• Harpool Middle School Grading Policy

     
     As evidence of our commitment to these beliefs, the following grading and assessment practices will be implemented:
     
    • All assignments and assessments will be referenced to the standards.
    • Grades will be reflective of student learning.
    • Students will be expected to complete all assignments on time and in their entirety.
    • Students will be given the opportunity for reassessment of summative assessments, excluding process assignments (as defined by #2 in “Reassessment Procedures for Summative Assessments”) and semester exams, assuming they have met the expectations outlined below.

    Grading and Recording Expectations

    1. Since all grades will reflect mastery of student learning, grades will not be inflated or deflated for student non-academic behaviors.
    2. Teachers will communicate to students and parents regularly by publishing grades at regular intervals allowing for feedback and continued learning.
    3. The quarterly grade should reflect an appropriate sampling of summative assessments to accurately reflect mastery of the targeted standards.
    4. Progress reporting periods should include both minor and major summative grades.
    5. Teachers will record the actual grade earned.
    6. Final semester grade calculations: The average of the two grading periods will count 80% of the final semester grade, and the final exam will count 20% of the final semester grade.

     

    Formative Assessment: (Does Not Count Towards Overall Grade)

    Formative assessment directs the teacher’s instructional decisions regarding adjustments or re-teaching needed to ensure student success on the curriculum/learning goal(s). It also communicates to the student any learning adjustment needed prior to the summative assessment.  Formative assessment is FOR learning.

     
    The formative assessments recorded must align to the standards of the summative they precede and are to provide guidance to the student, teacher and parent on progress towards learning goals. While Formative assessments are not calculated in the overall grade, they are still vital to the growth of your student’s achievement.  Formative scores will be a tool for teachers, students, and parents to monitor the progress of the student.  They should reflect progress on standards only, not compliance--i.e. returning a progress report for a grade or bringing a box of tissues at the beginning of the school year. Formative assessment is practice that takes place both formally and informally. Formal assessment occurs when regular instruction is stopped to assess student understanding. Informal assessment happens during the course of instruction. Examples of formative assessments include, but are not limited to, the following:
     
    Class Discussions
    Daily Practice
    Teacher Observation
    Questioning
    Check for Understanding
    Classroom assignments
    Homework
     
    All homework should be completed, reviewed in a timely manner, and used as a method to provide students with specific feedback on their performance of the assigned tasks. The research on homework indicates that providing feedback is critical, but assigning a grade to every homework assignment is not necessary. Homework should result in a higher performance level on summative assessments.
     
     
    Summative Assessment: (Major 60%, Minor 40%, Pre-AP-Major 70%, Minor 30%)
    Summative assessments are designed to provide information about a student’s mastery of the curriculum/learning goal(s). Summative assessment occurs after teachers have provided feedback to students through formative assessments. Summative assessment is assessment of learning that occurs at the end of a sequence of instruction.
     
     
    Major Summative Examples: Minor Summative Examples: 
    Unit test Quizzes
    Projects Graphic Organizers
    Research Papers Rough Drafts
    Final Drafts Short Pieces of Writing
    Essays Oral questions in class
    Presentations Exit Tickets
    Common Assessments Learning Logs
    Lab Practical Journal Entries
    Written Proposal  Performance Tasks
    Performance Tasks Laboratory Write-ups
    Portfolios  
     
    Summative assessments not submitted by the due date will be recorded as a missing (MSG) and will be calculated in the gradebook as a zero to reflect the actual grade based on the absence of the summative assessment.