standards based Report Cards: Grades kindergarten through 5

Standards-based report cards measure how well an individual student is doing concerning the grade level standards, not the work of other students. It gives parents a better understanding of their child’s strengths and weaknesses and encourages all students to do their best. Please take a moment and review the important information provided in the parent guides to help you have a better understanding of the report card. Standards-based grading and reporting provide helpful information for teachers and parents so that they can work together to help children reach their fullest potential.   

Other strengths and benefits of a standards-based grading and reporting system are as follows:

• Student progress is tracked by specific standards/concepts/skills, not entire chapters or units.  Parents and teachers can easily see which areas of the curriculum are strengths and which need more practice or time for mastery.

• Students have the opportunity to show progression and growth over time.

• Students have the opportunity to demonstrate mastery beyond grade-level expectations.

• Student progress indicators clearly reflect the student’s knowledge of key skills and concepts without the addition of work behaviors such as participation and homework completion which may skew a child’s grade in a traditional grading system.  While homework completion and practice work will be reported on the report card, they will NOT be part of the progress indicator for any academic standard.  Instead, work habits will be reported in a separate category so that parents can easily differentiate between academic concerns and deficits in work habits. 

• Teachers can assess children both formally and informally to collect data on skill acquisition. This allows students to demonstrate mastery of skills/concepts through a variety of methods rather than simply taking a test.

• Learning goals are very clear to parents, teachers, and most importantly, students.  Everyone knows the end-of-year goals and can work together to help the child reach them.

• What is a standards-based report card?

A standards-based report card is designed to inform parents about their child’s individual progress towards achieving specific learning standards.  It provides parents with more detailed information about their child’s strengths and weaknesses.  The New Jersey Student Learning Standards in mathematics and ELA outline rigorous performance expectations that all students are expected to reach by the end of the school year.  The report card is intended to share progress toward those specific end-of-year standards.   With such detailed information, parents will be better able to guide and support their children.

• How does the standards-based report card compare to the traditional letter system?

Standards-based reporting is different from the traditional letter grade reporting.  With the traditional letter grade system, the grade indicates the calculated average of a student’s performance on all of the assessments within a given grading period.   Alternatively, the standards-based report card measures how well an individual student is progressing toward very specific end-of-year grade level standards, rather than reporting a combined average.  Reporting in this manner provides parents with specific information about areas in which their child has strengths and areas that need further practice.

• Why was the report card changed to the standards-based report card and away from a traditional report card system? 

The report card was changed to a standards-based report card in order to provide more specific information to parents about individual student progress.  In addition, the report card was revised to match the New Jersey Student Learning Standards in both mathematics and language arts.  You will see a direct correlation between what is taught on a daily basis and the expectations for students on the report card.

On a traditional report card, students receive one overall grade for reading, one for mathematics, one for science, etc.  With the standards-based report card, the most important grade level specific skills and concepts in each of the core subject areas are listed separately.  A progress indicator is assigned for each specific skill or concept outlined. 

Standards-based report cards, unlike traditional report card grading systems, allow teachers and parents to see specific strengths and weaknesses regarding their children’s progress.  This report card values learning as an ongoing process; it is expected that repeated exposure and experiences are necessary to acquire new skills and strategies. 

• My child has an IEP. How will he or she be assessed?

A child with an IEP typically receives modifications and accommodations which are an essential part of the individualized education plan (IEP).  The purpose of these modifications and accommodations are to support student progress on grade level standards as assessed on a Standards-Based report card; therefore, children with an IEP will receive both their IEP grids which will report progress toward individual goals AND a report card that will report progress toward the grade level standards.  Both of these reporting tools along with ongoing parent-teacher communication will support the academic success of our special needs learners. 

View the standards here

Grading: Grades 6 through 8

The following grading scale and indicators shall be used in grades 6 through 8:

• 94-100   A

• 90-93   A-

• 87-89   B+

• 84-86   B

• 80-83   B-

• 77-79   C+

• 74-76   C

• 70-73   C-

• 67-69   D+

• 64-66   D

• 60-63   D-

• 0-59   F

• INC  =  INC

An incomplete grade (INC) will be given when a student does not complete assigned work in any subject area.  The student will have two weeks to make up the incomplete after receiving the grade on the report card.  If the student fails to complete the work within two weeks, the student will receive an F on the report card for the marking period.

Grade Weights and Categories: The following weights will apply to assignments in grades 6 through 8:

Language Arts

Homework - 10%

Quizzes - 30%

Tests - 30%

CL/Projects - 30%

Math

Classwork - 20%

Homework - 25%

Quizzes - 20%

Tests/Projects - 35%

Science

Classwork - 20%

Homework - 10%

Quizzes/Labs - 30%

Tests/Projects - 40%

Social Studies

Classwork - 25%

Homework - 10%

Quizzes - 25%

Tests/Projects - 40%

Phys. Ed./Health

Participation - 50%

Tests/Projects - 50%

Specials (i.e. Art, Music, Language, Technology, Media)

Classwork - 40%

Quizzes - 25%

Tests/Projects - 35%

Appeal

• Each teacher is responsible for the determination of the grade a student receives for participation in the teacher’s course of study.

• Each teacher may be required to furnish reasons, supported by evidence to substantiate any grade earned.

• If a grade is challenged by a student or a parent(s) or legal guardian(s), the teacher will convene a conference and will explain the grading system and the reasons for the final grade.

• If the parent(s) or legal guardian(s) or student is not satisfied by the teacher’s explanations, he/she may appeal the grade to the Principal, who will consult with the teacher and the student in an attempt to resolve the dispute.  The Principal will give every reasonable deference to the teacher’s professional judgment.

• If the Principal determines that the grade should be changed, he/she will alter the grade on all records and indicate by whose authority the grade has been changed.

• No reprisals will be taken in any form against a teacher who remains determined in his/her belief that the grade originally given is fair and correct.

• The Superintendent may hear an appeal from the Principal’s determination.  Only in the most extraordinary circumstances will the Superintendent alter a grade determined at the school building level.