To Grade or Not to Grade

When I was student teaching I was feeling really overwhelmed with grading. I had stacks of of papers that I didn't know what to do with and didn't really have time to grade. I talked to my cooperating teacher about it and she told me something that was kind of revolutionary to me at the time. You don't need to grade everything. If the point is for students to learn and not necessarily show what they know, you don't need to grade every assignment.

I've been trying to remember this as grades are due this week. There are several assignments I had my students do to get them thinking about material. But the point was to get them thinking and writing, not for them to prove knowledge. I've taken to handling assignments like these in two different ways. Some I grade on completion; they get points just for doing it. And others just don't get graded. The point was for them to learn something, analyze something, think about class material. I don't need to grade all of these.

I've taken to calling these kind of assignments "activities" instead of assignments. It changes how students think about what they are doing. Instead of thinking just about getting the assignment done, or how to get points, they think about the process they are following. And that is what I want them to be doing. Now I just need to find a way to change how we think about assignments that I do grade, that are designed for students to show what they know.

Be the Audience You Want to Have

I've been thinking about intrinsic motivation. Again. Still. Always. I really want my students to feel things are important rather than being motivated by grades. So I'm trying a new idea.

I'm changing how I discuss talking during other people's performances. I'm a stickler for quiet while other people are talking and performing. It is a matter of respect. Performing is hard, especially for my beginning students and people talking during their performances can really undercut their confidence. We discuss the importance of respect, but often I fall into threatening to take away points for those who talk. The problem there is they aren't thinking about respect or about their peers, they are thinking about their grades. So over the past few days instead of saying "You'll lose points for talking during other people's performances" I've started saying "Be the audience you want to have." It's taking some time to work, but I like that approach better. It focuses them on respecting each other rather then on not losing points.

I Can't Do Any More Than I Am Doing

Had a student/parent meeting today with the student who got suspended for bullying. She said she didn't feel like I liked her, that she and the rest of my advanced class consider me unapproachable, and she thinks I was bad-mouthing her. Never mind that we have already had these conversations and I've tried to explain myself. Never mind that I've already apologized. Nothing I do will change how she feels. And I need to stop taking responsibility for how she feels. I have not tried to hurt her, I have not done what she thinks I have. I have apologized and explained myself. There is nothing more I can do.

I cried on the phone to my sister today after the meeting. I am doing everything in my power to be a good teacher. I am constantly analyzing and over-analyzing and stressing over everything I do. I can't do anything more. And I'm tired of feeling like that isn't good enough. I'm tired of feeling like crap because I'm not what my students expect me to be. I am who I am. I am an introvert. I am intense. I have high expectations. I love theatre in my way. I have things to offer my students that other teachers don't. I am not the extroverted, warm-fuzzy, easy-going drama teacher. I am the introverted, passionate, hard-core drama teacher. And I can't keep feeling like that is bad, like it isn't enough, like a failure. I will continue to improve my teaching because it matters to me. But I won't feel guilty for who I am. If my students don't like, that is fine. I'm done trying to twist and warp myself into my opposite to please them. I'm done feeling guilty because they have unreasonable expectations. I will do my best and that will be enough. I am not responsible to be everything for my students. I am not responsible for their feelings after I have tried to make amends.

I can't worry about issues I don't know about. If my students refuse to talk to me about things they want me to change I can't deal with the problem. Instead of worrying about what they might be saying or the rumors I hear, I will only deal with concerns that are brought to my attention. Anything else is not worthy my worry or my time. If they can't bring it up, then they can't expect me to deal with it.

I'm tired. I'm tired of worrying about everyone's feelings. I'm tired of constantly feeling guilty and unworthy. I can't keep functioning like this. I can't take responsibility for everyone's feelings. I can't be the opposite of who I am. Who I am is good enough. And this is the end of it. I'm done with the drama. I'm done with "shoulds." I am a good teacher and it is okay to feel that way even as I work to improve. I like my intensity, i like my passion, I like my seriousness. If they don't, they don't need to be in the class.

Changing How I Give Assignments

Last year and for part of this year, I would sometimes give a graded assignment simply because I hadn't given one for a while. I wanted to make sure my grade book showed that students were doing work. But I'm realizing that having an assignment for the sake of a grade doesn't make any sense.

