Before configuring a standards-based grading system, district teams should develop a shared understanding of what grades are intended to communicate and how that information will be used.
A clear purpose helps guide decisions about what belongs in the gradebook, what should appear on report cards, how proficiency is determined, and what information should be reported separately. Districts may have multiple purposes for grading and reporting because teachers, students, families, and school leaders use this information in different ways.
Establishing these purposes early can help ensure that grading practices, report cards, and Forefront configurations work together to communicate meaningful information about student learning.
“Method follows purpose. Clarifying the purpose of grades and the report card always must come first.”
— Thomas Guskey, On Your Mark (2015)
Start by Identifying the Purpose of Grades
Grades can serve several purposes. Depending on your district’s goals, grading and reporting systems may be used to:
Communicate academic achievement to students and families
Help students understand their own progress
Inform instructional decisions or student grouping
Document student performance over time
Evaluate the effectiveness of instructional programs
Communicate learning habits, behaviors, or responsibility
Not all of these purposes necessarily belong in an academic grade. As your district defines the purpose of grading, consider:
What should an academic grade represent?
What information should be communicated separately?
What decisions should teachers, students, families, or leaders be able to make from the information provided?
How should grading practices support learning rather than simply record task completion?
Consider the Different Parts of the Grading System
A grading system typically includes three connected elements:
Gradebook | Report Card | Permanent Record/Transcript |
Includes: Scores/Assessment Results
| Includes: Grades | Includes: Summary Grades
|
Purpose: Track ongoing learning progress
Inform instruction and intervention
Provide timely feedback to students and families
| Purpose: Communicate achievement status at a specific point in time
Provide a summary of progress toward learning expectations | Purpose: Document academic achievement over time
Support transitions between schools, programs, or postsecondary pathways
|
Access: Teachers, Instructional Coaches, Interventionists, Principals and other school leadership | Access: Families and Students | Access:
Families, Students and Third Parties
|
These components should work together, but they do not need to communicate the same level of detail. For example, teachers may need access to detailed, diagnostic information in the gradebook, including individual assessment results and standards-level evidence. Families, on the other hand, typically need a clear, non-technical summary of student progress on the report card.
Consider Your Audiences
Different audiences use grading information for different purposes. Teachers may use assessment information to identify misconceptions, plan instruction, or determine who needs additional support. Students may use it to understand their strengths and next steps. Families may need a clear summary of current learning, while school and district leaders may need broader information about patterns across classrooms or schools.
As you design your system, consider:
What does each audience need to know?
How will they use the information?
What level of detail is appropriate?
Does the language used make sense to that audience?
These decisions can influence how you configure proficiency levels, report cards, family reports, and other reporting tools in Forefront.
Determine What Belongs in an Academic Grade
One of the most important decisions in standards-based grading is determining which evidence should contribute to academic proficiency.
Academic grades should communicate what a student knows and can do relative to learning expectations. Other important information, such as responsibility, participation, work completion, or behavior, may be more useful when reported separately.
Consider:
Should missing work affect academic proficiency?
How will effort or responsibility be communicated?
Will behavioral outcomes be reported separately?
What evidence is appropriate for determining proficiency?
How will reassessment or additional evidence affect a student’s grade?
Clearly defining these expectations can help educators apply grading practices more consistently across classrooms.
For more guidance, see Selecting and Norming Behavioral Outcomes in a Standards-Based Grading System and Reassessment in a Standards-Based Grading System.
Develop a Purpose Statement
A short purpose statement can help keep grading and reporting decisions aligned over time.
A strong purpose statement should identify:
What grades are intended to communicate
Who the primary audiences are
What evidence should contribute to grades
How the information should be used
Find three examples of purpose statements below:
Example 1
The purpose of this progress report is to communicate with families about a student’s current progress toward specific learning goals. This report describes strengths, areas for growth, and opportunities for improvement while supporting reflective conversations during conferences.
Example 2
The primary purpose of grading is to communicate student achievement toward specific standards at a given point in time. A grade reflects what a student knows and is able to do. Learning habits and behaviors are reported separately and are not included in academic achievement grades.
Example 3
The purpose of our standards-based grading system is to provide accurate, consistent, and meaningful communication about student learning relative to grade-level standards. Grades are intended to inform students, families, and educators about progress toward proficiency and support instructional decisions that improve learning.
Your district’s statement does not need to match one of these examples. The goal is to create a shared reference point that can guide later decisions about grading practices and reporting.
Use Your Purpose to Guide Forefront Configuration
Once your district has established the purpose of its grading and reporting system, that purpose can guide decisions throughout Forefront.
For example, it can help teams determine:
Which standards or learning outcomes should be included
How proficiency levels should be defined
How academic and behavioral information should be separated
How reassessment should contribute to proficiency
What information should appear on report cards
What language should be used for students and families
Which reporting views are most useful for teachers and leaders
These decisions are easier to make when teams can return to a shared understanding of what the grading system is intended to communicate.
Recommended Next Steps
After establishing the purpose of your grading system, continue with:
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