Bellevue School District Grading Practices
Teachers are encouraged to use grading practices that support students and provide flexibility to demonstrate learning and understanding of standards. Examples include the four evidence-based practices below that were initially implemented in the 2020-21 school year and designed to result in grades that are more reflective of student learning.
- Classroom assessment is aligned to standards
- Students are provided with multiple opportunities to demonstrate learning
- Students can re-take and/or re-do summative assessments
- Late work used to assess student learning is fully recognized to demonstrate proficiency
As part of a long-term plan to improve grading practices, the Grading Advisory Team was formed in October of 2020. The desired outcome is that all students will be supported by a high quality, equitable grading system that accurately reflects learning, is resistant to bias, is motivating for students, and is a more meaningful measure of student progress. Details of the work of the Grading Advisory Team can be found in the Community Update (PDF) initially published in June and updated in July of 2021.
The Grading Design Team continued the work into the 2021-22 school year and focused on stakeholder engagement on the Purpose of Grades and Beliefs About Grading statements (below) developed by the team. Family, staff, and student surveys were conducted in the spring of 2022.
Purpose of Grades
- The purpose of grades is to communicate student progress based on learning standards to students, families, educators, and others.
Beliefs About Grades and Grading
- Grades should accurately reflect student learning.
- Grades should be determined by both learning standards and teacher professional judgement.
- Grades should consider that students learn in different ways at different rates.
- Grades should be understandable to students and families.
- Grading practices should be consistent across teachers and/or classrooms.
ParentVUE
Families are encouraged to continue to utilize ParentVUE to monitor student progress and check on assignment grades. Families are also strongly encouraged communicate with teachers if you have concerns about your student’s progress.
Additional Resources
Note: This document was created by a team of educators in the 2017-18 school year following a year-long process of review.
Note: This document was created by a team of educators formed in the summer of 2020 to determine grading policies for 2020-21. This was requirement under the Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction’s Reopening Washington’s Schools 2020 District Planning Guide.