New Measures of Success. |
“The purpose of education is not to sort kids—it’s to grow kids. Teachers need to coach and mentor, but with grades, teachers turn into judges. I think we can show the unique abilities of kids without stratifying them.”
Scott Looney, Founder and Board Chair, Mastery Transcript Consortium
New Measures of Success
What does it mean to be successful? In school, the long-standing narrative about success has been linked to test scores, report cards, standardized assessments, and transcripts. While we recognize the role that these metrics play in sharing the story of success in learning, we also recognize that the success of our students extends far beyond their grades.
As we begin our workshop, considering the following prompt: "In a world without grades, how would you know if someone has been successful in school?" Add your thoughts to the poll below.
As we begin our workshop, considering the following prompt: "In a world without grades, how would you know if someone has been successful in school?" Add your thoughts to the poll below.
The Traditional Transcript: Purposes, Pros & Problems
In the poll above, we brainstormed a more comprehensive definition of success that extends beyond grades. Now that we've broadened our perspective, let's take a moment to compare this definition with the story of success that is told by the high school transcript.
At your tables, take a moment to review a copy of Nipmuc's current transcript. Discuss the following prompts.
At your tables, take a moment to review a copy of Nipmuc's current transcript. Discuss the following prompts.
- What is the purpose of the traditional high school transcript?
- What are the pros of the traditional model?
- What are the problems with the traditional model?
The Mastery Transcript Consortium:
A Practical Example of New Measures of Success
Driven by the mission to create a high school transcript that reflects the unique skills, strengths, and interests of each learner, The Mastery Transcript Consortium (MTC) is a network of schools that have developed a practical alternative to the traditional transcript. The MTC is comprised of public and private secondary schools, including some of the nation's most recognized independent schools. Collectively, the group has designed a digital tool to replace the traditional transcript that emphasizes competency-based practices, highlights specific examples of student work, and showcases a definition of learning that extends beyond traditional grades.
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Presentation Credit: Mastery Transcript Consortium
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With the Mastery Transcript, the MTC is designing a practical solution to evolve a longstanding practice in schools across the United States. In building this updated tool, they have built a membership of schools that have longstanding relationships with college admissions. Through their intentional work, they have created a digital, clickable, and highly personalized transcript that not only highlights students' individual learning but also can be reviewed quickly and efficiently by admissions officers. With a growing membership, colleges and universities will increasingly need to adjust to this new method of showing students' learning and growth through the high school experience.
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Diving into the Mastery Transcript
Let's take a moment to collectively review a sample of the Mastery Transcript. As you review, keep track of what you notice, wonder, and learned on the sticky notes at your tables. After writing down your answers, post them in the appropriate places in the room.
Click on any of the images below to view the responses of the group.
Journey to Mastery
The Mastery Transcript isn't a solution for every school. In order to adopt this tool, students, educators, and parents need to build consensus about the value of the work and take action steps to build readiness. Though each school's journey is different, there are some common stops along the path to this updated version of a transcript. Take a look at some of the benchmarks that the MTC identifies on the "journey to mastery".
Review the five ideas about the journey to mastery. After a "turn and talk" with your elbow partner (groups no larger than 3, please) - write down at least one action step our school community would need to take in order to explore or build readiness for the Mastery Transcript. Be sure to circle which of the five ideas it relates to when writing down your answer.
Review the five ideas about the journey to mastery. After a "turn and talk" with your elbow partner (groups no larger than 3, please) - write down at least one action step our school community would need to take in order to explore or build readiness for the Mastery Transcript. Be sure to circle which of the five ideas it relates to when writing down your answer.