Invest in Educators. Empower Students.
Transform Schools and Classrooms.
Grading that is accurate, bias-resistant, and motivating improves learning for every student and teacher.
The Problem with Traditional Grading
The grades students receive profoundly affect their learning experiences, opportunities, and even life trajectories. Unfortunately, traditional grading practices have long undermined effective teaching and learning, reinforced achievement disparities, created high-stress classrooms, and failed to accurately describe many students’ true learning.
Most teachers are unaware of the overwhelming research:
Grading can be more accurate and fair
and
Grading can build a student’s agency that shifts from a focus on points to a focus on learning.
As teachers and leaders, we have a moral responsibility to critically examine our current, inherited grading practices and make them better.
Improve Grading In Each Classroom and Systemwide
Equitable grading updates and improves on our 100-year-old grading practices. Unlike traditional grading, equitable grading is grading based only on a student’s understanding of course content (or course standards), thereby making grades more accurate, fair, consistent, and motivating.
At Crescendo Education Group, we provide eye-opening learning experiences that empower educators to implement improved grading and assessment in each classroom and systemwide.
Our partnerships over the last decade have consistently resulted in:
- Higher student achievement and more rigorous standards
- More consistent grading across teachers
- Narrowing of achievement and opportunity gaps
Partner with Us to Improve Grading
We’re here to support schools and districts with improved grading. Changing grading is hard, but it’s possible. And it’s worth it.
For Educators, By Educators
Our team of current and former educators brings deep knowledge of equitable grading research and practices. With hands-on experience in both classrooms and administrative roles, we understand common challenges and know how to support teachers and leaders to overcome hurdles and improve grading and assessment.
Powerful Learning Experiences
Our engaging workshops and coaching empower educators. With a combination of in-person and virtual formats, synchronous and asynchronous activities, and collaborative and individualized learning, we tailor our work to meet teachers and leaders where they are. We provide the research, knowledge, and strategies educators need to realize the benefits of equitable grading–for them and their students.
Tailored Programs
We offer a wide array of services tailored to meet your specific needs. From workshops to individualized coaching to leadership support, we offer comprehensive solutions for schools, districts, and educators at all levels. No matter where your school or district is in its journey towards equitable grading and the unique circumstances you face, we are here to provide support and guidance along the way.
“School Grading Policies are Failing Children”
How do traditional grading policies unintentionally undermine learning and contribute to achievement gaps? What are the benefits of more equitable grading? Read the Equitable Grading Project’s Report – ‘School Grading Policies are Failing Children – A Call to Action for Equitable Grading.’
Making an Impact Matters
Since 2014, we have supported hundreds of schools and districts nationwide–and thousands of educators–with improving grading.
My grades are going to be a more accurate reflection of students’ mastery of the material, not just their compliance. I see a shift in how students are talking about their work–there is much more emphasis on learning, and fewer questions like, ‘How many points is this worth?
This professional development provides a great catalyst for us to examine our grading practices and have districtwide conversations about why we do what we do.
This was the most useful professional development that I have ever been a part of. The cohort style, coaching, and workshops all felt meaningful. I didn’t just reflect on my teaching, I redesigned my teaching because of this.
Teachers Served Nationwide
Teachers report confidence
in consistency and clarity
of grading practices
Teachers report improvement in not just grading but overall teaching
Let’s Get Started
1. Discovery
Meet with a member of our team to explain your needs and circumstances, including any prior experiences with improving grading.
2. Planning
After understanding your context, we’ll work together to select products and services that meet your needs and budget.
3. Partnership
We’ll provide engaging, effective services that increase awareness, understanding, and implementation of equitable grading practices. Throughout, we will provide insights into the impact of the work and track progress towards our shared goals.
Ready to improve equitable grading in your school or district?
Read the Book
Grading for Equity
What It Is, Why It Matters, and How It Can Transform Schools and Classrooms
Reading this book will make you re-think the way you assess students and will inspire you to enact a system that encourages revision and redemption instead of compliance and corruption.
Ph.D., Senior Lecturer at Stanford School of Education and Co-Founder of Challenge Success
There is growing awareness that traditional grading practices have become a barrier to meaningful student learning. There is a lack of resources to support educators who want to adopt new grading practices that are both accurate and equitable. Joe Feldman addresses this need.
Superintendent of Educational Services, Placer Union High School District
We don’t usually think of grading when talking about equity, but Feldman helps us see why grading is an integral part of an equity agenda. This must-have book will help teachers implement improved, equity-focused grading for impact.
Education Consultant and Author of Culturally Responsive Teaching and the Brain
Grading for Equity penetrates macro-level grading policies to transform micro-level teaching practices that embrace the cultural and the contextual. A must read for justice-centered educators.
Co-Author of These Kids are Out of Control: Why We Must Reimagine Classroom Management for Equity, Cornelius Vanderbilt Professor of Education, Peabody College, Vanderbilt University
Recent News and Blog
Who makes decisions in schools? Principals frequently promote “shared decision-making” or “distributed leadership” as a signal to teachers that their voices matter. A principal knows that teachers are more likely...
How do electronic gradebooks undermine teachers’ professionalism and anchor them to an inaccurate and unfair grading system? Grading has come a long way from the paper grid sheets I used...
Each teacher’s grading becomes siloed, leading to wide variability—one 10th grade English teacher grades very differently from the 10th grade English teacher next door, multiplied...
As someone who has researched equitable grading, written about it, and worked with hundreds of teachers to understand and implement the practices for it over a...
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