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Learn about the 21st Century Literacy project and our philosophy.Discuss your ideas and concerns on our Google Group pages. Find answers on the FAQ page.

We received a question about grading, specifically how to balance grading between formative and summative assessments. The author was concerned because the grading practices of the teachers in the school were so different. To answer the question, we need to develop a common understanding of the terms formative assessment and summative assessment. A summative assessment is an assessment that asks, "Did the student acquire the intended knowledge and skills by the deadline-yes or no, pass or fail?" For example, every course at Stevenson High School in Lincolnshire, Illinois, ends with a final exam that counts for 25 percent of a student's final grade. This is clearly a summative exam. State exams are another example of summative assessments.

This page lists resources for high-quality public domain photographs. For each resource here, I tell you what you'll find and give you tips for using the photos. What kind of tips, you ask, if the photos are public domain? Aren't they free of all use restrictions? Good question! And the answer is ... yeah, mostly. Here's the deal. Some of these resources have a mix of public domain and copyrighted photos. Also, some of the owners of the physical photos (which, yes, are in the public domain) have placed use restrictions on copies. So you need to know that. But who wants to read all those boring terms and conditions? Well ... I do! And I did, so I can tell you what they are. Often, all that's asked of you is that you credit the photo source. So I've made sure to include any requested credit lines. (Crediting is the right thing to do. You'd like to be credited for your photos, wouldn't you?)