Personalized Proficiency Glossary of Terms
GLOSSARY of TERMS related to
Personalized Proficiency at The Sharon Academy
- Act 77
- Assessment
- Brain-based Learning
- Carnegie Unit
- Content Area
- Differentiated Instruction
- Educational Quality Standards
- Equity
- Feedback
- Flexible Pathways
- Gateway
- Habits of Work
- Indicator
- Learning Standard
- Mindset
- Personalization
- Personalized Learning Plan (PLP)
- Proficiency-based Learning
- Rubric
- Standards-based Grading
- Transferable Skills
- 21st Century Skills
Act 77 – became Vermont law in July of 2013, and can be seen as the result of many years of work on the part of many Vermont citizens, educators, and policy-makers to create a policy environment designed to foster a system of public education in which every student graduates, and every graduate is college and career ready; key attributes include flexible pathways, personalization, work-based learning, dual-enrollment, virtual/blended learning and early college. (VT)
Assessment (assignment): any method or tool a used to evaluate, measure or document student learning.
Formative assessment: an in-process evaluation of student learning. Happen multiple times within a unit, usually not scored or graded. Purpose is to give in-process feedback. “For learning.”
Summative assessment: concluding evaluation of student learning. Typically scored. Purpose is to determine extent of learning. “Of learning.” As assessment expert Paul Black put it, “When the cook tastes the soup, that’s formative assessment. When the customer tastes the soup, that’s summative assessment.” (EdGlossary)
Brain-based Learning – refers to teaching methods, lesson designs, and school programs that are based on the latest scientific research about how the brain learns, including such factors as cognitive development—how students learn differently as they age, grow, and mature socially, emotionally, and cognitively.
Brain-based learning is motivated by the general belief that learning can be accelerated and improved if educators base how and what they teach on the science of learning, rather than on past educational practices, established conventions, or assumptions about the learning process. For example, it was commonly believed that intelligence is a fixed characteristic (see “fixed mindset” below) that remains largely unchanged throughout a person’s life. However, recent discoveries in cognitive science have revealed that the human brain physically changes when it learns, and that after practicing certain skills it becomes increasingly easier to continue learning and improving those skills. This finding—that learning effectively improves brain functioning, resiliency, and working intelligence—has potentially far-reaching implications for how schools can design their academic programs and how teachers could structure educational experiences in the classroom. (EdGlossary)
Carnegie Unit – a system developed in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries that based the awarding of academic credit* (see below) on how much time students spent in direct contact with a classroom teacher. The standard Carnegie unit is defined as 120 hours of contact time with an instructor—i.e., one hour of instruction a day, five days a week, for 24 weeks, or 7,200 minutes of instructional time over the course of an academic year.
In most public high schools, course credits are still largely based on the 120-hour Carnegie-unit standard. Most states and American high schools require students to earn between 18 and 24 credits—with each credit representing one Carnegie unit—to be eligible for a diploma. Yet some high schools are moving away from the traditional grading, crediting, grade-promotion, and graduation systems based on contact hours with a teacher. In these schools, grades, credits, and decision about grade promotion and graduation are based on student demonstrating proficiency in meeting required learning standards. (EdGlossary)
*Credit – Critics of course credit argue that credit-based systems allow students to pass courses, earn credits, and get promoted from one grade level to the next even though they may have not acquired essential knowledge and skills, or they may not be adequately prepared for the next grade or for higher-level courses. The credit is often cited as one of the reasons why some students can earn a high school diploma, for example, and yet still struggle with basic reading, writing, and math skills.
