Started in the Fall of 2011 If after reviewing this information, you still have questions, please do not hesitate

to contact your childs teacher or academy administrator for further explanation and clarification.

We want students to

Arrive to class ready to learn

(Demonstrate PRIDE)

Finish their assigned work Respect Teacher Feedback Leave at the end of the year ready to enter the next level of learning with confidence and success

Accurate-grades must be more than judgment

but rather result of evidence and reason

Fair-grades must be representative of

performance, not gender, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, work of others, extra-credit, or other factors unrelated to academic performance (behavior)

Specific-telling a student they received a C is

meaningless. Grades should provide feedback for improvement on specific skills

Timely-feedback needs to come at a time that is

meaningful and useful to students similar to the feedback received in sports and music to both evaluate and improve performance

Starting this school year with the 1st quarter grades, East High School is participating in a grading pilot to assist the Waterloo Community Schools in increasing the quality and accuracy of information communicated to our high school parents and students about our students academic progress. The pilot is being implemented primarily in grades 9 and 10 at this time.

1.

The use of a 4-point scale based on standards

We have 15 teachers throughout the building in various content areas implementing the 4-point scale. In addition to the 4-point scale, teachers will be using performance rubrics based on the standard being addressed. See list of teachers participating and strategies for interpreting grade books at the end of this document.

2.

Reteach, Relearn, Reassess-Process by which students will be held accountable for learning material at a proficient level.

The 100 point scale provides an unequal weighting with failing grades carrying more weight than passing grades.
Academically struggling students (who are at greatest risk of retention and/or dropping out) need to feel a possibility of grade recovery so that they are motivated to begin to engage in courses and recognize the potential for academic success when effort is applied. A 4-point scale increases grading accuracy.

Percentage System 100-point Scale

Point System 4-point Scale

Rationale system as each increment between each letter grade is proportionate to the increment between each numerical grade = 1 point A= 4 points B= 3 points C= 2 points D= 1 point F= zero The zero on a four point scale is not the travesty that it is mathematically when applied to the 100-point system

Use of zero (1) defies logic and mathematical accuracy when averaging scores for final grades because extreme scores skew the average (2) is seldom an accurate reflection of what a student has learned or is able to do (3) no studies support the use of zeros or low grades as effective punishments. Zeros and the low grades they yield more often than not cause students to withdraw from learning. The interval between numerical and letter grades is typically 10 points 90, 80, 70, 60, 50. When the zero is applied to a 100-point scale, the interval is not 10 points but 60 points. The use of the zero implies that the work not turned in deserves a penalty that is many times more severe than the assessed work. It is equivalent to a negative 6 on a 4-point scale. When the interval is 10 points between grades and D is 60 then the mathematically accurate value of F should be 50 points. Just two or three zeros are sufficient to cause failure for an entire nine week period. Recording a 50% as the lowest failing grade is mathematically accurate when using the 100-point scale.

Researchers at the University of Chicago--the Consortium for Chicago School Research discovered: More than 95 percent of students with a B average or better in their freshman year graduate. Freshman who earn a B average or better have an 80% chance of finishing HS with at-least a 3.0 Freshmen with less than a C average are more likely to drop out than graduate. We still see a significant number of students who are disengaged from the learning environment resulting in behavior and attendance concerns A large amount of resources are being used to address remedial classes and concerns

To ensure that each of our students leave 9th and 10th grade ready for the remainder of their educational pursuits, we have instituted a Reteach , Relearn, and Reassessment Policy in their math, social studies, English, and science courses. The policy raises the standard surrounding student expectations by requiring students to complete all assigned work vs. being let off the hook for the assigned learning.

In 9th grade, East High School will be maintaining a Zeros Arent Permitted (ZAP) approach. This means, all objectives, all assessments, including daily quizzes, unit and final tests must be completed. Students do not have the option of not completing work. Additionally, all 9th grade students will be expected to complete all objectives, all assessments, including daily quizzes, unit and major tests at 70% or better. When students fail to perform at 70% or better on a given task, they will need to go through a Reteach/Re-learn/Re-assess process until they reach 70%.
In 10th grade, all students will complete all tests @ minimal mastery of 70%. If they fail to complete an assessment at 70% or to even complete it, they will need to go through a Re-teach/Re-learn/Reassessment until they reach 70%.

The decision as to how to reassess skills that are re-taught is the responsibility of the classroom teacher. Reassessment methods include, but are not limited to: * Class discussion/review * Demonstration * Observation * Oral questioning * Re-teaching in another unit * Test corrections * Additional assignments * Retesting, using a different assessment
Students and teachers will complete the Re-teach/Re-learn/Reassess in class, before/after school, in another teachers room, during lunch, or during learning lab/another scheduled period. If this process is abused, the teacher will work with the academy chair and administrator to identify possible changes to support the student.

