Proficiency Based Learning Update Series #5

Grading and Reporting in Gorham's PBL System

Now, I'm sure by now you have either gotten "lost" and are very frustrated with all my PBL posts, or you have understood all of this proficiency-based "stuff" thoroughly and are now wondering what this means in term of our grading and reporting practices here in Gorham for the coming years.  If you are at the "lost" stage, I would urge you to please pick up the phone and call me (222-1012) or email me any questions you have (heather.perry@gorhamschools.org).  Also, please know I will be setting up public forums later this spring for parents at all grade levels to talk more about what all this means and to give everyone a chance to come and ask questions to better understand.

If you are wondering what this means in terms of our grading and reporting practices here in Gorham - well let me give you a brief overview of where we are now with those decisions, again, with the understanding that some small adjustments may still be made.  But first, let's remind ourselves WHY we are making these important changes:

A Reminder about “Why” - Our Mission/Vision and our PBL Work:

The Gorham Schools believe that the creation of a proficiency-based system of learning is a key mechanism through which we can make our mission/vision and core beliefs about learning a true reality for all our students.

Our mission is that all Gorham students are prepared and inspired to take on the complex challenges facing our current and future world.  Gorham students should be actively engaged in learning that is academically rigorous and challenging in meaningful ways.  Their learning should be personalized to meet the needs and to honor the passions of all students.

We are building our proficiency-based system to honor our core beliefs that each student is unique and learns in different ways and at different rates and that learning involves risks, making mistakes, and reflecting on outcomes.

As we continue to build this system, our grading practices will also need to shift. Although this new approach will ask us to look at grading differently, we believe it will help teachers focus on students’ specific skills and knowledge and communicate progress to students and parents in a more targeted and transparent way. As a result, students will be able to take charge of their learning and teachers and students will be able to collaborate to create a more personalized approach to learning.

Now that we are reminded about the "why", let's look at this work by grade level clusters so we can see what work is being done at each level in the area of grading and reporting. Here goes:

Kindergarten - Gr. 5

We have been reporting out on a 1,2,3,4 scale at this grade level for 6+ years.  In this scale, a "3" is considered proficient and that is still the target, although keep in mind as I referred to earlier in my post #4 - as we move into our system, we will say that between a 2-3 is proficient in the first year, between a 2.5 - 3 in the second year, and between a 2.75-3 for all years after this.  We use the 2.75 range because of the decaying average and the knowledge that students may inevitably start with a low score on any given assessment.  It may take them a few times to "get it" so we need to give a range in order for us to take into account the fact that although a student may not have started off "knowing something" our hope is that they certainly will end with knowing it. The scores should reflect this understanding.

For the 2017-18 School Year the biggest change that will occur at these grade levels, is that we will no longer use Infinite Campus to report our quarter grades.  Instead, we will use Jumprope.  Teachers have actually been using Jumprope to track student learning and grades for the past 2 years, but they have then taken those scores and re-entered them into Infinite Campus so that the end user (parents) saw the same basic format you have always seen.  For the coming year, we will simply remove this last "curtain" and now print off reports directly from Jumprope to share with parents.

We will plan to focus a great deal of time in September and October of next year to share with parents what these new reports will look like and how to read them - but rest assured the actual scores will not change.  A "3" is still the proficiency score we are seeking.

Gr. 6-8 & 9-12

Here's where some changes will be a little more visible.  Once again, we will be working with a "step in" approach so that we can better inform and educate students and parents about what this all means as we continue to make changes.  For the first year of our "step in model," we will ask teachers in grade 6 only to report out student learning using a 1-4 scale.  That 1-4 scale will be almost identical to what has been used in K-5 for several years and looks something like this:

1-4 Grading Scale

Score	Description	Proficiency Description
4	Distinguished	The student consistently exceeds the proficiency requirements for the course level.  Performance indicators show that the student grasps, applies, generalizes, and extends key concepts, processes, and skills independently.
3.5	Exceeding Proficiency	The student’s body of work falls consistently between a “3” and a “4” for proficiency requirements for the course level.
3	Proficient	The student consistently meets the proficiency requirements for the course level.  Performance indicators show that the student, with limited errors, grasps key concepts, processes, and skills for the course level and understands and applies them effectively.
2.5	Approaching Proficiency	The student’s body of work falls consistently between a “2” and a “3” for proficiency requirements for the course level.
2	Developing	The student is progressing toward meeting the proficiency requirements for the course level.  Performance indicators show that the student is beginning to grasp key concepts, processes and skills for the course level, but demonstrates inconsistent understanding and application of concepts
1	Emerging	The student is making some progress toward meeting the competency requirements.  Performance Indicators show that the student is not demonstrating understanding of course-level key concepts, processes and skills and requires additional time and support.
IE	Insufficient Evidence	The student did not turn in enough work to determine his/her level of proficiency.

Teachers will use our standards-based grading and reporting software called "Jumprope" to track and report student learning.  Jumprope does have a parent portal so parents will enjoy the same access to their children's learning as they have with Infinite Campus, although it will require a little "getting used to" to learn how to navigate it - but we will take care of that by offering up training videos, and parent nights to assist parents in this learing in the fall of next year.