A term commonly associated with credit-related reforms is “seat time”—a reference to the 120-hour Carnegie unit upon which most course credits are based. The basic idea is that credits more accurately measure the amount of time students have been taught, rather than what they have actually learned or failed to learn. For example, one student may earn an A in a course, while another student earns a D, and yet both may earn credit for passing the course. Given that the two grades likely represent significantly different levels of learning acquisition, what does the credit actually represent? In addition, if the awarding of credit is not based on some form of consistently applied learning standards—expectations for what students should know and be able to do at a particular stage of their education—then it becomes difficult to determine what students have learned or failed to learn, further undermining the credit as a reliable measurement for learning acquisition and academic accomplishment. (EdGlossary)
Content Area – refers to a defined domain of knowledge and skill in an academic program. The most common content areas in public schools are English (or English language arts), mathematics, science, and social studies (or history and civics). In some cases, traditional content areas may be combined or blended, as with humanities (typically a blend of English and social studies), the fine and performing arts (a blend of visual art, dance, music, and theater), or STEM (an acronym for science, technology, engineering, and math). (EdGlossary)
Differentiated Instruction – Instructional strategies designed to help students meet proficiency that is based on individual learning needs and styles. The learning goals are the same, yet the teacher provides choice and exercises flexibility in methods of support, feedback, assessment, grouping, and instruction to create the best learning experiences for all students. (VT)
Education Quality Standards (EQS) – are rules enacted to ensure that all learners in Vermont public schools are afforded educational opportunities that are substantially equal in quality, and enable them to achieve or exceed the standards approved by the State Board of Education. (VT) (see more detailed descriptions on separate document)
Equity – refers to the principle of fairness. While it is often used interchangeably with the related principle of equality, equity encompasses a wide variety of educational models, programs, and strategies that may be considered fair, but not necessarily equal. It is has been said that “equity is the process; equality is the outcome,” given that equity—what is fair and just—may not, in the process of educating students, reflect strict equality—what is applied, allocated, or distributed equally.
Inequities occur when biased or unfair policies, programs, practices, or situations contribute to a lack of equality in educational performance, results, and outcomes. For example, certain students or groups of students may attend school, graduate, or enroll in postsecondary education at lower rates, or they may perform comparatively poorly on standardized tests due to a wide variety of factors, including inherent biases or flaws in test designs. (EdGlossary)
Feedback – An instructional strategy that provides information to learners during the learning process in order to identify strengths and areas in need of improvement. (VT)
Flexible Pathways – Any combination of high-quality expanded learning opportunities, including academic and experiential components, which build and assess attainment of identified proficiencies and lead to secondary school completion, civic engagement, and postsecondary readiness. Flexible pathways allow students to apply their knowledge and skills to tasks of personal interest as part of the personalized learning planning process. (VT)
Gateway – to move from one Division to the next. Students are ready to Gateway when they have meet all 7 Gateway Standards at the Division-appropriate level. (TSA from Parker School)
Gateway Evidence Tasks (GETs) – the activities, assessments, projects and opportunities a student has to generate evidence of her/his proficiency. Each course has a number of GETs. Each GET targets some number of specific course standards and Gateway Standards. Each GET is an opportunity for a student to meet proficiency on those standards. (TSA)
Habits of Work – behaviors such as attendance, tardiness, class participation, or the ability to complete work on time. While attendance and class participation are vitally important to success in school, averaging together behaviors and learning can obscure academic progress and achievement, making it much harder to determine what students are excelling at or struggling with. Has the student failed to grasp critically important concepts, or did she simply not turn her homework in on time? Is it a learning problem or a behavioral problem? And what kind of support does the student need to address the issue and succeed in the course? Proficiency-based systems are designed to identify specific learning gaps and academic needs, which teachers can then use to inform instructional adjustments, interventions, and academic support. For proficiency-based systems to be effective, learning progress needs to be monitored and reported separately from behavior.
Indicator – is used to indicate what is involved in meeting a standard. (TSA) Also known as “performance indicator”, which describes or defines what learners need to know, understand, and/or be able to do to demonstrate proficiency related to standards. Performance indicators are measurable and allow learners to demonstrate proficiency over time. (VT)
Learning Standard: concise, written descriptions of what students are expected to know and be able to do at a specific stage of their education. (EdGlossary)
Synonyms: Academic Standards, Competencies, Competency Standards, Proficiencies, Proficiency Standards, Standards, State Standards
Examples of standards:
Reading (from Common Core)
- Determine a central idea of a text and analyze its development over the course of the text, including how it emerges and is shaped and refined by specific details;
- provide an objective summary of the text.
