The IB Educator's Green Thumb: Sowing Seeds of Equity

Insights on Shifting Mindsets of Traditional Grading

Thu, 07 Aug 2025 15:59:03 GMT

New School Year, New Beginnings

It's been quite some time since I've been in the space to write due to "life", however, my passion about the necessity to reform the traditional grading system is still as urgent as ever. When we last met at the top of the new year, our school was having discussions about grading which were rooted in intentional dialogue about how we can grade with integrity and equitably. On a personal note, during the months ahead, for those that are familiar with joining a sorority/fraternity you know that a lot of your time is challenged by commitments you have to make during this time. Needless to say, my blogging was interrupted! However, I am elated to say to my readers that I am now a proud member of

Zeta Phi Beta Sorority Incorporated , Rho Zeta chapter! We uphold the principles of scholarship, service, sisterhood, and finer womanhood. In keeping with the principle of scholarship, continuing to pursue my quest of academic excellence in my field is of utmost importance to me, and indeed a great passion of mine, as stated previously.

Beginning my 2nd year as an IB MYP coordinator, I am excited to be a thought partner with my IB MYP colleagues who are new at thinking about grading in a different way. When we started the conversations about grading at the top of this year, it was refreshing to hear that an overarching theme is ultimately we all want to grade equitably and translate grades that are fair for our students. The challenging part is the transfer. How do we take actionable steps to make this a reality? One unique comment by a teacher that stood out to me was that yes, we want to grade our students based on the standards, but if a student is struggling, and they are trying their hardest, they don't want to see a student fail. What happens in this case, and if we're all being honest, teachers will help students pass. Whether this is by giving them extra credit, or extra points on a quiz/test, dropping the lowest test grade, etc. We want the best for our students. In a different light, these conversations brought out our biases in grading. If a student is just super sweet and never gives us any trouble, but they are struggling in a subject, again, teachers will help students pass. On the contrary, if the student has several absences, or presents challenging behaviors in class, some teachers are not as quick to offer the same kind of support to students. Oftentimes grades are used as weapons against our students. If students are caught cheating, we give them a zero. That'll teach them a lesson, right? Wrong! If we continue giving students zeros for behaviors we are not addressing the behavior. In my experience, the student will continue to cheat if the behavior is not addressed. How do you address it? Teach students about academic integrity. Give examples and follow up about how this behavior of cheating can not just affect you academically, but have grave consequences in other areas of their lives. Reframing our mindsets about giving zeros for academic misconduct will take time to shift.

Moving to this summer, I've had the privilege to be a part of a three day IB MYP training for our Year 4 (grade 9) teachers. For those not familiar with the IB MYP program, it is designed for students in Years 1-5 ( grades 6-10). The program is designed to be whole school and not a school within a school model. We started with this model at our school with the goal of whole school implementation in the years ahead. We are rolling out our MYP program to include all year 4 students this school year with training and supports for our administration as well as MYP teachers. We began with trainings on how we are already infusing the principles of the IB in our classrooms this past spring, as well as sending our MYP teachers to training. The summer training included, on day 3, a conversation about our school grading philosophy and the shift to using our MYP rubrics on a 1-8 scale and how to convert those scores into percentages. I think it was important that our assistant principals led the conversation and it is also important to note that the grading philosophy was crafted with input by multiple staff members, including our school improvement team, IB coordinators, and administration. During this discussion, and anytime, in my experience, when you discuss something so highly personal as grading, you could feel the initial pushback on the thought of teachers having to change the ways in which they grade, which in my opinion are more equitable. I also was on the receiving end of some pushback by one of my colleagues during this conversation, one that already knows my position, and I think felt a little angst in hearing it again, but in the end as I stated, we would just have to agree to disagree. I walked away from this conversation with a renewed respect and admiration for the IB Mission Statement which you can find below. As you read the last statement in blue, read it a second time, substituting the word teachers where it says students .

"The International Baccalaureate® aims to develop inquiring, knowledgeable and caring young people who help to create a better and more peaceful world through intercultural understanding and respect.

To this end the organization works with schools, governments and international organizations to develop challenging programmes of international education and rigorous assessment.

These programmes encourage students across the world to become active, compassionate and lifelong learners who understand that other people, with their differences, can also be right.