Contrast these effective practices with three commonly used grading policies that are so ineffective they can be labeled as toxic. First, the use of zeros for missing work. Despite evidence that grading as punishment does not work (Guskey, 2000) and the mathematical flaw in the use of the zero on a 100-point scale (Reeves, 2004), many teachers routinely maintain this policy in the mistaken belief that it will lead to improved student performance. Defenders of the zero claim that students need to have the consequences for flouting the teachers authority and failing to turn in work on time (Reeves, 2008 Educational Leadership Vol 65 #5)

When we record 50% for student zeros in our grade books, we are not giving students something for nothing. We are adjusting the grade intervals so that any averaging we do is mathematically justified and more importantly, that any grade we determine from the pattern of grades is a valid indicator of mastery. A zero has an undeserved and devastating influence, so much so that no matter what the student does, the grade distorts the final grade as a true indicator of mastery. Mathematically and ethically this is unacceptable (Rick Wormeli, 2006).

The Alliance for Excellent Education estimated that the annual cost of high school failure exceeds $330 billion (An Economic Case, 2007). The stakes of grading practices are not limited to student failure. When grading procedures/policies improve, discipline and morale almost always follow (Reeves, 2008). Zeros are seldom an accurate description of a students achievement and skew the average grades dramatically (Guskey, 2004). Instead of promoting greater effort, zeros and the low grades they yield more often cause students to withdraw from learning (Guskey, 2004).

Possibility of Grade Recovery during the grading period Student Engagement, Power structure not punitive, Raise Graduation Rate AYP Accurate picture of learning (referring to skewing of grades with a few low failing grades) Correlation of grading scale PSSA progress Zeros are not a good idea for missing work, Consistency Validity and objectivity failure and success is defined consistently from class to class Limited teacher discretion at lower ranges of determining passing and failing Compliance assignments decreased and final grade more accurate reflection of required knowledge verses compliance to complete assignments

Students shutting down once grade is high enough (picking and choosing) Student negative perspective from students who comply and apply consistent effort Perception is that some students are getting something for nothing

Impact class rank within classes as more kids experience success

Student choice, game playing, student arrogance, refusal and defiance Increased; Student disruption with refusal to do work as students are told they must complete all work Teacher workload increased due to Min and note recording of actual score increased student defiance, increased parent calls (recording cumbersome) Variation in assignments number in determining grades

Jessica Hartz-Eng Jill Jacobs-Eng Schnique Williams-Eng Maggie Mnayer-Eng Kellen Johnson-Math Erin McClellan-Math Steve Oaks Soc. Studies Jeremy Blankenship-Soc. Studies

Amy Miehe Soc. Studies Vaughn Gross-Science Angie Jenkins-Science Rodney Wallace-Science Monica Iliff-Spec. Ed Ann Berry-Spec. Ed John Preston-I Jag Andrea Skopec-Spec. Ed

In the Parent Portal, 1. Parents will click on schedule from list of choices on the left. 2. Open a class 3. Select an Assignment/Task 4. At the top of the page you will see a letter grade and a %. The % and grade are not connected(See # 6 below). To understand what the letter grade means, look at the Reference Heading at the bottom of the assignment description. 5. Under the Reference heading, each assignment entered into the grade book will have a description of what each letter grade means in regards to the students skills. At times there will be Rubrics listed that will have specifics as to what the student should be able to do in order to receive a grade (8 out of 10, Identify 5 of the 6 main characters, 70% correct, etc.). 6. (%) The Letter Grade is the students grade. The % you see with the grade is not connected to how the student performed, as it does not specify the amount of work completed that was correct, but rather the percentages utilized by our student information system to appropriately calculate the average grade earned.

Guskey, T. R. (2000). Grading policies that work against standards and how to fix them. NASSP Bulletin, 84(620), 2029.

Guskey, T. R. (2004). 0 Alternatives. Principal Leadership, 5(2), 49-53.

Lane, L. & Lippert, J.L. (2009) Excellence for All-Grading Guidelines Reeves, D. B. (2004). The case against zero. Phi Delta Kappan, 86(4), 324 325. Reeves, D. B. (2008). Leading to Change/Effective Grading Practices. Educational Leadership, 65(5), 8587.

University of Chicagothe Consortium on Chicago School Research(2007). Freshman Year: The Make-it or Break-it Year.
Wormeli, R. (2006). Fair Isnt Always Equal Assessing & Grading in the Differentiated Classroom. Portland, Maine: Stenhouse Publishers.