The evolution of my attendance and participation policies and grading strategies over the past five years shows how I have worked to make my courses more equitable. I have always included guidelines for both in my courses, and make them a component of the final course grade to recognize their importance. In my first year, my policies were somewhat vague, making it hard for students to know my expectations and how they would be graded. In my second year, I clarified attendance policies, but they became inflexible in ways that did not recognize the complexity of students’ lives. After seeing several students suffer from these punitive policies, I moved in my fourth year towards a softer approach, and also provided students with a participation grading rubric to clarify how I determined this portion of their grades. Yet the rubric favored certain types of students – gregarious and outgoing people who frequently raise their hand during class discussions – while not recognizing the full spectrum of ways in which students can be engaged in and out of class. Finally, in my fifth year I landed on what for me is the most clear and the most equitable approach to attendance and participation. I begin the semester by having students complete a participation skill self-assessment, and then they set three goals for improvement. They then complete reflections and self-assessments of their progress in the middle and end of the semester, assigning themselves this component of their course grade. I provide feedback and reserve the right to make adjustments, but have found that students are quite honest. I have also removed all punitive policies regarding attendance, late work, and deadlines. Students still have natural consequences for missing too much class, or turning in work long after it is due, but I do not dictate these consequences in terms of deducted points. These changes are based on a growth mindset that anyone can improve…

I learned so much last year about my teaching style and reflected that I so appreciate in person learning.

I took an AP class that had us do Action research for a whole year.

I still run into previous students and it always makes me feel good when they remember me and are happy to see me.

During a zoom class, one of my students who happened to have their camera on (abnormal I know) had people come in behind him, throw a black bag over his head and carry him out of the room. It was scary at first, but turned out to be a prank his friends played on him!