I think I will lean into this year focusing on this last statement while working with students as well as teachers. It is simple yet so profound to me!

In the end, I felt teachers in the room were by and large receptive, yet cautious, but willing to try something new for the benefit of our students. That to me, was a huge win and step in the right direction towards more fair and equitable grading practices.

During our back to school teacher workdays we had mini sessions on topics such as safety, lesson planning, procedures, etc. and our grading philosophy. I must say, this is a first in my 20+ years in education that I've been through a session on my school's grading philosophy. I am all the way here for this!!! By the way, if you are even thinking about shifting mindsets about grading, it is imperative that it is crafted with a team! This induces more buy-in which is critical for making positive gains in the pursuit of shifting mindsets on traditional grading. So now, the whole school has encountered the new grading philosophy. It is, in my opinion, a huge step in the right direction towards making our grades fair and equitable and inserting grace for students who are still learning, growing, and quite frankly deserve it! What is also important to know, is this is just the beginning. I'm sure as we walk this philosophy out this year there will be more conversations and revisions along the way, but I can tell you, I am excited to be on this path and can't wait to share with you more insights on shifting mindsets of traditional grading. I'll leave you with our current grading philosophy. I'd love to hear your insights. Send me an email with your thoughts. info@futurelinguists.com I just might present your insights in my next post!

4 of the "8 Wonderz of Finer"

Discussions about Grading

Fri, 31 Jan 2025 04:57:01 GMT

Stepping into 2025

Quietly leading and making an impact

Nurturing Learning and Leadership in the New Year

Fri, 27 Dec 2024 00:26:25 GMT

Reflections on my transition to the role of MYP Coordinator and what's next.

The rest of these reflections are my own thoughts and reflections in no particular order.

At the beginning of this year I started my small business, Future Linguists, LLC! I am so proud of myself for beginning this journey. It was birthed however, out of a lull for me professionally. After twenty two years in education, I began to lose my joy for the teaching profession and longed for something new and energizing. I'm so grateful for the people I've met along the way who inspire and keep me going daily. To the families that have supported me since our first summer camp, play and learn Spanish at the park events, and tutoring sessions, I cannot express my gratitude enough!
Not long after launching my business, I assumed the role of MYP Coordinator at the start of this school year. This position has presented me with unique challenges. While I initially had to manage this new role independently, attending training has left me feeling somewhat more equipped.
I'm also grateful for the connections I've made with MYP Coordinators around the globe!
As an introvert, I've always been the observer and listener in meetings, but as coordinator, I find that my thoughts are now being listened to in a different way due to my role. I have to be careful because whenever I present new insights or ideas this can sometimes lead to more work being put on my plate!
I'm grateful to our new co-principals for their leadership and genuine thought and care for me as a new leader, but also as a valued and respected person in our school community.
Navigating this new leadership role and going into the Fall holiday season has presented challenges for me personally, as it pertains to grief and not having my parents, or sister here physically to share it with. I empathize with people who have to work on days when they have lost a loved one. Grief has not gotten easier over time, but it has gotten more manageable. Prioritizing my mental health this season has been paramount in my process.
Surrounding myself in my school community with people who exude positivity, integrity, and light have helped my transition into this leadership role.
When it comes to equitable grading practices, ethical AI practices, revising IB policies, and planning professional development that will tackle these topics, we have A LOT of work to do!

Where do I go from here?

Personal growth goals -The first three days of each month in 2025 I will be intentionally fasting from whatever it is that does not serve me to listen to, partake in, or in other words devote a large amount of my time to. In essence, I will be hitting the reset button each month.
Another goal of mine is to get back to having a consistent running regimen.
I also want to grow as a beginner gardener. I'm hoping equal parts soil, smashed pumpkins from Thanksgiving, and leaves in a garbage bag will equal compost in the next couple of months! Now what do I do with my hay bales?!?
Professional Growth - I'm excited that I've been asked to contribute to a book based on my contributions to the Grow Beyond Grades blog! I'm super excited and plan to continue blogging and being a voice in the movement to grow beyond grades.
The new year will bring many opportunities to develop and present PD about equitable grading practices, ethical AI usage for teachers and students, and the Middle Years Program implementation. One other area I will focus on in the new year is prioritizing my time in order to give timely feedback to my students and to make lessons more effective.
For my MYP Coordinators opting in to the Beta trial for Enhancing the MYP I'm excited to implement these new changes and looking forward to sharing the process of how I plan to implement them with my colleagues. Stay tuned!
I will learn more about Artificial Intelligence (AI) ! When I started teaching decades ago, we didn't have AI as a strong presence in education. Now, it's here to stay and I wonder how much of it will play a part in grading and assessment?
There is so much I want to learn about grading and assessment and AI. I'm starting to think about working on a doctoral degree. It's on the long list of things I want to accomplish!

