Standard Based Grading FAQs
Standards Based Grading FAQ’s
At LMS, we envision a student-friendly report card with clearly defined learning outcomes aligned to high quality, balanced assessments that will bridge our elementary and high school grading formats. TxGradebook will report meaningful feedback so both students and parents can track student progress toward mastery of key academic concepts, reflect upon strengths and weaknesses, and identify multiple pathways to deeper learning.
What is Standards Based Grading?
Standards-Based grading (SBG) measures a student’s mastery of the essential standards/skills for a class, or how well a student understands or demonstrates mastery of the material. At the beginning of every unit, our teachers break down the standards/skills for the unit into smaller objectives and criteria using a detailed proficiency scale. During the unit, the students are assessed to determine their level of mastery using a variety of assessment measures, such as observations, traditional pencil-and-paper activities, projects, discussions, or reports. The grade assigned will be based on all of the evidence the teacher collects demonstrating mastery of the essential standards/skills over time.
The goal of this approach is to provide the teacher, student, and parent as accurate a picture as
possible of the student’s learning and to encourage dialogue about how the student can master the material for the class. In particular, because learning is a process that takes place over time, each assessment will provide feedback for the student about what to focus on next, and the student will be allowed to retake assessments to demonstrate learning.
How does Standards Based Grading differ from traditional grading?
Unlike with traditional grading systems, a standards based grading system measures a student’s mastery of grade level standards by prioritizing the most recent, consistent level of performance. Thus a student, who may have struggled at the beginning of a course, when first encountering new material, may still be able to demonstrate mastery of key content/concepts by the end of a grading period. In a traditional grading system, a student’s performance for an entire quarter is averaged together. Early quiz scores that were low would be averaged together with more proficient performance later in the course, resulting in a lower overall grade than current performance indicates.
Standards based report cards separate academic performance from work habits and behavior in order to provide parents a more accurate view of a student’s progress in both academic and behavioral areas. Variables such as effort, participation, timeliness, cooperation, attitude and attendance are reported separately and not as an indicator of a student’s academic performance.
How are my child’s marks determined? A student’s performance on a series of assessments will be used to determine a student’s overall grade in a course. Practice assignments are just that, practice, and thus should serve primarily as a source of feedback and instructional support for both students and teachers. Scores on practice assignments should not be used as a major
component of a student’s academic grade. Teachers may require students to complete all of their practice work prior to allowing them to take, or retake, an assessment.
What will each of the numbers in the 5 point scale represent?
For reporting purposes, grades are entered into txGradebook, an online system used to report attendance, store grades, produce student progress reports, and generate report cards. The txGradebook will represent student mastery using the standards-based 1-5 scale as well as the 100 point traditional system. The conversion is shown below:
5.0- 100 3.5- 80 2.0- 60
4.5- 95 3.0- 70 1.5- 55
4.0- 90 2.5- 65 1.0-50
The ECISD Grading System in K-12th Grade- Courses using Full Implementation of standards-based Grading
Courses in full implementation of SBG will use the following proficiency scale to report student level of mastery on content standards.
Proficiency Scale
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Measurement Topic: Shows the standard being assessed |
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Score 5.0 |
Complex Content In addition to score 4.0 performance, the student demonstrates in-depth inferences and applications that go beyond what was taught.
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Score 4.5 |
In addition to score 4.0 performance, partial success at 5.0 content. |
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Score 4.0 |
Target Content (Grade level standard)
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Score 3.5 |
No major errors or omissions regarding score 3.0 content, and partial success at score 4.0 content. |
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Score 3.0 |
Simple Content
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Score 2.5 |
Partial success ar score 3.0 content, and major errors or omissions regarding score 4.0 content. |
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Score 2.0 |
With help, partial success at score 3.0 content and score 4.0 content. |
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Score 1.5 |
With help, partial success at score 3.0 content but not at score 4.0. |
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Score 1.0 |
Even with help, no success. |
Is it possible to achieve a grade of 5?
Yes it is. However, a score of (5) indicates performance that is consistently above what is expected for mastery at that point in the school year. Level 5 work would indicate a much deeper understanding of a standard, the ability to apply that knowledge, make connections and extend learning beyond the targeted goal.
How can I track my student’s grades?
Parents and students have access to their grades, attendance, etc through txConnect. Parents will need a portal ID to create their account. We highly encourage both parent and student to access txConnect regularly. Specific questions should be directed to your student’s teacher.
What if I have additional questions?
For additional information or questions please feel free to contact Legacy at 210-648-3118 by phone or email Nicole Lewis, Principal at nicole.lewis@ecisd.net, Adrienne Flores, Academic Dean at adrienne.flores@ecisd.net, or Monica Franco, Academic Facilitator at monica.franco@ecisd.net.