Secondary Standards-Based Grading and Reporting Handbook

The article “Secondary Standards-Based Grading and Reporting Handbook,” was an intriguing way of grading assignments with a lot of material and ideas to think about. The article has about seven sections that tells parents why teachers grade the way they do, and the ideas and thoughts that go behind this process. In the first section of the article, it allows parents to get an understanding why there is a standard-based grading and reporting system for teachers to use. The idea behind standards-based grading is that it allows a more accurate and consistence reports on student’s achievements for their families and students to understand their state and local standards on grading. Yet, with this grading standard it allows students to “make progress they feel motivated and more successful because enhancing perceived competence is motivating in and of itself. Students begin to think about grades and other assessments, which teachers use to provide informational feedback helpful to their success,” there parents get a better understanding that these grades create motivation for students and allows parents to check up on their child and see the progress they are making in school (2). However, in section two of the article the idea behind the purpose of grading was spot on and allows parents to get a good reasoning why these grades happen as, “the purpose of grading is to communicate, to all stakeholders, student achievement toward specific standards at a certain point in time to inspire future achievement and impact change” (3). From there the article then discusses the purpose of the report card is “to communicate separately: 1) Student achievement toward academic standards 2) Student progress related to attributes that promote secondary and post-secondary success,” which gives parents a better idea on why report cards are made. But also, another important piece of information that I thought was useful, and helpful with the parents would be the information on how parents can check their kids grades out online. This lets parents know how to check up on their child and see the types of grades they are getting in class. It gives a step by step process on how to check their grades by going on the Spokane Public Schools webpage and clicking on the parent’s toolbox. From there everything is smooth sailing, because now these parents will get to check up on their kids’ grades, when they didn’t know they had the option to check daily rather than waiting for a report card at the end of the quarter.