"Leading & Learning with Gratitude and Integrity"

Fri, 29 Nov 2024 20:47:52 GMT

Leading and Learning with Gratitude and Integrity...

Today is the day after Thanksgiving and my heart is so full. The Fall months into this holiday season are filled with a lot of joy and moments of sadness for me and I'm sure a lot of others, however, in this moment the feeling of love is palpable. Before I dig in to today's post, I want to pay tribute to some of the most influential people in my life who inspired me to take this leap of faith and begin Future Linguists LLC. I'm grateful to my family who champion me daily. I'm grateful to the ungrading community of educators around the world who invigorate, and challenge my thinking to grow from my early years of adopting a more equitable form of grading for my students. Specifically, I'd like to highlight my father, Allen Rice, Army veteran, and inspiration to all who knew and loved him. Sadly, he succumbed to his battle with Type 1 diabetes eight years ago but I feel his presence every day. The second person is my sister, Latrece Covington-Morris. She was taken from us tragically three years ago the week before Thanksgiving, by someone who was driving while impaired. Although these recent physical losses of my loved ones have greatly impacted me, I choose to honor their lives and legacy by continuing to make them proud. They were fierce advocates for students. My father mentored high school students as he coached them in track and field. My sister was just beginning her career in education as a paraprofessional working with students with special needs and then receiving her B.S. in Psychology the year she passed away. I would speak to them almost daily. Their wisdom, advice, humor, and love have carried me so many days of my life.

However, even though I can't speak to them in the natural sense of the word, I've found new ways to connect with them through advocacy and giving back to my local community through service to others at my school and in my community at large. I've organized fundraising efforts with JDRF One Walk now Breakthrough T1D . I'm also now organizing an IB Festival of Hope led by high school students in our IB Personal and Professional skills class. This event will bring together thought leaders throughout our community to tackle issues they are facing, whether it's food insecurity, mental health, or others. Our hope is to host virtual interviews, connecting with schools around the country and abroad to foster international mindedness in our students and a feeling of we are all in this together to face the world's challenges. To give you an idea of what this event is all about please watch Festival of Hope Chicago highlights and if you would like to be a part of this changemaking event please feel free to reach out to me here .

In my last post, "Sowing Seeds of Equity: What does this look like? we talked about the IB Leadership Capabilities framework shared by Asheka Tenzin, an experienced IBEN educator. I shared how the leadership capability I wanted to nourish is Relational Intelligence which reads; Influencing stakeholders, supporting collaboration, and fostering relationships aligns with the Communicator, Caring, and Principled attributes. Before I jump into "Truly Equitable Grading" with Thomas Guskey a podcast interview on "Leaders Coaching Leaders" , which gives valuable insights into his newest book, "Grading with Integrity" I want to touch on my efforts the past few weeks in building relational intelligence. It truly has been an eyeopener when it comes to trying to nourish this leadership capability. I led one IB PLT afterschool, and included a google form check in with an SEL question of on a scale of 1-10, how are you feeling today? Granted as someone who is still in the classroom myself, I wanted to be cognizant of teacher's time and share information with colleagues that is pertinent to the IB as well as follow up on some information that our IB team needed in order to be able to do the work and move IB forward in our school. My mind quickly shifted to equitable grading practices. Some teachers hold students to the high standard of meeting their deadlines and if they don't , they penalize students for not turning in work on time by deducting points from their grade or some other form of "grade penalty" because "that will motivate them to turn in work in a timely manner! Yet the cycle continues. It baffles me that some teachers want to penalize students for late work but when asked to submit information by a certain deadline themselves, they either don't submit it, or submit it late. The difference is, as a coordinator/teacher I am not in the position nor would I ever penalize teachers for submitting information/work late. Why would I assign a "penalty"? The penalty does not get to the root of the issue. In the United States we are so far behind our international schools in our grading practices. In the video "Traditions of grading with Tom Guskey | Corwin Leaders Coaching Leaders Podcast" Guskey speaks to this point.

