Standards-Based

                      Learning at St. Patrick

                                              Further exploration into an improved method
                                              of encouraging and measuring student learning. 

​

 

​

Mission & Vision

​

At St. Patrick ,we believe our students are on a sacred journey of faith and learning. We are striving daily to promote deeper student learning, performance, and engagement rather than working, points, and compliance. To reinforce these values of learning and continued growth, St. Patrick is gradually shifting away from traditional grading practices and moving towards an improved model known as standards-based learning. 

​

As you learn more about the process for student learning and what the academic research implicates, standards-based learning and grade reporting is a more appropriate and successful way to encourage students on their learning journey. 

 

These types of changes take many years to implement, and it is no different at St. Patrick. In partnership with our local School Board and with the endorsement from the leadership of the Office of Catholic Schools in the Archdiocese of Louisville, we believe that our faculty, students, and families are moving in the right direction for the benefit of our students. Below are some helpful answers to frequently asked questions about standards-based learning. Furthermore, check out the links provided at the end of this letter for academic research articles and other resources. 

 

Frequently Asked Questions

 

What is a grade?

​

When an educational community begins to shift the paradigm from traditional grading to standards-based learning and grading, one must begin with defining the common term ‘grading.’ Dr. Thomas Guskey, an international grading and assessment scholar, provides this definition: “Grades help students (and parents) know where they are in meeting particular learning goals. When paired with individualized guidance and direction for improvement, they also help direct learning progress.” 

 

Grades are simply a tool for communicating student learning progress. Traditional grading practices typically include letter grades (i.e. A-, C+) and the averaging of all school work and behavior to one finite number. This well-known method consolidates and oversimplifies critical information about each student.
 

What is the purpose of the standards-based report card? 

​

The purpose of a standards-based report card is to give a clear picture of the child’s achievement on essential academic standards. These standards, written as student-friendly targets, reflect the academic standards of the Archdiocese of Louisville Curriculum Framework. They have been identified as particularly important for students’ success as they continue through elementary school. 

 

How does Standards-Based Grading (SBG) work? 

​

In a standards-based model, students are given a set of learning targets called standards, and their progress is monitored in terms of their ability to meet those standards. Teachers design lessons to engage all learners and frequently assess and provide feedback to students on their progress. All standards are content-based. In other words, they do not include things like behavior, attendance, or effort. Those are measured separately from the academic standards. For example, here is a 3rd grade math standard: “The student can add and subtract up to 4-digit numbers with and without regrouping.” This standard is something we expect all third graders to learn and demonstrate proficiently before moving to the next grade level. 

​

Every assessment (i.e. test, quiz, project, or interview) will cover one or more standards. The feedback each student receives specifically addresses how well they are demonstrating proficiency on the standard being taught. This more precise feedback presents a clearer picture of the student’s learning goals. To perform better in class students try to meet or exceed more of the standards. Doing well no longer means earning a certain number of points; it means learning more of the mathematics that is covered in the course. Furthermore, the students may receive more than one chance to demonstrate mastery of the standard before the report card is finalized. 

 

What is the advantage of the standards-based report card for a parent? 

 

Parents will learn more about how their child is performing in school. Academics and behavior  are separated. Clearer reporting allows better communication among teachers, parents, and students. This helps teachers, students, and parents focus on skill development and standards of proficiency rather than on a traditional letter grade (i.e. 86% in Math). Families will experience more consistency in the marking processes using this method. There is a clear and simple focus on essential learning, not the earning and accumulation of points. Behavior feedback and comments are still included, but they are reported separately from academic progress. 

 

How is this report card different from previous report cards? 

​

In the past, letter grades included evidence from class work, homework, class participation, and sometimes effort. Grades on a standards-based report are based on evidence of learning from key assignments, tests, observations, and individual conferences, all of which are completed after instruction and practice takes place. Most assignments and much of the work done by students in the process of learning new material are not reflected in report card grades. Instead, this “practice” work will be used to help students and teachers know what to focus on in the learning before the final assessment.   

 

Does the report card give information about behavior, effort, and study skills? 

 

Yes. Information on behavior, effort, and study skills is reported separately from the academic information in a section called “We Are St. Pats Citizenship Expectations.” There is also a place for teacher comments that may include celebrations, areas for growth, behavior observations, and steps to improve in certain areas. 

​

My child usually gets excellent marks (i.e. A+s). Does this mean my child will get all 4s on the new report card? 

