Recently I was given the opportunity to attend and participate as a judge in a school district Math Celebration. It was a great day. I loved the way the kids worked together and each problem could be broken down into teamwork, strategy and correct answer components.
As judges we observed only (difficult to do at times) for twelve minutes while a team of four kids made up of either grade 4/5s or grade 6/7s worked on a math problem. They would read the problem out loud and then work together to devise strategies and come up with an answer that they could then explain to the judge. As we observed, we were looking for three criteria 1) their ability to work as a team; 2) their use of strategies and; 3) whether or not they arrived at the correct answer. They were then awarded a gold (if they did all three), a silver (if they managed two of the criteria) or a bronze (if they only filled one).
Something I observed as detrimental to the whole process was the gold, silver or bronze ribbons (extrinsic rather than intrinsic motivation). Here is where the Assessment For Learning is ruined and why I think so.
I had to award a bronze to a team and it nearly broke my heart because I knew they would not focus on the AFL I was giving them, but only on the fact that they received a bronze.
They had great teamwork that I talked to them about and I explained the types of strategies they could have used to approach the problem better, but really it was just the dejected looks at receiving a bronze that they took away from that conversation. I really worked at telling them not to be disappointed and giving them good feedback for moving forward but all any of the kids focused on was the ribbons. After each problem I observed that all the kids would ask their friends at the adjoining tables what they got and how many golds they had, etc.
For me it changed the focus and purpose of the event from a teaching and AFL opportunity to a rewards based, grades based competition (not a celebration).
It seems like the Math Celebration has been run this way for a number of years. It is very well organized and the problems are challenging and interesting. I’m hoping that my feedback as a new observer/participant will be useful for future events and that it can truly become a celebration as intended.
