Human Restoration Project

8/2/2018

28: Restoring Humanity: Gradeless Learning

Ep. 28

For this episode we're trying something new. Instead of having a guest, I'm (Chris) deep-diving into one element of progressive education - offering history and advice to gradeless learning. I tried my best to cover an extensive look at this topic, including - most importantly - the point of why this is needed.

There are many quotes and research provided, here is a list of the resources used:

The "Grading / Gradeless Learning" category of our research page.
Much of the historical data (and all quotes) are from "Making the grade" by Jack Schneider & Ethan Hunt (2013).
We recommend the portfolio tool Seesaw.
**Mistakenly, I said that Seesaw was free for everything except grading - this is mostly true, but to assign "skills" and organize student posts via tags it is $120/year. A simple workaround is to create folders for skills and have students upload work into them.
I celebrate the upcoming work of the Mastery Transcript Consortium.

*Also, I stated "Deborah Meiers" as a source for "creative noncompliace." I meant "Deborah Meier."

Much of these thoughts are laid out in text form with specific recommendations for educators in our free resource, Grading =/ Assessment.

I hope this podcast was valuable to you! You can leave us feedback by tagging us on Twitter @HumResPro or contacting us on our website.

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8/28/2021

Re:Teaching, EP 2: What’s in a grade? GRExit, GPA, College Admissions, and the Mastery Transcript (oh my!)

Long time listeners may recognize the title to this podcast: Re:Teaching. Last year, Nick released a series of short podcasts on a separate channel, focused on current events and short-form highlights of writing. We soon realized that by splitting our podcast into two segments, most folks didn't hear any of this series! Therefore, after much delay - and many reminders by Nick - we'll be releasing Re:Teaching over the next few weeks on this channel. Enjoy, and there will be even more new Re:Teaching episodes on the way.This episode is a feature read of What’s in a grade? GRExit, GPA, College Admissions, and the Mastery Transcript (oh my!) by Nick Covington, published in March 2020. Learn more about Human Restoration Project and find a wealth of free resources to create human-centered classrooms at humanrestorationproject.org, and follow us on social media, @HumResPro.

8/14/2021

Re:Teaching, EP 1: A Progressive Response to “Ed. Reform's Lost Decade”

Long time listeners may recognize the title to this podcast: Re:Teaching. Last year, Nick released a series of short podcasts on a separate channel, focused on current events and short-form highlights of writing. We soon realized that by splitting our podcast into two segments, most folks didn't hear any of this series! Therefore, after much delay - and many reminders by Nick - we'll be releasing Re:Teaching over the next few weeks on this channel. Enjoy, and there will be even more new Re:Teaching episodes on the way.This episode is a feature read of A Progressive Response to “Ed. Reform’s Lost Decade” by Nick Covington, published in January 2020. Learn more about Human Restoration Project and find a wealth of free resources to create human-centered classrooms at humanrestorationproject.org, and follow us on social media, @HumResPro.

7/31/2021

95: Deciphering "Learning Loss" w/ Akil Bello

Ep. 95

Today, we are joined by Akil Bello. Akil is a supplemental education and test preparation expert. He's launched two companies, developed test preparation programs, and trained hundreds of instructors. He was the founding partner and CEO of Bell Curves, a test prep company based on community partnerships, worked for The Princeton Review, and now is the Senior Director of Advocacy and Advancement at FairTest.Akil and I talk about the advent of "learning loss" after pandemic schooling, the way that testing companies are using this term to generate more tests and test prep software, what was lost in the pandemic, and what we can do as teachers to build back better.GUESTSAkil Bello, Senior Director of Advocacy and Advancement at Fairtest, founding partner and former CEO of Bell Curves, and contributor on test equitability, learning loss, and much moreRESOURCESHow Test Publishers Are Poised To Profit From Pandemic “Learning Loss” by Akil BelloAkil Bello's websiteFutureEd State Plan TrackingIntroducing "Operation Reverse the Loss" (IES)Oh What a Tangled Web We Weave: How the Testing Industry Manufactured the "Learning Loss" Narrative (HRP)