Assignments need to be motivated by learning, not by the need to prove something in my grade book. Whenever my students ask me "How much is this worth?" or "Are we getting a grade for this?" or "Do we get extra credit for this?" my heart hurts a little.  It tells me they are not focused on learning the skills we are working on but on getting a grade. There is no intrinsic motivation which makes me sad.

This week we are working on blocking in beginning drama. I want them to get the idea that where they are on stage, the variety of levels and change of distance can help tell the story and make things look more interesting. It is a concept I struggled with as a directing student in college because of my vision. I have a vision impairment that leaves me legally blind in one eye and with poor depth perception. I listen to plays much more than I watch them. It took me a long time to learn how to create the visual aspects of a scene, but now I love that aspect of theatre. But the way I teach it is rather organic, using Viewpoints and techniques like it. There isn't room for traditional assignments. Last year I might have added some kind of written assignment just to have it. This year, I'm not going to. I can't get rid of grades completely without my school wigging out. But I can cut down on what I grade and make sure it is about students demonstrating what they know.

I have also stopped answering questions about how much assignments are worth. Instead I explain why I gave the assignment and what they can choose to learn from it. It's a middle ground trying to create intrinsic motivation.

The Talking Pig

I've put in some new measures to deal with my Advanced class as we start a new show. First, I gave them a new seating chart today. I generally don't use seating charts outside of beginning drama after the first few weeks but I want to break up the cliques. So I staggered people so they aren't right next to their friends. If they want to talk, they'll have to meet new people.

Second, we brought in the "talking pig" which is our version of a talking stick. The pig has been sort of a class mascot since last year, so now whoever has the pig gets to talk when we are having discussions as a class. It feels slighty Lord of the Flies but it helps. We did it once and then today my kids asked to bring it back.

Third, really get student feedback on what they want the show to look like. I tend towards minimalist shows. I hate dealing with props, costumes and set. But today they said they really wanted to include all of that in this upcoming show. We have time if we start now, so I'm going to try it, much as I loathe it. Heaven help me. They are excited about the show and I want to preserve that. 

What Are We Teaching Them?

Warning; I will cuss in the post. Sorry Mom.

The fucking drama continues. One of my best kids dropped my class today. He is a talented actor and incredible on tech crew. He sees and solves problems before they happen. I love working with him. And he dropped my class because his friends have been giving him crap for his personal life in class. That in itself is bad enough; these kids need to grow the fuck up and stay out of each others' business. They are so self-righteous and judgmental and nasty to each other. Most of it has moved out of my class, so there isn't a ton I can do about it. But to make it worse, him being allowed to drop the class continues a trend I've seen before: the kid who is being hurt is moved and the kids who are doing the hurting stay put.

The kid who has been hurt is uprooted and moved as though they are at fault for what has been done to them. Instead of making the other students responsible for their actions, instead of removing them from the class because they are making it unsafe, they stay while others are forced out. This is not okay. It should be the bullies who are removed, not the kids who are being bullied. But that is not what happens. Every time I've had a situation with students being mean to each other, the kids who should be removed are not. It is very upsetting.

By doing this we are teaching students that it is the victim's fault that they are bullied. We teach them that their life will be uprooted and the bully's will not. We teach them that to speak up will lead to more trouble and that they should not expect support from those around them. This makes me ill. Victims should be the priority. But in my experience they are not.

We are also teaching the bullies that they can get away with anything. Instead of forcing them to take responsibility for their actions, we teach them that someone else will clean up their messes. We teach them that consequences don't exist for their bad behavior. That is not going to last. Eventually consequences will catch up to them. Unfortunately, because they are not being taught as teenagers about consequences so they will need to learn as adults. Instead of learning in high school when they can come back from their mistakes, they will be left to flounder in college or jobs. We are doing them no favors. Students are being taught the exact opposite of what we want them to learn.

In schools, consequences only happen if the teachers are supported in giving them. I wish that were different.

I Am More Than a Teacher

I deal with an enormous amount of guilt around in my life and in my teaching. I never feel good enough in the classroom and feel guilty for things that are out of my control or that aren't bad things. It is something I am trying to deal with. Some of reading I've been doing recently has made me realize two things about my guilt.

First, I take on too much responsibility. It is very easy to dedicate my entire life to my students and do things that aren't necessary or that my students can do for themselves. I carry around a lot of "shoulds" that don't matter in the long run. I read an article recently that discussed the need for a work life balance. It advises that teachers take the time to rest, that we let go of perfectionism and place responsibility on students instead of doing all the work for them. It is a great article and it made me realize something else.