Teachers in grades 7-12 will NOT initially use this 1-4 scale (other than those who have already been piloting Jumprope in grades 7 & 8).  Instead, teachers at these grade levels will continue to use Infinite Campus to report out student learning on a 100 point scale using what we are calling a "blended scale" approach.  By using this approach, we hope to accomplish several things:

1.  Allow 7-12 teachers to learn how to better utilize our standards-based learning and reporting software (Jumprope or something similar) so that our reporting is clear to students and parents before making it public.

2.  Allow parents and students to better understand the need to eventually shift to a 1-4 grading scale before we actually do it and how that will work once we do.

3.  Allow 7-12 teachers and others time to make the "mental shift" required to successfully implement a PBL system of learning and align our grading and reporting practices to it.

The "blended grading scale" that will be utilized by teachers in grades 7-12 beginning in the 2017-18 School year will look like this:

Blended Grading Scale

Proficiency Score	A,B,C Score	100-Pt. Score	Proficiency Description
4	A+	98-100	Distinguished - The student consistently exceeds the proficiency requirements for the course level.  Performance indicators show that the student grasps, applies, generalizes, and extends key concepts, processes, and skills independently.
	A	96-97
	A-	93-95
3.75	B+	90-92	Proficient - The student consistently meets the proficiency requirements for the course level.  Performance indicators show that the student, with limited errors, grasps key concepts, processes, and skills for the course/grade level and understands and applies them.
3.5	B	88-89
3	B-	85-87
2.75	C+	83-84	Developing - The student is progressing toward the proficiency requirements for the course/grade level.  Performance indicators show that the student is beginning to grasp key concepts, processes, and skills for the course/grade level, but demonstrates inconsistent understanding and application of concepts.
2.5	C	81-82
2	C-	77-80
1	D+	75-76	Emerging - The student is making some progress toward meeting the competency requirements.  Performance indicators show that the student is not demonstrating understanding of course-level concepts, processes and skills and requires additional time and support.
	D	73-75
	D-	70-72
	F	60-69
IE	Insufficient Evidence		The student did not turn in enough work to determine his/her level of proficiency.

* Note:  Scores lower than a 60 will not be given to students using this grading scale.

Teachers utilizing this blended scale will track student learning using the 1-4 scale on the far left, but report out that learning to parents using the 100 point system on the right. Students themselves will likely see both scores so that we can assist them in more clearly understanding where they are in their learning and what they need to do to be successful in that learning. For parents, you will likely see very little difference in report cards because teachers will be making the translation for students and for reporting purposes while still reporting out using Infinite Campus using the 100 point scale.

Additionally, teachers in grades 6-12 will report Skills for Life separately from academic knowledge and skills. This will help to create a grade report that can communicate a clearer picture of each student's learning. 

Remember, this is a "step in" approach as well - so for the 2017-18 School Year, 6th-grade teachers will use the "1-4 scale" listed above, while teachers in grades 7-12 will use the "blended scale" listed above. Then in the 2018-19 School year, 6th and 7th-grade teachers will use the 1-4 scale listed above, while teachers in grades 8-12 will use the blended scale. Then in the 2019-20 School year, 6th, 7th, and 8th-grade teachers will use the 1-4 scale listed above, while teachers in grades 9-12 use the blended scale and then finally in the 2020-2021 School year, all teachers K-12 will utilize the 1-4 scale.

WOW! That's a lot of information and once again, I apologize for overloading folks. Please know that we are well aware of the implications of these changes to things like report cards and college transcripts, and school profiles, etc. but I think I have likely exhausted everyone at this time with information so I will save more on that for my next PBL series post.

In that next post, I will focus on talking about how high school credits will be earned, and how we will determine graduation requirements. Additionally, I will talk about how we plan to change our school profile and student transcripts in such a manner as to make sure that our students can continue to get into the colleges and universities of their choice!

In the meantime, I also want to let parents know that I will be hosting a PBL forum for parents of students who will be in grades 9-12 on April 27, 2017 starting at 7:00 p.m. at GHS. At this forum, Principal Brian Jandreau and I will present on the importance of making this shift to PBL, and we will roll out our grading and reporting plan. Additionally, we will spend time collecting parent feedback, questions, and comments and then finally, we will have special guests from Bates College, Colby College, Thomas College, and USM admissions offices present information about how they conduct their admissions processes to help parents better understand how this works. I also have a series of four "dunk and discuss" breakfast meetings planned for interested parents who have questions. Those will be held from 7:30- 8:30 a.m. at Aroma Joe's on the following dates:

• Tuesday, May 2nd

• Monday, May 8th
• Thursday, May 18th and
• Monday, May 22nd

As always, please feel free to follow up with me on any questions you might have. It is only by working together, with clear and honest communication that we can ensure the best possible system of learning for all our students here in Gorham; one that allows us to make our mission and vision a reality for our students!

Thank you!