So I cycle back to the SEL question check in. If anyone answered with a 5 or below (Me: Instantly thinking of the store Five Below!) I reached out in an email the next day asking how can I or our IB team support you. I thought, yes, I'm building on my relational intelligence and reaching out to support my colleagues! No response, not even a like. Now fast forward to the IB conference for The Role of the Coordinator for the MYP in California that I attended last month. I found out I am not alone. This is a universal occurrence. The workshop leader had us do an activity where we went around the room and we wrote on large chart paper describing the IB Learner Profile Traits of teachers, coordinators, and how we can develop and promote attributes of the learner profile in our school. What is fascinating to me is that all of the educators in this room came from a variety of places around the globe and we share common threads in our thinking. Scroll to the end of this post to see chart papers for insights on attributes of the teacher profile, the coordinator profile, and how we can develop and promote the attributes of the learner profile in our school. After reading through the comments, if you are an IB coordinator, or leader in education in general, can you identify with any of these comments? If there are any that trigger you for example, under the attributes of the teacher profile, communicators-read newsletter/email, let me know what you do to help foster better communication in your school. I am open to new insights in how to grow in this area!

Now let's take a quick look at "Truly Equitable Grading" with Thomas Guskey a podcast interview on "Leaders Coaching Leaders" . I encourage you to listen to this podcast to glean some valuable knowledge about what we have known about grading, how long we have known it, and also how little we have implemented best grading practices over the years. It is truly fascinating. Guskey talks about this in detail. He reveals that he had an opportunity with the American Educational Research Association back in 2016 as part of their 100th anniversary call out to researchers to summarize research conducted on different educational topics over the past 100 years. He and his friend Susan Brookhart put together a team to review the research about grading. Out of the many educational topics, grading has been the one that has had a great amount of new books to come out in this area. Guskey notes that in the introductory chapter of his new book, "Grading with Integrity" they did a review of the amount of newly published books about grading from 1970 to today. Guskey said, " And we found in that first 20 year period in the decades of the 1970s and 1980s, only four books have been published on grading. And three of those four dealt with grading at the college level. The only one that really dealt with it on the elementary or secondary level was a book called What Did You Get? written by Kirshenbaum and Simon. In fact, they just published a-- University of Michigan just published a 50-year anniversary of that issue, which was a tremendous contribution to our field. Then from 1990 to 2000, we had about 14 books published. From 2000 to 2010, we had another, I think, 23 books published. From 2010 to 2020, we had 56 books published on grading. And we've had, I think, another 24 published just since 2020."

To me, this is a very clear indication that with the explosion of information about grading in the United States, there is a real need for transformative grading reform in our schools. Not only do we already know this, but the work of implementing transformative grading practices in our schools ultimately needs to come about with intentionality. To summarize how Guskey put it, we need to lead, grade, and teach with intentionality. He says, "And one of the ways to do that is to always make sure that we have a common language and a common understanding."

This last statement resonated with me because I've found that in recent conversations about grading and assessment in my instructional leadership meetings each person at the table has their own understanding about grading. Until we can come up with a common understanding about the basic question of what does a grade mean, we cannot begin to implement best grading practices.

So I implore you to listen to the podcast , and just as I have, add Thomas Guskey's newest book, "Grading with Integrity: A Research-Based Approach Grounded in Honesty, Transparency, Accuracy, and Equity" to your holiday wish lists. Listening to the podcast gave me a renewed confirmation that writing about equitable grading practices and continuing this work beyond my school walls is so important to the field of education. It really gave me a sense of renewed purpose to lead and learn with integrity and intentionality.

Attributes of the coordinator profile, teacher profile, and how we can develop and promote the attributes of the learner profile in our school.

Until next time...