I define myself by relationships with others. When asked to describe myself, I list my relationships: teacher, wife, daughter, sister. I used to have a stronger sense of self but I've lost some of that as I've started to define myself as a teacher. I'm losing things I love. I love theatre but all the theatre stuff I do now is for my students not for myself. I love to read but all my recent reading has been about teaching. I'm a feminist but I've dropped off in my involvement. I love to write but all my writing has been focused on my students. I started to enjoy cooking after I got married but recently it has just felt like a burden and something I don't have time for. I'm losing myself and defining myself solely in my relationships with others. That needs to change. I can't define myself just by other people. I've continued reading Codependent No More and so much of it hits home. As a teacher I've been putting my needs last and it has been making me anxious and unhappy. I need to be okay with taking time for me and making sure I get what I need. My students can't be my whole life. My family can't be my whole life. I am more than my relationships. So while I work on improving my teaching it can't be all that I do.

The Teacher-Student Relationship in Drama

The struggles I've had over the past few weeks have really made me think about my relationships with my students. In the middle of all the drama, my assistant principal told me to start writing detentions and "stop being so nice." While he has point, it feels more complicated then that. This isn't fully thought out, so bear with me.

I student-taught both history and drama. I found that the relationships I formed in history classes were incredibly different from the ones I formed in drama. In history, students were individual entities. I was asking them to do intellectual work. When they misbehaved or didn't work I could deal with it on an individual basis without it causes too many problems. It didn't matter if they were pissed off at me and decided not to work. A difficult relationship with one student generally did not affect the rest of the class. That is not true in drama.

I ask my drama students to reveal themselves emotionally, to put themselves in the position to be embarrassed, to work with partners and with me on an emotional level. They have to trust that I won't lead them to embarrass themselves and that I will protect them emotionally. They have to trust me on a different level then they have to trust other teachers. They also have to trust each other. This becomes more true as they move into producing plays and need to rely on each other to succeed. If one student disengages, it affects everyone else and all the work they have done. They are more emotionally invested in their relationships with their classmates then they are in other classes. Often they have worked together for years and have a history with each other. I teach the same kids for multiple years and expect to see my students again. That is not as true in traditional subjects. When one student gets angry at me, it can't just be a matter of giving a detention or throwing them out of class. A good relationship is vital to the work we do as theatre practitioners. If that is gone, we will not be able to produce good art. So I can't just punish the behavior. I have to find the root of the problem and try to fix it. I have to be emotionally invested enough for them to trust and work with.

I saw this last year. I took over for another drama teacher that had been well-liked. Many of her students decided from the outset that they were not going to like me because I wasn't her. It was wretched and affected the feel of the entire class. They rallied others to sign petitions to get me fired, talked and goofed off during every class and refused to do any work. It became impossible to get anything done. Punishing them did nothing; they just got more angry and caused more problems. The students that I was able to form a relationship with, who decided to try to work with me were able to move forward and put on shows. But there were several students I ended up removing from the class because nothing I did worked. They continued to insult me, interrupt rehearsal, refuse to do assignments, throw fits when given detention and complain about me to the admin. Without that relationship, we could not do anything.

I don't know if this makes sense. I am not saying that students don't need to trust teachers in other classes. I guess I'm saying that there is more emotional investment in drama classes and it is easier for students to feel betrayed. And that betrayal affects the whole class. And it can affect the class for years afterward. The emotional nature of drama changes how I have to interact with my students. Throwing punishments will not solve problems because the problem is not the behavior, it is the reasons behind the behavior. In history the reasons behind the behavior were things like boredom, stress or confusion. In drama it is betrayal. That emotion is harder to fix then boredom and has bigger consequences in my mind.

Anyway, it's a hard balance. It's hard to be someone your kids trust while maintaining order and a safe space. It's just hard.

"You feel a little bit like a nuisance all day long"

Wow. I just read a blog post by a high school learning coach. He shadowed a student for two days, and came away with some pretty big insights. The first two are not new to me, since drama lends itself to students being up and doing. My classes tend to be very active. But the third insight hit me like a ton of bricks.

"You feel a little bit like a nuisance all day long." This is so sad, but probably very true. Students probably feel like problem causers because we see them that way. Sometimes I think about being good at my job in spite of my students. But that doesn't really make sense. My students are the point of my job. I do my job for them, not around them. I need to stop seeing my students as an obstacle to my job. I don't want them to feel like they are a nuisance. I feel like seeing my students that way will lead to burn out and bitterness. I don't want to be that teacher.

