tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18677687.post6561524814686970571..comments2024-03-13T05:26:21.808-04:00Comments on Computer Science Teacher: Looking Back At APCS Principles–My First YearAlfred Thompsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05575057876858763822noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18677687.post-8449291599198517552018-06-07T18:07:21.188-04:002018-06-07T18:07:21.188-04:00The assessment is often a real warm and fuzzy. Ef...The assessment is often a real warm and fuzzy. Effort is a big part of it. One of the projects is to build a Rube Goldberg machine with Unity. I can actually set objectives for something like that. Other times I will have a tutorial series I want the kids to work through. I grade on progress then on what they can build using the ideas in the tutorials. This is where it can get a bit vague. Some kids just have a talent for coming up with ideas of their own and running with it. Others will apply the same effort but not be original thinkers. Hard work deserves a good grade. Being able to understand the idea easily without the hard work and coming up with something cool also deserves a good grade. One grading rubric will not fit all in a class like this. Having class of 4 - 8 kids makes this individual grading possible. I can see what each kids is putting into what they are doing without having a fixed rubric. If I had 15+ students I would have to set weekly goals and build required tasks with each assignment having a fixed deadline. This would kill the idea of being able to try something different and not have it work.<br /><br />My game course is a "let's tinker with some software and see what it does" type of thing. Let's learn how to learn software. That scheme does not lend itself to a fixed grading scheme. I regularly tell the kids what I think their grade will be with the effort they are putting it. If they disagree we negotiate. Sometimes they convince me, sometime I convince them.<br /><br />This may not be much help.Garthhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15205686951875259260noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18677687.post-50331983151218679822018-06-07T13:43:13.987-04:002018-06-07T13:43:13.987-04:00Garth, What do you do for assessment for your game...Garth, What do you do for assessment for your game making course? I have to have grades to enter.Alfred Thompsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05575057876858763822noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18677687.post-753192600023525032018-06-07T10:12:22.281-04:002018-06-07T10:12:22.281-04:00Hopefully it will not take 3 years. The course wi...Hopefully it will not take 3 years. The course will probably change in 3 years and have to revamp it to stay current. Some courses do not have change a lot; VB, Python and a number of the mainstream languages could be the same for 10 years and still be usable. But there are just so many new and interesting things to play with in CS why would any one want to do that? That is why I make sure I have at least a "Gaming Making" course each year. No fixed course outline, just a general idea painted with a big brush. Even my Python course where I have used the same book for 5 years is never the same. I get new "good ideas" to try. CS is so much more fun to teach than math because every year can be a "first year" with new stuff to teach.Garthnoreply@blogger.com