Mindset – a self-perception or “self-theory” that people hold about themselves. Believing that you are either “intelligent” or “unintelligent” is a simple example of a mindset.
Growth Mindset – developed by psychologist Carol Dweck and popularized in her book, Mindset: The New Psychology of Success. “In a growth mindset, people believe that their most basic abilities can be developed through dedication and hard work—brains and talent are just the starting point. This view creates a love of learning and a resilience that is essential for great accomplishment,” writes Dweck. Students who embrace growth mindsets—the belief that they can learn more or become smarter if they work hard and persevere—may learn more, learn it more quickly, and view challenges and failures as opportunities to improve their learning and skills.
Fixed Mindset – “In a fixed mindset, people believe their basic qualities, like their intelligence or talent, are simply fixed traits. They spend their time documenting their intelligence or talent instead of developing them. They also believe that talent alone creates success—without effort.” Dweck’s research suggests that students who have adopted a fixed mindset—the belief that they are either “smart” or “dumb” and there is no way to change this, for example—may learn less than they could or learn at a slower rate, while also shying away from challenges (since poor performance might either confirm they can’t learn, if they believe they are “dumb,” or indicate that they are less intelligent than they think, if they believe they are “smart”). Dweck’s findings also suggest that when students with fixed mindsets fail at something, as they inevitably will, they tend to tell themselves they can’t or won’t be able to do it (“I just can’t learn Algebra”), or they make excuses to rationalize the failure (“I would have passed the test if I had had more time to study”). (EdGlossary)
Personalization – A collaborative learning process built on an understanding that tapping into unique student interests, backgrounds, strengths, and needs drives student learning. Students, teachers, and the community work together to make this learning process rigorous, relevant, and authentic. (VT)
Seniors working on their Personal Learning Plans.
Personalized Learning Plan (PLP) – developed on behalf of a student by the student, a representative of the school, and, if the student is a minor, the student’s parents or legal guardian, and updated at least annually. The plan shall be developmentally appropriate and shall reflect the student’s emerging abilities, aspirations, interests and dispositions. Beginning no later than in the seventh grade, the plan shall define the scope and rigor of academic and experiential opportunities necessary for the student to successfully complete secondary school and attain college and career readiness. (VT)
Proficiency-based learning: refers to systems of instruction, assessment, grading, and academic reporting that are based on students demonstrating that they have learned the knowledge and skills they are expected to learn as they progress through their education. In public schools, proficiency-based systems use state learning standards to determine academic expectations and define “proficiency” in a given course, subject area, or grade level (although other sets of standards may also be used, including standards developed by districts and schools or by subject-area organizations). The general goal of proficiency-based learning is to ensure that students are acquiring the knowledge and skills that are deemed to be essential to success in school, higher education, careers, and adult life. If students fail to meet expected learning standards, they typically receive additional instruction, practice time, and academic support to help them achieve proficiency or meet the expected standards.
A few of the more common synonyms include competency-based, mastery-based, outcome-based, performance-based, and standards-based education, instruction, and learning.
Proficiency-based learning is generally seen as an alternative to more traditional educational approaches in which students may or may not acquire proficiency in a given course or academic subject before they earn course credit, get promoted to the next grade level, or graduate. For example, high school students typically earn academic credit by passing a course, but a passing grade may be an A or it may be a D, suggesting that the awarded credit is based on a spectrum of learning expectations—with some students learning more and others learning less—rather than on the same consistent standards being applied to all students equally. And because grades may be calculated differently from school to school or teacher to teacher, and they may be based on different learning expectations (i.e., some courses might be “harder” and others “easier”), it may be possible for students to pass their courses, earn the required number of credits, and receive a diploma without acquiring important knowledge and skills. In extreme cases, for example, students may be awarded a high school diploma but still be unable to read, write, or do math at a basic level. A “proficiency-based diploma” would be a diploma awarded to students only after they have met expected learning standards.
