DANVILLE ELEMENTARY
STANDARDS-BASED GRADING INFORMATION
“Learning is an ongoing process and what matters is
how much learning occurs, not when it occurs”
~ Robert Marzano
DANVILLE LOCAL SCHOOLS VISION
Danville Local Schools provides all students with a standards-based education while differentiating instruction, implementing interventions, and providing feedback on standards-based performance to stakeholders to meet the needs as well as challenge all learners. The physical and social-emotional needs of all students are always a priority in educating the “whole child” to become a contributing member of the school and community.
Danville Schools is honoring the District’s Vision by “Doing what is best for students” by developing a communication tool to provide students and parents with a more effective way to understand student growth and achievement. We believe the information found on this website will help you understand the benefits of a standards-based report card and how to effectively utilize the information provided on your student’s standards-based grade card.
Report Card Samples
Why do we use performance levels for the standards instead of grade letters?
Our standards-based reporting system is designed to provide specific information about the skills students are progressing toward mastering. The student’s progress toward standards will be marked using the mastery scales below.
Academic Achievement: These standards are considered critical for student success, and specific standard statements help to more CLEARLY DEFINE EXPECTATIONS WHEN reporting academic achievement, teachers will use the following ratings:
| Meeting or extending the standard | 3 |
| Progressing toward understanding the standard | 2 |
| Developing an understanding of the standard but experiences difficulty and requires practice and support | 1 |
| Standard has not been introduced and/or assessed | N/A |
Work Habits and Social Skills are also important for success in school. Teachers will use the following ratings:
Work Skills
- Follows classroom routines, and school expectations
- Focused and on task when needed
- Takes ownership of one’s own learning
- Completes classwork
- Completes homework
Social Skills
- Demonstrates Kindness in both actions and words
- Accepts responsibility for their actions and choices
- Works well with others
| ConsistentlyStudent displays appropriate learner skills and behaviors | 3 |
| SometimesStudent is progressing; applies appropriate learning skills and behavior some of the time | 2 |
| Seldom or NeverStudent does not apply learning skills and behaviors that lead to success | 1 |
HOW STANDARDS-BASED GRADE CARDS CELEBRATE GROWTH!
A standards-based grade card is designed to provide accurate information about student performance in meeting the standard. In other words, rather than focusing on a percentage or number of points obtained, standards-based reporting focuses on student understanding or competency. With standards-based reporting, the conversation shifts from “What is my child’s score?” to “What is my child able to do?” While student work habits are important skills, these skills are reported separately. Marks for the standard are intended to reflect student performance in meeting the standard.
WHAT ARE STANDARDS?
Standards are statements about what students know and should be able to do within each content area at each grade level.
Decisions about how to teach students, in what order to teach content, and what materials to use are made at the district and building levels.
RESOURCES
Ohio Department of Education Learning Standards
BENEFITS OF A STANDARDS-BASED GRADING SYSTEM
- It is an objective tool to measure a student’s progress toward proficiency with the Ohio Learning Standards
- Measures what a student should know and be able to do by the end of each grade in each learning area.
- Identify the concepts and skills in each learning area based on these standards.
- Indicate what skills students have mastered, as well as their strengths and areas for growth.
- Progress will be reported for each of the grade-level standards identified rather than a single grade for each subject area.
- All teachers across the District will have the same expectations and common understandings about learning targets at each grade level and be able to build student knowledge based on student mastery of the previous year’s grade-level goals.
- Students, parents, and teachers work toward shared goals to ensure that students make progress each year.
- Research shows that providing specific feedback helps students to set goals and focus on continuous growth.
INFORMATIONAL RECOURCES:
Dr. Matt Townsley, an Assistant Professor of Educational Leadership at the University of Northern Iowa, has created the most comprehensive listing of Standards-Based Research available. Click here to access his research.
Article By: School Family Your Go-to Guide for School Success
Standards-Based Grading: What Parents Need To Know
Article By: ASCD
Seven Reasons for Standards-Based Grading
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
How were the standards for the grade cards determined?
Standards for the report card are aligned with the standards established by the state of Ohio, Ohio Learning Standards. Standards selected are essential for success in current and subsequent grades and are aligned with the Ohio State Tests students will take in 3rd grade and beyond.
Why do we use performance levels for the standards instead of grade letters? Children’s learning progression is too complex to be reduced to a simple letter grade. Our standards-based reporting system is designed to provide specific information about the skills students are progressing toward mastering. The student’s progress towards standards will be marked using the key below. The goal is for students to achieve a 3.
It is also important for parents to understand that standards may evolve in rigor and expectations for greater levels of difficulty throughout the year. If a student’s progress appears to dip during the year, that doesn’t necessarily mean s/he has regressed. Instead, it may mean the level of expectation has been raised, and the student hasn’t yet demonstrated mastery of the new expectations.
Why are there blank spaces on the report card?
With standards-based grade cards, we assign a performance level once students have had the opportunity to show mastery of the standards. For this reason, you may see many blanks on the report card at the beginning of the year. A standard is not reported until it has been taught and assessed. We allocate our instructional time to focus on the most important concepts a student needs to master. This is why you will see some standards reported over multiple quarters and other standards only reported once.
How will this type of grade card impact students with IEPs?
All students must be graded according to grade level priority standards, in line with their peers, on the grade level report card. Proficiency levels given in the new standards-based reporting system must be based on expectations for that grade level. The report card will reflect progress toward the standards taught at each grade level. The students will continue to receive a progress report explaining their progress toward individual goals stated in the IEP.
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