Attempts at Halloween

I'm not much of a Halloween person. I'm not a fan of gross and there is lots of gross around Halloween. Last year I didn't really do anything except wear a flamingo hat I found in the costume room. It is an awesome hat. But this year I decided to honor the position of drama teacher and do somethings for Halloween.

We decided that Drama Club is going to do a workshop on injury make-up on Halloween. Today we had a meeting where we taught club members how to do those kinds of make-up. I haven't done that kind of stuff in at least five years so I pulled some YouTube videos to show my students how to make bruises, scars, cuts, bite marks and stitches. After watching the videos and a few demonstrations from me, I just let them play. I got out the make-up and let them try things. They had a lot of fun and did great (gross) things. I think the workshop will go well.

I'll be dressing up for Halloween. Mostly I wanted an excuse to get a dress like this.  And I might make the cupcakes in the picture at the top of this post. We'll see how motivated I am. I want to come up with a fun activity for my classes to do on Halloween. Sometimes kids just need a break. And since Halloween is on a Friday this year everyone will be a bit wired. I'm thinking something with scary stories or poems, but I'm not sure yet. This will give me a chance to let my kids see a different side of me and have a bit of fun.

Some Positives for a Wednesday

It's Wednesday and I'm sleepy. And it's been a rough couple of weeks. So here are some positives to help me remember why I drag myself out of bed at 6:19 (I have the time I need to get up and get to school at a decent time figured out to the minute) and come to school.

• A few of my kids remember what I say. A few weeks ago I told my beginning students that they are not required to follow stage directions in scripts if those directions don't make sense. I didn't really expect them to remember that, since no one did last year. But I heard one of my students say "we don't have to do that since it's a stage direction" while rehearsing. It made me happy. 
• I got the final count on our show last week. My advanced class performed Check Please last week and did well in both shows. We've been working on clearing the air and I think we have made progress. A few of my students got me flowers, I was able to draw attention to the good work of a few students who felt neglected and we got lots of positive feedback. We tend to have pretty small audiences, but across both shows we ended up with about 170 people and make around $750. It's nice to see my program growing in that aspect. 
• One of my students wrote this on my roll today. I know that wanting my students to like me might be a problem, but it makes me feel good to have a good relationship with them. Being a drama teacher requires a different relationship with my students in some ways. I'll write about that in another post. 
  
• The student that seemed to be the instigator of all the drama last week chose to come in after school to discuss fundraising ideas. We were having a drama officer meeting and she stayed and chatted with me and them for about 45 minutes. She didn't need to come in or stay. I see that as a step in the right direction to fix the relationship. 

Fighting with Feedback

Reading Punished by Rewards has really thrown me off. It lists so many things not to do when giving feedback but doesn't provide any decent replacements. The author says to stop grading, to stop praising, to stop punishing but doesn't give any helpful ideas about what to do instead. I feel like everything I do is wrong so I find myself tempted to do nothing. Feeling like a failure for every idea I have sucks. Not a helpful place to be. I need to move forward with something, even if it isn't perfect. I also need to remember there are many schools of thought in education and they all have merit and all have problems. I can't change my entire teaching style because of one book. There is merit in keeping the main structure that I have set so students know what is going on. If I want to make major changes I shouldn't do it in the middle of a semester. And since no ideas are provided of how to change, that book is only so useful.

I'm doing better at giving feedback in a neutral tone. And I've been using a lot of self-evaluation with my advanced class. After run-throughs and performances last week we discussed what went well and what could be improved. I also had each of them pick on thing to work on for the next performance and used that as a focus during warm-ups. They were more aware of the show and were able to make fast adjustments to fix problems during the show. And they could speak to things that I couldn't, like the amount of talking backstage. Being able to celebrate things they noticed and come up with what needed to be improved gave them a sense of ownership I've been looking for them to have. As we start our next show, I'm hoping I can rely on them to critique themselves as well as take my direction. I'm going to keep moving forward with giving feedback as a group instead of all of it coming from me.