May the seeds we plant today, whether in our classrooms or our gardens, grow into a future rooted in equity, understanding, and care. Keep nurturing, keep learning, and keep sowing with compassion. Rhonda Higgins

Sowing Seeds of Equity: What does this look like?

Mon, 07 Oct 2024 02:28:40 GMT

So what does sowing seeds of equity look like? Well, lately I've been drawn back to reading "The Art of Coaching: Effective Strategies for School Transformation" by Elena Aguilar. She breaks down the definition of equity in a very easy to digest way. She says, "In its most simplistic definition, equity means that every child gets what he or she needs in our schools--every child , regardless of where she comes from, what she looks like, who her parents are, what her temperament is, or what she shows up knowing or not knowing." She goes on to say that ,"In order to meet the needs of all students we must also transform the experience for the adults who work in schools." Now I propose to you to read those quotes and substitute the word "teacher(s)" every time you see the word child or students. Does the same ring true? I say yes! Imagine if every teacher gets what she needs in our schools? Students cannot ultimately get what they need if the adults in the building do not have what they need. There are so many needs! I feel obligated to address equitable grading practices because of the growth I've had as an educator in this area.

For years I have been working in my own classroom making efforts to make my own grading more equitable. In my new role as an MYP Coordinator I feel I can sow more seeds of equity due to having the ability to work more directly with teachers in this role. In the coming weeks, I will have the privilege to be able to walk through my fellow colleagues' MYP classes. I'm mindful that walking into someone else's classroom can bring a sense of angst for some, but at the same time I'm excited to be able to see the amazing things our educators are doing, as well as being able to talk about equitable grading when the time comes.

Until next time...

How Grading and Gardening Aligns: Storytime...

Sun, 29 Sep 2024 19:13:05 GMT

The story of how I began my journey as a beginner gardener and how I became an advocate for equitable grading practices evolved very organically. These two worlds would eventually align and make up a great part of who I am today. A few years ago I was teaching at a different high school in our district and there was a big push for personalized learning. Our district instructional coaches came to the school periodically and showed teachers various ways we could personalize learning with our students. They showed us things such as choice boards, flexible learning environments including flexible seating, project based learning etc. This was the first time I was introduced to the work of Rick Wormeli, one of the educational assessment gurus in our field. I watched this video Rick Wormeli: Standards Based Grading where he discusses the controversial issue of teachers assigning zeros on the 100-pt scale. The 1st Seed of Equity was sown! From then on I was passionate about learning more about equitable grading practices.

I participated in a statewide Action Research project led by the North Carolina Department of Instruction where I explored what would happen if I took away the traditional % grades of students and replaced them with narrative feedback on assessments. From then on, I did not look back. I have been utilizing the standards based grading framework ever since, although my processes have changed over time, while reflecting on my practice over the years. The basic premise still stands, students receive feedback on formative and summative assessments, keep evidence of learning in a portfolio (digital or hard copy) , track progress daily on a Progress Tracker , receive Google Forms to reflect on their learning, and formally conference 1 on 1 with me at least 1x/quarter, usually at the end of the quarter. This is my process for making grading practices more equitable in my classroom. Depending on your discipline, your process may look different, but the foundation should always be grounded in making the learning and not chasing numbers the focal point. #focusonthelearning

Fast forward to today and here's where my passion for gardening grew roots just as deep as equitable grading practices. I now teach at an IB school and for the past couple of years I taught an IB MYP class called Personal Project. In this class, students choose a topic they are passionate about and complete a yearlong inquiry into learning about that topic and creating either a product or outcome based on it as well as a written report. One of my students chose to do his project on revitalizing our school's greenhouse. This greenhouse had been vacant for a little over ten years and actually was being used as storage for miscellaneous items such as football equipment throughout that time. As a Spanish teacher, I have little knowledge about greenhouses, but I'm pretty sure that football equipment would not appear on a list of approved items in a greenhouse! See here for the Parkland Greenhouse Revitalization Project photos and brief details of the project as of March 2024!

Because of how involved I was, and still am, in my student's project I now have progressed from having a couple small greenhouses in my backyard, to a few raised garden beds last year, to a few more this year and a few chickens! Here's a peek at what I've been up to!

