Standards-Based Report Card

Dear Parents,

During the 2014-2015 school year, the Woodbridge School District implemented a standards-based report card in First through Sixth Grade. A committee of teachers, curriculum specialists, administrators and members of the district’s technology department worked diligently to create this new standards-based report card. The new report card is comprehensive and detailed in the way it reflects each child’s progress. It will assist parents and educators in identifying both strengths and areas requiring further development. The expectation is that this new reporting system will be used as a tool to improve student growth over time by promoting more personalized learning for every child.

Purpose Of A Report Card

This webpage is designed to assist parents in gaining a greater understanding of the Woodbridge School District’s First through Sixth Grade elementary level standards-based report card.

The Woodbridge School District has designed curricula and assessments that directly align with the Common Core State Standards.

Under each standard, the district has identified specific grade-level expectations. A standards-based report card lists the most important skills students should learn in each subject at a particular grade level.

The standards-based report card reflects the expectations embedded within the district’s curriculum and assessments. This tool is designed to demonstrate your child’s current level of performance in comparison to a common standard, thus allowing parents to better understand how their child is performing relative to identified grade-level expectations.

The Standards

We are committed to:

Learning as a challenging process of choice, discovery, change and growth for all
Inspiring the development and sharing of everyone’s unique gifts and talents
Providing a learning community that nurtures and integrates social, emotional, physical and academic development

At Beecher Road School, the Common Core Standards help:

Emphasize high level reading comprehension skills
Place equal weight on reading and writing
Stress the importance of critical citizenship
Emphasize reading through increasingly complex texts
Convey that intellectual growth occurs across years and across disciplines
Support cross/curricular literacy teaching
Emphasize more rigorous problem solving
Focus on perseverance and in-depth thinking
Provide both content and practice standards
Emphasize that every student needs access to this work

Scoring

3	2	1	N/A
Meets Grade-Level Standard	Is Progressing Towards Grade- Level Standard	Does not meet Grade-Level Standard	Standard Is Not Assessed At This Time

On a standards-based report card, a mark of “3” is the expected goal for students, which indicates that the student is meeting the requirements of the academic standards for his/her grade level. Marks of “3” and “2” both indicate that a student is working within the expectations of his/her grade level. The difference is the level of independence and support a student needs to demonstrate proficiency. The expectation is that most students will achieve a “3” by the end of the year for each grade-level standard.

It is expected that teachers have had dialogue with parents prior to the distribution of the report card for any student receiving a “1” for any standard.

Key for Academic Performance:

3 – A mark of "3" indicates that student performance consistently meets district expectations as evidenced by independent application of concepts and skills. The student requires little or no adult support to demonstrate proficiency after instruction has been delivered.

This student has met the expectation independently and requires little to no adult support to demonstrate proficiency after instruction has been delivered.

2 - A mark of “2” indicates that student performance is beginning to and occasionally does meet district expectations. The student often requires support to demonstrate proficiency.

1 – A mark of “1” indicates that student performance is not currently meeting district expectations. The student requires instructional supports and interventions.

Key for Academic Success Habits:

A student who consistently demonstrates age/grade appropriate social and academic behaviors will receive a “3”.

A student who inconsistently demonstrates age/grade appropriate social and academic behaviors will receive a “2”.

A student who rarely demonstrates age/grade appropriate social and academic behaviors will receive a “1”.

Additional Resources

DOWNLOAD THE PARENT OVERVIEW GUIDE	PARENT ROADMAPS TO THE STANDARDS
DOWNLOAD THE PARENT PRESENTATION	PARENTS' GUIDES TO STUDENT SUCCESS
COMMON CORE STATE STANDARDS

Frequently Asked Questions

What Are Standards?

What Is A Standards-Based Report Card?

How Does Standards-Based Grading Differ From Traditional Grading?

Standards-Based grading communicates how students are performing on a set of clearly defined learning targets. The purpose of standards-based grading is to identify and communicate what a student knows, or is able to do, in relation to those learning targets.

In traditional grading systems, a student’s grade represents an average for a particular period of time and does not necessarily show progress. For example, early quiz scores that were low might be averaged with higher scores later in the unit, resulting in a lower overall grade that does not accurately reflect a student’s current understanding of concepts. Standards-based report cards also separate academic performance from work habits/behavior in order to provide parents a more accurate view of a student’s progress in both areas.

What Examples Of Data Do Teachers Use To Assign Marks?

With a standards-based approach, teachers evaluate student learning using a variety of methods, including observing students in small group and independent setting, evaluating student work, and analyzing assessments. The combination of these pieces of evidence, when reviewed with parents, provides a more detailed picture of student progress towards grade-level expectations.

Is It Possible For Students To “Drop” From One Marking Period To Another?

It is important to note that a student’s mark may change from report card to report card as concepts increase in difficulty. Therefore, a student who earns a mark of “3” in the first reporting period may earn a “2” in the second reporting period when the rigor of the standard has been increased. For example, early in second grade, students are expected to solve one-step word problems. Later in the year, students need to solve multi-step word problems. A student who receives a “3” earlier in the year for this standard and a “2” later in the year needs more time to acquire the necessary skills and concepts in order to solve these types of more challenging problems.

What Happens If A Student Receives A “2” In The First And Second Term And A “1” In The Third Term?

How Are Students With IEPs Going To Be Evaluated So That They Do Not Receive All Scores Of “1”?

Will My Student Still Receive Teacher Comments On His/Her Report Card?

How Will Parents Know What Is Being Done For Students Who Have Met The Standards?

How Do The Teachers Decide On A Grade For A Student? Is It Consistent Throughout The Grade?

Is Every Teacher Going To Be Required To Provide A Narrative?

Where Are Strengths Like Creativity Reported?

Could There Be A Summative Rating For Each Subject?

Why Has A 3-Point Scale Been Chosen To Describe Student Performance?

The Woodbridge School District does support a very rigorous curriculum with high standards and expectations. Therefore a “2” and a “3” are both within the acceptable range throughout the course of the school year. In the future, we may move to a 4-point scale to reflect the work of the students who consistently exceed the grade level standard. During this transition having a solid foundation of what it means to meet the standard will help define what it means to consistently exceed the standard.

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