Introverts in Drama

I am very much an introvert. Being around lots of people drains my energy. I prefer to work on my own or with small groups. Large crowds of people, especially when I don't know them, give me anxiety. I avoid large social gatherings like the plague. (I may also have some social anxiety, I"m not sure.) Being an introvert in theatre has always been a challenge since theatre seems to appeal to extroverts. Working as a director or stage manager and trying to make myself heard over all the energy in the room is exhausting. The assumption that as a theatre person I love to perform has put me in some awkward positions. I love theatre but I don't have the performing gene that some people think is required.

Being an introvert also effects my teaching. I am not as big of a personality as other drama teachers. There are activities I can't get myself to do yet because of my strong aversion to feeling like a fool. It is a dynamic I am used to, because my high school drama teacher was an introvert. But my students are not used to it. And it has caused a few issues.

Most recently, I spoke with a student who said she feels like I play favorites because I talk to the same students frequently. I would agree with her, except these students approach me. They initiate the conversations, not me. I will happily chat with any of my students who come up to me, but I struggle with starting conversations with them out of the blue. So I talk more with the kids that come to me. After explaining this to my student she seemed to understand and feel better about the situation. But I'm not sure how to fix this problem, or even if I need to fix it. I feel no shame for being an introvert and I like showing my introverted students that they can do theatre without being extroverts. If they love it, there is a place for them.

The Drama Continues

This week has been a bit of a mess. After my one student got suspended for bullying, my class splintered. A group of five students decided to take it out on me and file complaints about me with the administration. I heard about it from other students and people started taking sides. I feel hurt that they went around me instead of coming to me with their concerns. I'm upset by the attitude several of them have about wanted to get me fired. I'm scared about how my job could be impacted even thoug I have done nothing wrong. I tried to speak with each of these students individually to determine what the problem was. There are rumors going around that I have been talking smack about certain students to other students. I don't remember doing that and tried to get to the bottom of it. One student has decided that I'm lying to her no matter what I say and is the one leading the drama. Nothing I say seems to have any effect; she is angry and is sure that all the rumors are true. Never mind that the rumor mill at this school is insane. For example, last year I had a kidney stone that required two surgeries to remove. Even though I told my students what was happening and why I missed so much school, half of them thought I had a kidney removed. At the end of the year a parent told me her daughter said I had cancer. Our building got hit by lightning last year and a few periods later I heard that someone had gotten hit by lightning and died even though no one was hurt during the lightning strike. Despite the fact that students know rumors exist, they insist on believing them over me. She is sure I said all kinds of things I never said.

I had a meeting with my principal about the complaints and was able to tell my side of the story. Everything he told me to do I am already in the process of doing. I've spoken with several students and seem to be fixing the relationships with some of them. But it has been very anxiety inducing. I haven't slept in two days because of the stress.

Some good things have come out of this though. There is one student that I have not been fair to. He doesn't behave differently then my other students but often gets the brunt of me getting upset about talking or cell phone use. He expressed that he felt hurt and picked on and I apologized. We've been getting along much better; I've been noticing the good things he's been doing and letting him know and he apologized for going to the admin instead of coming to me. Being able to fix that relationship has meant the world to me.

I've also been able to stay much more neutral when I deal with things. Several of my students have mentioned that they feel I am unapproachable. I don't want to be that way. I've apologized to the class about giving that impression because I really don't want to. So I've been trying really hard to keep my tone light and give criticism in a neutral tone. I'm happier when I do that and I feel like I'm connecting with my students.

I still need to have some parent meetings. There are a couple of students that I may not be able to establish a relationship with. And this week has been sucky and I never want to deal with this kind of drama again. And I learned a lot from it.

Random Brain Waves that Lead to Cat Videos

Today in beginning drama  we are talking about how to create a voice for a character. To start that discussion we were practicing changing pitch, volume and rate of speech. I had students get into groups and come up with a short exercise to practice changing one of the these parts of speech. In my beginning drama class, one group came up with saying "Hey" at different pitches and volumes. The exercise reminded me of this video, so I decided to show it to them at the end of class. It is 30 seconds and didn't take a lot of time. They had fun watching it and it made me feel like I was relaxing and being more fun and spontaneous as I taught. 

How to Fix the Drama

I'm concerned about the lack of cohesion in my advanced drama class. i went to my assistant principal who handled the initial mediation with my students last week. She suggested having students interact outside of school. That's something I hadn't thought of. So I'm getting on that. There is a fundraiser for our choir at a local restaurant tomorrow. I suggested that after dress rehearsal whoever can goes down together to get food. We are also talking about attending a show next week at another high school. They show great support for us and I'd like to get a big group from my high school to go show support.