From left to right: I started with one small greenhouse in my backyard. Then I transitioned to two small greenhouses with a few raised beds. This summer I grew corn and collards, and a host of other vegetables including parsley, bell peppers, oregano, onions, watermelon, lemon balm, kale, carrots, and more. Then we added some chickens to the family! Currently the garden is in the process of being cleared out and cleaned up.

I am a beginner so I welcome any tips especially when it comes to pest control! I've used Sevin dust in the past but my goal is to be an organic gardener.

As I reflect on this journey of how equitable grading practices and gardening aligned, I think about how as a teacher, we oftentimes are forced to think in terms of how effective we are for the students in our classrooms. Specifically, I'm thinking of our observation tools, but do we put as much effort into looking through the lens of our students? Do we put as much effort into the thought processes of how our students can positively impact our lives, whether professionally or personally? In my case, it was a personal project that a student created, that I'm sure he didn't set out to create to intentionally impact my life in such a profound way, but he did and for that I am grateful. Today, I challenge you think about how your students have positively impacted you and sown positive seeds in your life. I'd love to hear your stories.

Until next time...

The IB Educator's Green Thumb: Sowing Seeds of Equity

Sat, 21 Sep 2024 14:04:17 GMT

The IB Educator's Green Thumb: Sowing Seeds of Equity's first post is here! This blog was birthed out of growing passions I've had over the last few years I've spent in the field of education. Also as a self-proclaimed social introvert (I don't even know if that exists, but I digress!) it can be difficult to articulate my thoughts in open spaces oftentimes around more vocal or strong voices in the education world both in my place of work as well as in larger forums around my school district. This is an attempt to finally be heard, in a space all my own. There is freedom and joy in this space. I hope this resonates with all who are here taking this first step with me. With that being said, let's talk a little bit about my journey.

I've been an educator for 22 years now. I've taught English as a Second Language as well as Spanish at the pre-k through high school levels, in both public and private schools. And in that time, I have slowly seen the passion and zeal for learning be consumed from the constant pressures students face with maintaining stellar grades. I've also seen the various inequitable practices teachers employ in their grading practices. Until I started my own research I also participated in some of these inequitable grading practices myself like...GASP!...giving students 0% for not turning in an assignment, giving extra points for turning in a signed syllabus, giving extra credit, and deducting points for late work. Some may not have a problem with some of these practices or any of them.

When I began this quest for equitable grading practices it all started with an Action Research project . I leaned heavily on the work of assessment gurus in the field of education, such as Rick Wormeli, Thomas Guskey, Alfie Kohn, and more recently Starr Sackstein, Dr. Josh Kunnath, and Joe Feldman. Over the course of my research into grading practices I quickly found that talking to teachers about grading is a hot button topic and they can get very offended or feel personally attacked if I even mention things like giving a student a 0% for not turning in work is using the grade as punishment for what is a work habit issue and therefore you have now compromised their grade by deflating it sometimes to the point where students lose hope because the damage is unrecoverable. Teachers need to ask themselves a very basic question, and that is "What does a grade mean?" and then maybe we can start to have meaningful conversations that lead to less inequitable grading practices.

I've been out of college for a while now and I didn't go to college as an education major so I don't even have a frame of reference on what students are taught as far as how to assign grades. I do know that teachers tend to grade students the way they were graded which leads to a plethora of inequity in grading practices. Dr. Josh Kunnath recently wrote this post on "X" formerly known as Twitter, about how using zeros can lead to "inaccuracies, inequities, and excessive failures when used along w/averaging & the traditional percentage scale." The image below, "Alternatives to the Zero" is from Dr. Kunnath's post. Fair warning, if you share the contents of this image with your colleagues it may invoke intense conversations. I am here for it! Number 3 is a new concept for me. I never thought to add the comment "alternative evidence" in the gradebook comment section. I'd like to explore this more.

Also the image to the right, "Does going gradeless work?" from my blog post on an amazing community of educators site, "Grow Beyond Grades" may indeed invoke the same intense conversations. And again, I am here for it!

My goal with this blog is to sow seeds of equity in education and share my beginner gardening journey! I'm on year 2 of having a garden at home and I am obsessed! I can't wait to share about how I got into gardening and how much it has, along with running, transformed my life in very unique ways.

Until next time...