During the 2009-2010 school year, a committee including principals and teachers developed a new procedure to determine students' grades based upon working towards mastery. Last week, Dr. Dana T. Bedden, IISD superintendent of schools, approved the procedure following a meeting with the superintendent's advisory committee May 13.
Upon arrival into the school district in July 2010, Bedden was informed about the new procedure and scheduled implementation for the 2010-2011 school year. The Grading Procedures Committee met with Bedden on May 5, 2011, to discuss proposed changes to district grading procedures and to provide feedback and recommendations for continuous improvement. Three procedural changes were recommended to Bedden for consideration: modification of the re-assessment period, modification of the formative assessment portfolio for grades six through 12, and modification of professional development for teachers.
The re-assessment period modification recommendation was to narrow the period for re-assessment opportunities to two weeks for summative assessment make-up, and two-weeks after grading period for any assignment completed during the final week of a marking period. The time period for re-assessment will be reduced from the semester timeline to a two-week timeline. The formative assessment portfolio recommendation is to have formative work count as 20 percent of the six weeks grade. The formative work will also include student homework. The professional development recommendation is to provide professional development for teachers regarding the use of portfolios during the 2011-2012 school year, and to provide professional development for teachers regarding authentic assessment as soon as possible.