I'm also shutting down side comments students make. This is a snarky class, and generally the snark is not meant unkindly. But it is too much. It can be hurtful even if it isn't meant to be. It is too easy for snide comments to turn nasty and I'm working on calling those comments out and ending them.

Finally, I'm scheduling conferences with the counselors and parents of several students that have become a problem. I want them to know that their behavior is noticed and needs to change. I'm doing this with one student show doesn't stop talking and doesn't seem to realize it is a problem. I'm also doing it with a student who is hostile towards me and refuses to work in most circumstances.

My vice principal reminded me that this will be a process, not a quick fix. I need to remember that and keep on it. There is still time to fix this, but it won't happen immediately.

Too Much Drama in Drama

Some drama with my advanced class came to a head this week. A few days ago several of my students came to me, saying that one student was bad-mouthing another on Twitter. They showed me several posts and told me that the student being attacked wanted to drop the class because of how she was being treated. I knew I needed to get on this immediately. I spoke with a couple of students individually and sent an email to one of the vice-principals.

The problem went bigger then I thought. When the vice-principal called students in, more names came up, including students who didn't even know they were being talked about. Eventually four students were in a mediation session for an hour and a half.

It all started with one student who feels the need to badmouth everyone. She rags on  people's clothes, on what parts they'll get in the next show, on their relationships with me. She has been suspended for a day for cyber bullying. This is such a mess. The vice-principal told me this was handled, but I have my doubts. I want my classes to be a space place, and if it isn't, I may need to remove this student from the class. If she can cause this much chaos, she needs to take it elsewhere.

I Need to Stop Reacting

I wrote in a previous post that I wear my heart on my sleeve. My students know how I feel. I still think that is a good thing. However, I need to watch showing my feelings when I am giving feedback, especially when I am upset or disappointed. Yelling at students is not helpful, even if they are not doing what is expected of them.

I was talking to the choir teacher about how to give feedback. Both of us are in our second year of teaching and still trying to figure out how to communicate with our students in a way that motivates them without making them feel that they are doing things perfectly, that lets them see how they can improve without making them feel hopeless. It is a fine line and we're both trying to find the line.

My kids have things they do well and things they need to fix. I get upset when they are goofing off or not doing their best. When I get upset, I yell. Then they feel bad or get upset with me and neither of those things improve what needs to be improved. Students' focus goes to being mad at me, feeling defensive or feeling like they will never be good enough.

I'm too reactionary. I react before I think about what I'm doing. It needs to stop. I don't know how to stop it, but it needs to change. The focus needs to be on what is working or what needs to fix, not on my emotional reaction.

Feedback

I've been reading a thoroughly demoralizing book called Punished By Rewards that basically says everything most people do to encourage kids to learn and behave does the exact opposite. Giving rewards, praise, punishments, etc. kills intrinsic motivation and makes student rely on outside approval. I encountered a similar idea in How to Talk so Kids Can Learn but this book is much more depressing about it. I can only read a bit at a time before I start feeling like a sucky teacher and have to put it down. I'm not sure how legitimate I think all of it is, but most of it lines up with what I have seen and experienced. Often students who are praised get cocky and stop trying and students who are rewarded become dependent on rewards to work. Since theatre is a creative art, I really want my students to develop the ability to come up with their own ideas and analyze their own work. That is what I want to work on this month. Here are some ideas I'll be incorporating.

1. Giving feedback instead of praise. I'm pulling this from How to Teach so Kids Can Learn (which I love.) It suggests to tell students what you observed and let them draw their own conclusions about whether it was good or not based on what they know the expectations are. It is an odd thing to do and I have trouble not tacking on praise at the end of what I say. But I think it is more helpful then just saying "good job" because that can mean anything.

2. Start having students consistently self-evaluate. I know this is important and I haven't been doing it as much as I need to. I want them to at least analyze themselves after any kind of final performance. And I might add some kind of daily or weekly self-evaluation. I need to figure out how to make that work.

3. Expectation based rubrics. I write rubrics like I was taught to, with an explanation what is required to get an A, B, C, D and F. I've been showing them to my students so they know how they will be graded. The problem is, some of them decide they are happy with a D and stop working. So from now on I want to just show them the A grade list and describe it as the expectations for each performance. I want the focus to the doing the performance, not getting the grade.

That's where I'm at for now. I'll probably add more as I go.