Standards Based Instructions Means:

1. We teach based on the prescribed standards, competencies, or units for each course. That could mean SOLs, AP units, CTE competencies, etc. It's basically what we are required to teach. 
2. We determine grades based solely on student mastery of those prescribed standards, competencies, or units. 
   1. The determination of grades based solely on student mastery has been done with 100% summative grading. That means homework, practice, and other formative work done while students are learning are not included as part of the grade. 

Subject-Area teams were presented with three options: 

1. Create a culminating activity that does not count into the final grade. 
2. Create an opportunity for students to reassess a specified number of standards of their choosing. 
3. Create an opportunity to reassess a specified number of standards of the teacher's choosing. 
4. A combination of #2 and #3. 

At the latest, you will learn about the plan for each of your child's classes in the May 10th progress report emailing. 

Reminder: 

Retakes are available for any standard(s) between now and the end of the school year. 

• Grades will not go down
• Preparatory work will be expected to ensure success, but will not change from current expectations 

Students will see a video outlining this information. Students will be advised about how to strategize for success in this process. Teachers will review retake opportunities with each of their classes and reiterate these expectations on Monday and Tuesday next week. 

• 2022-23: 63%
• 2023-24: 77%

• 2022-23:
• 2023-24:

• 2022-23:
• 2023-24:

• 2022-23:
• 2023-24:

Current Practice

Teachers name their standards in the gradebook based on their own preferences or attempts at clarity.

Ex:

• Culture
• Standard 1
• St G.2a

Problem

Course standards are listed, but it is difficult to know exactly what is included within the standard, leaving stakeholders to try to find this information in a variety of places, such as the syllabus or Schoology. 

Proposal

Standards will be labeled according to a schoolwide formula for all classes.

Ex: 

• LL1 St 2: Reading
• USVA St 3: Colonization
• Eng St 3: Vocabulary

Current Practice

Standards are loaded within the assignment list and have a common date “August 2023” or “June 2024.”

Problem

• There is confusion about why “assignments” are showing from August or June. 
• There is a lack of clarity about when an assessment takes place and confusion about why some grades seem to be entered twice. 

Proposal

Standards will not be preloaded with the date “August 2024” or “June 2025.” Assignments for each standard will be recorded with the actual date of that summative.

• If a later summative/retake replaces a grade for a standard, the prior  summative will be changed to “not for grading” but will continue to show (roll) in the gradebook. All stakeholders will be able to track progress accurately. 
• Each standard and the current grade for that standard shows at the top of a progress report and in Student Vue.

Current Practice

Outside of comments on a quarterly report card, work habits such as homework completion, participation in class, and managing long-range assignments are not graded or communicated to stakeholder groups. 

Problem

Communication around these habits has been requested by teachers and parents. Information about these work habits will be helpful to staff such as school counselors and assistant principals when supporting students. 

Proposal

A standard called “Work Habits” will be created and weighted at zero percent of the overall grade. Subject/Course teams will define the work habits that contribute to success in their class and will communicate student progress in this area as:  

• Exceeds Expectations
• Meets Expectations
• Developing

Current Practice

Teachers are required to record scores for summative assessments in SIS gradebook (ParentVUE and StudentVUE), however they have the opportunity to record feedback and grades for formative assessments in other places, like Schoology and classroom notebooks. 

Problem

Stakeholders have had difficulty tracking student progress prior to a summative assessment when trying to support a student’s success. All relevant stakeholders have access to SIS, but not to other record-keeping methods within Schoology, classroom notebooks, etc. 

Proposal

Formative assessments will be recorded in SIS before a summative takes place. If a teacher records additional formative feedback elsewhere (like anecdotal evidence/information), it must be clear to all stakeholders how and where that additional information will be communicated. 

Current Practice

Each assignment that is listed in the gradebook follows the teacher’s organizational rules and is not consistent between departments. Formative assessments are listed as “Not for Grading” in general, but some other summative assessments can appear with that label as well.

Problem

It is difficult for stakeholders to discern the importance, purpose, and gravity of an assignment by the title of the assignment alone. The label “Not for Grading” does not provide enough information. 

Proposal

Each assignment will be labeled FO for formative assessment, SU for summative assessment, and WH for work habits. What comes after the FO, SU, and WH must make clear what the assignment is. Note: The title of the assignment in SIS will match the title elsewhere: in Schoology, on the top of the paper copy, etc. 

Ex: 

• FO – Unit 3.2 Quiz
• SU – Unit 3 Test
• WH – Homework completion for Unit 3
• FO – Gatsby Chap 2 Annotations
• SU – Gatsby analytical essay
• WH – Effective collaboration with peers
• WH – responsible use of electronics

Current Practice

Parent Coffees and PTSA meetings are the primary modes of face-to-face communication from the school to families. Documents are posted on the school website, such as the “Parent Handbook for Grading at Herndon High School” to provide static information about current practices. 

Problem

Families have not felt connected or informed about the work, nor have they felt they have had the opportunity to provide feedback. 

Proposal

Regular messaging can occur related to our instructional work, though there has been other feedback about the overwhelming amount of email communication that comes from the school.  

Parent Coffees and PTSA meetings will continue to be our primary form of face-to-face communication. Rather than alternating between morning and evening Parent Coffees each quarter, both morning and evening sessions will be offered each quarter. 

Current Practice

Students are responsible for completing all formative work leading up to the summative assessments.   

Problem

Students have stated they might not complete formative assignments because they “don’t count”. This, in turn, is adversely impacting their performance in the class. 

Proposal

Teacher leaders are in the process of creating impactful and engaging lessons about the importance of formative assignments in the learning process, as well as other work habits and executive functioning skills that contribute to student success. These lessons will be the focus in classrooms at the onset of the upcoming school year.

Teachers will be communicating student progress on these work habits to parents in the gradebook.