"students (some, not all) won’t do work that doesn’t “count.” "
WOW, you read my mind!
I do have a FEW "assignments" that students simply get "complete" or "incomplete" for doing it (generally they do what I ask them to do). This is really more a matter of "formative" assessment rather than "specs" grading (I think on a range, "formative" is even less a matter of grading than is "specs"). Doing this work DOES allow me to offer guidance and feedback for upcoming assignments. I so also include completion of these activities as part of my general "engagement" grading.
However, true "specs" grading has been more challenging for me to implement when it is an assignment that does have a range of quality to consider. But I can see how thinking in terms of providing feedback rather than grading can help with FORMATIVE assignments. Basically, "fill in the blank" in words rather than a rubric leading to a range of grades:
What you did well:
Where you can improve:
It will take practice to become more comfortable with this idea.
But just how would you see "specs" grading and "formative feedback" in relation to each other? Same thing or distinct difference? There does not seem to be any sort of "grading" going on with formative feedback. At least nothing more than "complete/incomplete".
"students (some, not all) won’t do work that doesn’t “count.” "
WOW, you read my mind!
I do have a FEW "assignments" that students simply get "complete" or "incomplete" for doing it (generally they do what I ask them to do). This is really more a matter of "formative" assessment rather than "specs" grading (I think on a range, "formative" is even less a matter of grading than is "specs"). Doing this work DOES allow me to offer guidance and feedback for upcoming assignments. I so also include completion of these activities as part of my general "engagement" grading.
However, true "specs" grading has been more challenging for me to implement when it is an assignment that does have a range of quality to consider. But I can see how thinking in terms of providing feedback rather than grading can help with FORMATIVE assignments. Basically, "fill in the blank" in words rather than a rubric leading to a range of grades:
What you did well:
Where you can improve:
It will take practice to become more comfortable with this idea.
But just how would you see "specs" grading and "formative feedback" in relation to each other? Same thing or distinct difference? There does not seem to be any sort of "grading" going on with formative feedback. At least nothing more than "complete/incomplete".