While the goal of proficiency-based learning is to ensure that more students learn what they are expected to learn, the approach can also provide educators with more detailed or fine-grained information about student learning progress, which can help them more precisely identify academic strengths and weakness, as well as the specific concepts and skills students have not yet mastered. Since academic progress is often tracked and reported by learning standard in proficiency-based courses and schools, educators and parents often know more precisely what specific knowledge and skills students have acquired or may be struggling with. For example, instead of receiving a letter grade on an assignment or test, each of which may address a variety of standards, students are graded on specific learning standards, each of which describes the knowledge and skills students are expected to acquire.
When schools transition to a proficiency-based system, it can entail significant changes in how a school operates and teaches students, affecting everything from the school’s educational philosophy and culture to its methods of instruction, testing, grading, reporting, promotion, and graduation. For example, report cards may be entirely redesigned, and schools may use different grading scales and systems, such as replacing letter grades with brief descriptive statements—e.g., phrases such as does not meet, partially meets, meets the standard, and exceeds the standard are commonly used in proficiency-based schools (although systems vary widely in design, purpose, and terminology). Schools may also use different methods of instruction and assessment to determine whether students have achieved proficiency, including strategies such as demonstrations of learning, learning pathways, personal learning plans, portfolios, rubrics, and capstone projects, to name just a few. (EdGlossary)
Rubric: is typically an evaluation tool or set of guidelines used to clearly define academic expectations for students and help to ensure consistency in the evaluation of academic work from student to student, assignment to assignment, or course to course. Rubrics are also used as scoring instruments to determine grades or the degree to which learning standards have been demonstrated or attained by students. Since rubrics are used to establish a consistent set of learning expectations that all students need to demonstrate, they may also be used by school leaders and teachers as a way to maintain consistency and objectivity when teaching or assessing learning across grade levels, courses, or assignments. (EdGlossary)
An evaluation tool used to assess performance against a set of criteria. Rubrics clearly define academic expectations for learners and help to ensure consistency in the evaluation of academic work from learner to learner, assignment to assignment, or course to course. (VT)
See TSA’s Transferrable Skills and Rubrics
Standards-based Grading: In a course that is not standards-based, grading may look like it traditionally has in schools: students are given numerical scores on a 1–100 scale and class grades represent an average of all scores earned over the course of a semester or year. In a standards-based course, however, “grades” often look quite different. While standards-based grading and reporting may take a wide variety of forms from school to school, grades are typically connected to descriptive standards, not based on test and assignment scores that are averaged together. For example, students may receive a report that shows how they are progressing toward meeting a selection of standards. The criteria used to determine what “meeting a standard” means will defined in advance, often in a rubric, and teachers will evaluate learning progress and academic achievement in relation to the criteria. The reports students receive might use a 1–4 scale, for example, with 3s and 4s indicating that students have met the standard. In standards-based schools, grades for behaviors and work habits—e.g., getting to class on time, following rules, treating other students respectfully, turning in work on time, participating in class, putting effort into assignments—are also reported separately from academic grades, so that teachers and parents can make distinctions between learning achievement and behavioral issues. (EdGlossary)
Transferable Skills – a broad set of knowledge, skills, and abilities that are believed to be critically important to success in today’s world, particularly in collegiate programs and modern careers. Transferable skills include communication, collaboration, creativity, innovation, inquiry, problem solving and the use of technology. (VT)
21st Century Skills: refers to a broad set of knowledge, skills, work habits, and character traits that are believed—by educators, school reformers, college professors, employers, and others—to be critically important to success in today’s world, particularly in collegiate programs and contemporary careers and workplaces. Generally speaking, 21st century skills can be applied in all academic subject areas, and in all educational, career, and civic settings throughout a student’s life. (EdGlossary)