Rockwall ISD
International Baccalaureate
Assessment Policy
PURPOSE: Rockwall ISD’s Assessment Policy articulates the ways in which students and their teachers assess student learning.
PHILOSOPHY: Assessing student learning is the essence of formative and summative evaluations. Assignments, tests, projects, classroom activities, and other instructional activities shall be designed so that each student’s performance indicates the level of mastery of the designated objectives. Aligning with best practices and IB guidelines, teachers will use a range of formative and summative models and will revise them as a part of the curriculum review process for each subject. Teachers shall ensure that the grades reflect the student’s relative mastery of an assignment and that a sufficient number of grades are taken to support the grade average assigned.
BELIEFS
Grades include both formative and summative assessments.
Grades provide clear and consistent feedback.
Grades reflect content knowledge.
Grades are an indicator of progress toward mastery of learning objectives.
Grades are an opportunity to motivate students to take ownership of, and responsibility for, their own learning, as ascribed by the IB Learner Profile.
Behavior and effort are assessed separately from learning objectives.
Grades are a method of communication between school, students, and parents.
Formative and Summative Assessment
Assessments can be developed using a variety of question types to suit the requirements of the subject. Some of these question types can include multiple-choice, short-response, open-ended problem solving, essay questions, case studies, and data-based questionings. Rockwall-Heath HS expects teachers to build student success by designing appropriate assessments. Rockwall-Heath HS also expects IB teachers to work collaboratively to develop academic work that truly reflects authentic student learning within the context of the connectedness of all disciplines. IB students will participate in the external IB assessments, such as the official exams at the end of the courses submitted to IB examiners for grading. IB students will also participate in internal assessments where teachers mark their assessments and submit those scores and samples to IB for moderation.
Formative assessment is used during learning to provide information to teachers and students about student learning progress. It helps to identify and remediate individual and class deficiencies in learning and may or may not result in a grade. It is used at a time when adjustments may be made to teaching and learning activities to ensure students achieve learning goals based on the IB curriculum; therefore, formative reassessment happens as a regular part of the process. Formative assessment must be academic in nature and support the learning objective.
Formative assessment includes a variety of formats such as, but not limited to:
Daily practice
Class discussions
Class seminars
Teacher observations
Classroom assignments
Classroom presentations
Homework
Quizzes
IB teachers will use the 7-point rubric that aligns with the practice and grading system of IB. The teacher will have the discretion to translate these rubrics into number grades (between 0 and 100) for the purpose of calculating grades that correlate to the RISD grading system. While peer/self-review and editing are valuable in the learning process, the teacher is ultimately responsible for issuing grades on assignments. The purpose of these formative assessments with meaningful, detailed and timely feedback is to prepare students for the more comprehensive summative assessments.
Summative assessment is used after instruction to measure student growth related to standards and is given at a particular point to determine if a student has mastered the learning objective. Individual students or groups of students, even the whole group, may require remediation or reteach of specific content; therefore, reassessment may be a part of the process. Such reassessment will comply with local RISD policy. Some of the summative assessments will be internally created and assessed, while others will be submitted for external moderation or assessment.
Summative assessment includes a variety of formats such as, but not limited to:
Tests
Projects
Major presentations
Major papers
District assessments
Investigation Papers
IB teachers will use the 7-point rubric that aligns with the practice and grading system of IB. The teacher will translate this rubric into number grades (between 0 and 100) for the purpose of calculating grades that correlate to the RISD grading system. Peer/self-review and editing are not appropriate for summative assessment. The teacher will grade all internal summative assessments.
Externally assessed essays will apply the Diploma Programme expectations with the key features including a distinction between the supporting formative assessments and the formal IB assessment, an accurate demonstration of student performance and universal understanding based on the whole course, and a judgment of the student’s level of attainment, not necessarily in relation to another student’s work.
Any student enrolled in an IB Course will submit and sit for all assessments as required by the IB. In the event that a student chooses not to register or pay for one or more IB courses, the student will be dropped from the course. Students who qualify for free/reduced lunch may also qualify for a reduction of examination fees. Please see the IB Coordinator for information.
Homework
Homework is used to enrich and strengthen classroom experiences. It is an extension of the day’s lesson to help the student and teacher assess learning. The teacher’s responsibility is to assign effective, well-planned, and purposeful homework that aids the student in the mastery of the course’s essential elements.
