Hello,
Apologies for the delay in responding. I shared your question with Scott Kerwien, director of Technology and Information, and director of College and Career Readiness. He responded:
"Thank you for reaching out and conveying your thinking around a very challenging concept. There are a lot of variables and nuance, but the general thinking behind the use of any number from 0-50% (or only 50-100%) is explored in this article – The Zero Effect (from a teacher’s perspective). The 100 point/percentage scale over inflates the F and using the 50% is an attempt to eliminate this, not deincentive the student from completing assignments.
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Particularly this part: “Now, imagine that my student has five recorded scores: three missing assignments, one B and one A. In many classes, her grades look as follows: 0, 0, 0, 17/20, 19/20, bringing her total grade to 36/100, a daunting F.”
Historically there are drastically different grading practices between each individual teacher and their subsequent curricular classes they teach. Some teachers prioritize assignments over tests/quizzes/assessments and some “weight” their gradebooks with varying importance on various items.
One example from an educator’s experience is when an educational company came into a middle school (non-SPS) and displayed a sample assessment – some multiple choice, some true/false, some short answer – and asked all the teachers in the room:
o That particular staff, regardless of curricular area, spread grades for this sample student and sample assessment all across the grades A-F. (Some As, some Bs….some Fs).
The example above brings to light how much variation there is for every teacher in how they approach grading with each student. Remote learning has brought numerous challenges for teachers and students to connect around school and what it means for a student to show what they are learning.
There is a growing question among SPS teachers in MS and HS about how to grade and truly convey a student’s knowledge, especially from an equity lens since there are students without reliable internet access and logistics at home that prevent them from regularly attending virtual classroom sessions. Some of the notable ideas teachers have mentioned are students being able to retake quizzes, turn in late work, and use the 50-100% grading scale to ensure that all students have the opportunity to show their learning and continue to work toward showing that learning – while maintaining hope.
For teachers who use the 50-100% grading practice, students may very well still not do much and earn between a 50-59% earning them a F, but for students who are balancing a lot of stress and trauma, earning a 50% instead of a zero in the gradebook still gives them a fighting chance to earn a passing overall grade.
I hope that allows for a little bit of insight into a very large conversation that is hard to summarize for all teachers."