If you’ve dug into why you should change your grading system to a student-centered one, then you might need some help. Get started by using reflection questions and a seven-step change management process.
Shifting to a student-centered grading system necessitates that:
- Grading must be fair and just. All students, regardless of their background, must have meaningful opportunities to demonstrate their understanding and skills. Fair and just grading practices involve recognizing and addressing biases, providing multiple pathways for students to show mastery and accounting for individual learning needs and circumstances, ensuring that grading reflects each student’s opportunity to succeed/ not just their starting point.
- Grades must be a measure of students’ levels of mastery. Grades are not averaged; rather, they evolve as students grow in their mastery of the content. Mastery is clearly defined and reflect what learners know and can do relative to standards and competencies.
Use the questions below to reflect on your current systemic practices around grading and reporting.
Do current grading practices support our vision?
- How do our grading practices and policies support or hinder the district’s shared vision for teaching and learning?
- How do our grading practices support competency-based education?
- How do grading practices tell the story of what we want students to know and be able to do beyond one point in time?
What are the district’s grading practices?
- Do learners have multiple opportunities to demonstrate learning? And do grades reflect the most recent demonstration of learning?
- Are grade calculations mathematically sound and representative of students’ content mastery (i.e., use of zeros, averaging, weight of early performances versus recent performances, weighting of different types of assignments)?
- Are we including criteria in grades that are not part of the learning target, such as timeliness, participation, neatness or extra credit?
- Does a guaranteed and viable learning continuum exist? How are we ensuring all learners can access a consistent and rigorous curriculum?
- What is enough evidence of mastery or proficiency?
- Which policies (state, school board, etc.) inform grading practices? Are they supportive of or barriers to our desired system? If supportive, what are our next steps to fully realize our desired system? If there are barriers, what mitigation strategies could be implemented to help shift grading practices?
How are grades reported?
- Is our district reporting mastery (or competency) of learning goals?
- To what extent do our grading practices and policies communicate to students, caregivers and educators what students know and are able to do? How do we know?
- How do we currently communicate student achievement to colleges and employers?
- What is our vision for communicating student achievement to colleges and employers?
- How does our recording and reporting system provide transparent and effective feedback to educators, students and their families?
- Do we have a system or platform for recording and tracking learning progression?
- How do we use the recording and reporting system to analyze learning and uncover inequities?
- How do state recording and reporting systems impact the grading practices we’d like to use? Do they require any adjustments?
A 7-step change management process
Shifting grading practices requires careful planning and timing. Districts shifting to a personalized, competency-based learning system might not transform grading practices until several years into their journey. Some districts undertake a full transformation quickly, while others take smaller steps to shift mindsets or grading practices before changing the reporting system. Regardless, it is necessary to have a plan to bring along a diverse group of individuals. Changing practices too quickly without supporting a change in mindsets could derail this important effort.
Below is a process to consider during your district’s journey.
- Develop and Deploy an Advisory Team: This team will lead the process, ensuring a comprehensive and inclusive approach that aligns with the district’s aspirations and shared vision for teaching and learning. The team should be composed of diverse stakeholders from the learning community and possess a deep understanding of the shift in mindsets and practices required for learner-centered grading.
- Adopt: Choose guiding protocols or frameworks to manage change, such as the Plan-Do-Check-Adjust Cycle, Design Thinking or Continuous Quality Improvement (CQI) framework. These frameworks provide structure and direction for the change process.
- Research Phase: Collect data and information on competency-based grading practices and identify potential improvements. Use guiding questions to focus your research and understand the areas needing change. Consider gathering the voices of families in this phase rather than reporting change at the end.
- Communication: Develop a clear communication plan to keep all stakeholders informed and engaged throughout the process. Effective communication ensures transparency and builds trust.
- Deploy and Test in Phases: Implement changes through pilot programs and beta testing. Phased deployment allows for adjustments based on feedback and ensures smoother transitions.
- Spread and Scale: Expand successful practices to more schools and districts. Consider additional roles, such as data analysts and coders, to support scaling. Professional development teams should focus on building staff capacity to use new grading systems effectively.
- Sustainability: Plan for the long-term viability of new grading practices. Ensure ongoing support and resources to maintain and refine the changes over time. Sustainability is key to lasting improvement.
