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Auburn-Washburn introduced Standards-Based Grading during the 2021-2022 school year! Our traditional grading system did not fully communicate what the students are expected to understand set forth by our Auburn Washburn learning standards or objectives. While we recognize that change comes with challenges, this new approach to grading will benefit all students, teachers, and parents/guardians.
Standards-Based Grading allows students to be more informed of what they are expected to learn. It will provide parents with a more detailed outline of their student’s growth performance and success. We believe it is crucial to our students’ success that clear communication between school and home is happening throughout the course of the year. We look forward to working together to provide your child the knowledge and tools needed to reach their fullest potential. Below you will find additional information in a Question & Answer format with resources to help you learn more about standards-based grading.
What exactly is Standards-Based Grading?
What exactly is Standards-Based Grading?
Standards-Based Grading (SBG) measures how well an individual student is doing in relation to the grade-level standards. SBG gives students more feedback and guides students on what they need to focus on.
The focus of SBG is to provide students with feedback so they can continue to improve in the classroom while their grade is not affected by participation or behavior, only student learning. This will overall create a better understanding of your child's strengths and weaknesses.
Through SBG students focus on mastering the standards and not on earning a grade. Students are allowed to be reassessed on standards until they have reached mastery. Mistakes are an essential part of the learning process, students are encouraged to make them so they can learn from those mistakes. A child is NOT penalized for making mistakes but instead praised for being successful.
Why SBG?
It allows students to shine and show talents that are hidden in our current grading system
A child’s strengths and areas of improvement are very evident to parents and teachers
Students earn the grade that they should earn based on their knowledge. Nothing else clouds the grades…extra credit, behavior, handwriting, etc
Grading scale aligns to the ratings on the Kansas State Assessment
Ease of student goal setting around the standards
How does Standards-Based Grading work?
How does Standards-Based Grading work?
Each grade level is based on a set of learning goals called standards or objectives. Every assessment may cover one or more of the standards. Students will receive feedback on each standard, guiding them on their progress.
For example, with traditional grading, you might receive your child’s math test displaying a letter grade or overall percentage. While with SBG, the same math test would show that your child got all of the adding, subtracting, and multiplication problems correct while missing all but one division problem. Now both you and your child know to focus on division problems rather than only seeing one overall grade.
Why change from Traditional Grades?
Traditional grades summarize all student learning into one number or letter grade. It is easy to understand a traditional grade, but traditional grades do not provide enough information to help students know what to do next. Imagine taking a test on basic math operations: adding, subtracting, multiplying, and dividing. Your child is confident going into the test but is unsure of a few questions. The grade comes back as an 80. What do you do from here? Students begin to view their ability and intelligence as something that cannot be changed. “I am bad at math.” vs. “I understand adding my numbers, but I am confused when it comes to subtraction.”
Traditional grades also punish students for missed or late work because 0 counts as a failing assignment six times when calculated into the average.
A failing grade makes up about 60% of the grading scale.
This means two things:
Students are more likely to fail than succeed.
In that 60% of the scale that is failing, there is no additional information about why the student failed.
There is an additional problem with this scale in that from unit to unit a low score (10 – 30%) could cause a student to have no chance (mathematically) to come back from a mistake. It provides very little about what the student actually knows and causes the entire culmination of the students understanding to be summed up with a single number and letter.
How is SBG different than what we're currently doing?
How is SBG different than what we're currently doing?
Traditionally, student performance for a quarter was based on averaging scores from the entire quarter. Early scores could be averaged together with later-quarter performance in which a student demonstrated proficient performance. Typically, student work habits affected the overall grade such as incomplete or missing homework or participation points being averaged into the overall grade.
Standards-based grading communicates how a student is doing on a set of performance goals. It takes into consideration consistent performance as well as the most recent data collected and separates behavior and work habits.
4.0 means: Consistently extends and applies complex knowledge and skills
“I know this skill/concept so well I could explain it to others, or extend it to new situations.”
* 3.0 means: Independently demonstrates knowledge and skills
“I know this skill/concept well enough to have mastered the grade-level expectation.”
2.0 means: With help, demonstrates foundational knowledge and skills
“I am still working towards the grade-level expectation, and getting closer.”
1.0 means: Does not demonstrate knowledge and skills
“I need extra support to perform in this area.”
Scales can be used informally (i.e. the teacher says to the class, “Show me on your fingers where you think you are now.”) or formally (i.e. the teacher assigns specific tasks to each level). The 3.0 is the standard for a child to master grade-level skills. However, a student who ‘passes’ a skill with a 3, will be asked to keep working toward a 4 if time and opportunity allow. For grading purposes, you can see how the scales can fit within the percentages assigned to them based on their meaning.
AW Traditional Grading vs. AW Standards-Based Grading
What does SBG look like in class?
In the classroom, students will receive feedback for the standards being taught as well as the progress on the learning objectives.
Students can show that they surpass mastery at a standard by answering a mastery level question on the assessment or over time by consistently showing “fully meets.” Students will have multiple opportunities to show their understanding on all standards. This is created to help students who make connections as time goes on.
My child has an IEP or a 504. How will they be assessed?
There are modifications and accommodations in a child’s IEP or 504 to support their progress on grade-level standards as assessed on a Standards-Based Grading system. The report card has an MS for modified standard to better illustrate for parents the instructional impact. This inclusive grading model helps general and special educators align their efforts and coordinate grading and reporting responsibilities.
How will specials do their grades?
Specials classes (PE and Music) will be using a grading system similar to the one we currently have in place with a few modifications.
What will the report card look like this year?
What will the report card look like this year?
Below you can find samples of all report cards K-6.
“By comparing one child’s performance to a clear standard, parents, children and teachers all know precisely what is expected. Every time a student attempts a task, the performance is compared to the standard, not to other children’s performances. The most important advantages for children and families are fairness, clarity, and improved learning.”
“By comparing one child’s performance to a clear standard, parents, children and teachers all know precisely what is expected. Every time a student attempts a task, the performance is compared to the standard, not to other children’s performances. The most important advantages for children and families are fairness, clarity, and improved learning.”
- Doug Reeves
- Doug Reeves
Recommended Resources to Learn More about SBG
Recommended Resources to Learn More about SBG
Scholarly Articles Related to SBG Principles
Scholarly articles related to SBG.pdfAssessment FOR Learning
Assessment FOR Learning
An Example of SBG
Standards-Based Grading and the Game of School: Craig Messerman at TEDxMCPSTeachers
A Student's Point of View from Schoolcraft Community Schools
A Teacher's Point of View from Schoolcraft Community Schools
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