Grade Calculations
Formative grades represent 30% of the nine-weeks grade. Summative grades represent 70% of the nine-weeks grade.
Semester grades become part of the student’s transcript which is reported to colleges, employers, and others at the request of the student. The grade each student earns in a particular IB class is not necessarily correlated to the scores earned on the formal IB assessments, but it is reflective of the learning in preparation for those assessments.
Grading Scales
A = 90—100
B = 80—89
C = 70—79
F = 0 – 69 Fails to Master Learning Objectives
Reporting
Teachers shall issue interim progress reports in accordance with Texas law. These progress reports will be available to parents via Skyward at approximately the third and sixth week of each nine-week grading period. Supplemental progress reports may be issued at the teacher’s discretion or as established by campus grading procedures. The electronic grade book, Skyward, is used for all grade reporting. Teachers will enter current grades at least once a week to ensure that parents are able to view current grades. Report cards are issued to all secondary students at the end of each nine-week grading period.
Prior to the end of the school year, IB students are provided credentials for logging into IB’s student platform so that they may view their final, official IB score for each course in mid-July after the academic year in which the course was completed. Official scores for each IB course are sent to the college or university designated by the student at the time of final testing for the course. Students may later contact IB to request that score reports be sent to additional colleges/universities for an additional fee.
Aligning IB Standards to State Standards
The district shall establish instructional objectives that relate to the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS) for grade-level subjects or courses as required by law. These objectives shall address the skills needed for successful performance in the next grade level or next course in a sequence of courses in accordance with the graduation plans established by the State of Texas. Students enrolled in the IB courses will be required to cover the TEKS as well as the IB curriculum. Students enrolled in certain IB classes will be required to take the State of Texas Assessment of Academic Readiness End of Course Exams (STAAR/EOC) test as well as the IB assessments for that course. The IB classes that will require both the STAAR and IB test are:
IB Assessment EOC/STAAR
IB History HL US History EOC
Make-up Work
When a student is absent from class, it is the student’s responsibility to make up work. Students will be allowed the amount of time equal to the number of days absent to complete make-up work. However, if the student is aware of an assignment/project/exam deadline, and has received the necessary instruction before the absence occurs, the assignment or exam is due upon the student’s return to school. The campus has the discretion to allow additional time for make-up work when extended absences occur.
University Interscholastic League (UIL) Eligibility
The UIL exists in Texas to provide educational extracurricular academic, athletic, and musical contests. The Constitution and Contest Rules contains rules for UIL activities and standards of eligibility to be met by students to earn the privilege of representing their schools in interschool contests. These rules apply to participating schools and students.
Per UIL Guidelines, extra credit work (including re-tests) turned in after the grading period has ended may not be considered when determining a student’s eligibility for extracurricular activities except in the case of an “incomplete.” A student with an “Incomplete” grade is ineligible at the end of the seven-day grace period unless the “Incomplete” was replaced with a passing grade prior to the end of the seven-day grace period. Campuses will follow the posted UIL Calendar for Rockwall ISD to determine the official end of the grading period to be considered in eligibility decisions.
ACADEMIC DISHONESTY/PLAGIARISM
Academic dishonesty or plagiarism includes cheating or copying work from another person or source and unauthorized communication between students during an examination. Mastery of the learning objectives cannot be determined when dishonesty or plagiarism takes place. Students enrolled in the IB Programme will be subject to the IB protocols for authenticity as well as subject to grade penalties on assignments or tests and disciplinary penalties in accordance with the Student Code of Conduct. Rockwall ISD expects that all IB learners will recognize the importance international mindedness by acting with integrity and honesty, as illustrated by the learner profile that includes being principled, caring, and reflective learners. Rockwall ISD will follow the Diploma Programme expectations for the prevention of malpractice.
UPDATE AND REVISION
This policy will be reviewed and updated annually by members of the school community including students, teachers, administration, and parents to ensure that the policy is in alignment with both IBO’s and RISD’s expectations and student handbook.
Respect of self and others is of paramount importance, and compliance with all aspects of the IB Learner Profile is compulsory for participation in the IB Program at Rockwall-Heath High School.