Week 2: PLN Post 2

Beatechie's (Be a techie) Blog: "No Rubrics For Me"

Click here for beatechie's post "No Rubrics For Me"

About beatechie (Carol Broos)

This is another blog that I came across through Twitter. This post caught my attention because of the emphasis I find myself placing on rubrics. No one at my school district is making me use rubrics for music class or orchestra; yet I almost always do. Do they make grading music class assignments and orchestra playing quizzes easier? Really? I don't think so. Maybe if I were grading large projects they would help. So why do I do this?

I think it's partly because I see rubrics used by so many people around me. My cooperating teachers used them when I was student teaching, and since then I've noticed my colleagues using them often. I think maybe rubrics are "safe." If a student or a parent questions a grade, I've got a black and white answer on paper for why the student received the grade. This is certainly useful sometimes, and I would never want to give up rubrics all together! I do think they have their place, and they certainly provide clear expectations for students.

As I read this blog post, however, I was drawn to the part where Mrs. Broos suggested that many students might have the potential to rise far above the minimum expectations provided in a rubric. If I always use a rubric, maybe some students will never push themselves to learn what they're capable of. Also, I started thinking about how I sometimes "hide" behind a rubric. I need to find the confidence to say, "This is the grade you are earning. I'm giving you that grade on your playing quiz because I know what you're capable of, and I know you can do better." Or even, "You truly have achieved something great today. Your A+ is not a result of numbers on a page, but because you reached a completely new level with your playing today." Sometimes (obviously) music is not black and white like a test score.

The rest of beatechie's blog has many thoughts and ideas for incorporating technology into the music education classroom. I look forward to keeping up with her updates and posts.