with just introductory paragraphs based on 3 documents and then build up to the full-sized Document Based Question (DBQ) with 7 documents, just like the AP exam will use in May.

Not for a Grade Data Points: Through the semester I will collect "not for graded" data points to help me establish students' skill and content knowledge in these 3 categories (or buckets) and then report an overall, single mark in these areas which will be a "weighted grade". 

As an employee of College Board who scored the AP Euro and AP World exams every summer, I have found that students who show competency in these 3 areas are more likely to show that they are qualified on the AP exam and are also more likely to receive a score that would award them college credit. It is my goal to report students' levels in a way that allows kids the opportunity to focus on areas of need as we prepare for the exam- and this method of reporting should be more helpful.