How Students Are Taking On 2nd Quarter Amid New Grading Policy

By Emily Markin

Beginning in the 2025-2026 school year, MCPS changed the grading policy throughout the county’s middle and high schools. This new policy affects how final grades are calculated, with semester grades being calculated by averaging the student’s grade percentages during each quarter.

With second-quarter interims taking place on Dec. 12, it was important for students to check in on their grades and ensure that they would be happy with their first and second-quarter grades being averaged to create their final semester-one grade. 

The most recommended strategies to maintain or improve grades from students seem to be organization, prompt assignment completion, and getting help from others. 

“I was writing everything down to make sure I knew what homework I had, when it was due, when I was going to do it,” said senior Bryce Edmonds, reflecting on his first quarter performance and hoping to improve in the second quarter. “I’d put it on my calendar; I had a whole system. And then as stress started to build up [in the first quarter], I kind of just lost sight of that. So, I just want to get back into my organization.” 

Senior Campbell Goldston echoes these sentiments. “I think I just try to make sure I know all my deadlines, like when my assignments are due, and I try to jump on them sooner rather than later,” said Goldston. “I take advantage of any free time I have, even in school. Like during advisory, if we aren’t doing anything, I’ll be like, okay, let me work on an assignment now.”

“For certain classes, I’ve started seeing a tutor,” said junior Willow Hillman. “Like, I started seeing a tutor during first quarter so that my second quarter grades would be better. I’m also working really hard to stay on top of everything and make sure that I turn things in early and on time and try to put extra work into the classes that I know I’m struggling in.”

In addition to these study habits, students can use other resources to help them check in on their grades and understand how they are performing in the second quarter.

For instance, “My Pre-Calc teacher actually gave us a grade calculator that will average our first quarter grade and will tell us what you need to get second quarter to get a certain grade,” said sophomore Zora Viehland. “And so I’ve been using that to keep track of my assignments and also, I’ve just been putting more effort into, like, staying on top of things and being more conscious of deadlines and due dates.”

Overall, with the beginning of the new grading policy in MCPS, it is crucial for students to hold themselves accountable throughout both the first and second quarters if they hope to average a good grade in the first semester. This mindset and these strategies can be carried into the third and fourth quarters as well, giving students the best opportunity to earn satisfactory grades the entire school year.