SFUSD has been thrilled to partner with Envision Learning Partners these past three years to operationalize our district’s Graduate Profile and begin developing a performance assessment system that is more aligned to our Profile and measures more of what we want for our young people. We are striving to have demonstrations of learning happen systematically across our schools including portfolio defenses, capstones, student-led conferences, formative assessment use, school-wide rubrics, and exhibitions. Putting the cognitive work of reflection, self assessment, and showing what they know in the hands of students instead of always being held by adults supports students to be in charge of their learning. It also supports teachers to engage in meaningful work that is reflection worthy, and supports schools to be places where the thinking and doing is held by the young people and not dominated by the adults. This is particularly relevant in this moment of distance learning when we dramatically changed our way of teaching while simultaneously losing all of our traditional measures of progress. We don’t have comprehensive strategies right now for seeing how our students are actually doing, what they are absorbing and retaining, and how they are making meaning of it. More than ever, that data from them is crucial for us. Many educators and schools are partnering with central office leaders to co-design, pilot, and embed performance assessments in their work with the help of Envision Learning. We look forward to celebrating all of this learning at the end of the school year for all to see! These initial steps of providing demonstrations of learning and ongoing reflective practice will put us on a path towards a different system-wide approach to how we grade, assess, and support student learning.
PBL Teacher Leader Fellowship: Learnings & Reflections 2019-20
Thank you to the SFUSD team that contributed to this Partner Profile:
Brian Fox, Director, SFUSD iLab
Julie Kessler, Supervisor, Innovation and Design, SFUSD iLab
Nora Houseman, Supervisor, SFUSD Dept. of Professional Growth & Development