 

Not necessarily. A 4 on the standards-based report card does not equal an A. The scores (i.e. 4, 3, 2, 1) are based on whether a child’s performances on key assignments consistently exceed standards (4), meet grade level standards (3), fall somewhat below standards (2), or fall significantly below standards (1).
 

In prior reporting, an A may have meant that a child met all the standards for the test or assignment, but it could also have included strong behavior and effort; in the new report card, this would be presented by a 3. A 4 on the new report card means that a student consistently demonstrates a level of skill and understanding that exceeds the proficiency standard for his or her grade level. Students are eligible to begin earning 4s in the 2nd grade. 

 

Why should traditional grading methods be phased out? 

​

Research has shown that there are a number of issues with traditional grading practices that negatively affect students (Swan & Jung, 2014). 

​

Townsley (2019) writes that standards-based grading has three main principles: 1) grades should have significant meaning and non-academic behaviors (i.e. effort, participation, responsibility) should be separated; 2) students should be provided more than one opportunity to demonstrate their understanding without penalty; 3) extra credit, homework completion, and homework accuracy should not be factored into grading or have an impact on a final grade. 

 

Percent and letter grades attempt to summarize a student’s progress with a single value (ex: B+ or 86%). While simple to understand, single-value grades have been shown to be unhelpful and often harmful to students. 

​

How do traditional grading methods affect students? 

​

Feedback is provided as a means for helping someone improve. When feedback does not accomplish this goal, it ceases to be beneficial and can become too judgmental. Because traditional grades often do not provide as much useful feedback, students often see grades as fixed and representative of their intelligence instead of their learning. A grading system that persistently punishes mistakes instead of rewarding eventual progress and mastery guarantees the stagnation of learning (O’Connor, Jung, & Reeves, 2018). Moreover, presenting feedback as a single value leads students to compare themselves to their peers. The end result is that students are thinking about how to earn higher grades instead of how to improve their process for learning. 

 

“When students are sent a label telling them where they stand compared to other students, rather than where they stand in their learning of mathematics, it offers no helpful information and is harmful to students.” (Vatterott, 2011)

How is SBG different? 

​

SBG attempts to address the above concerns about traditional grading methods by giving students detailed feedback on every assessment without a letter or a percent grade. Research has shown that traditional percentages or letter grades, even when accompanied by comments, lead students to develop unhealthy mindsets about learning (Schimmer, 2014). Moreover, students who have access to SBG are more confident, learn more, and take greater ownership of their learning than those students graded traditionally. 

 

Compelling Research & Archdiocese of Louisville Support

​

This link provides more than 150 scholarly articles in support of standards-based learning and grade reporting. Explore at your leisure! Additional titles that St. Patrick has studied over the years for this movement are listed below, several of which include titles that the Archdiocese of Louisville has also adopted. St. Patrick has joined a few other Catholic elementary schools in piloting standards-based grading, and more work is currently being done to explore how these ideals will be implemented at all grade levels across more schools. 

Want to learn more?

​

 

References 

​

Books

​

Leading Standards-Based Learning: An Implementation Guide for Schools and Districts (2021) by Tammy Hefflebower, Jan Hoegh, and Philip Warrick. 

 

Rethinking Grading: Meaningful Assessment for Standards-Based Learning (2015) by Cathy Vatterott

 

Grading from the Inside Out: Bring Accuracy to Student Assessment Through a Standards-Based Mindset (2016) by Tom Schimmer

 

Grading Smarter, Not Harder: Assessment Strategies that Motivate Kids and Help Them Learn (2014) by Myron Dueck

 

RTI at Work: Response to Intervention Strategies and Solutions (2017) by Mike Mattos and Austin Buffum

 

Research Articles for this FAQ

​

Guskey, T. R. (2021). Undoing the traditions of grading and reporting. The School Administrator, 78(5), 32-35. 

 

O’Connor, K., Jung, L. A. & Reeves, D. (2018). Gearing up for FAST grading and reporting. Phi Delta Kappan, 99(8), 67-71

 

Schimmer, T. (2014). Grading with a standards-based mindset. AMLE Magazine, 10-13.

Swan, G.M., Guskey, T.R., & Jung, L.A. (2014). Parents and teachers’ perceptions of standards-based and traditional report cards. Educational Assessment, Evaluation and Accountability, 26(3), 289-299.

 

Townsley, M. (2019). Considering standards-based grading: Challenges for secondary school leaders. Journal of School Administration Research and Development, 4(1), 35-38.

 

Vatterott, C. (2011). Making homework central to learning. Educational Leadership, 69(3), 60-64.