Grading/Promotion/Retention

Grading Procedures

The primary purpose of awarding grades is to communicate student achievement in relation to the state standards, the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS), and the district curriculum. The Carrollton-Farmers Branch ISD is committed to creating an environment where quality instruction, assessment, and evaluation occur to improve student achievement. The academic grade represents this achievement. Also, effort and conduct are important to achievement; therefore, effort grades and conduct grades are included in the district’s reporting system.

Academic Grades
Formative grades represent 25% of the nine weeks grade.
Summative grades represent 75% of the nine weeks grade.

Formative Assessment
Multiple formative and summative assessment tools are used to provide feedback and accurately assess students’ mastery of the TEKS and district curriculum. Formative assessment directs the teacher’s instructional decisions regarding adjustments or re-teaching needed to ensure student success on the curriculum/learning goal(s). It also communicates to the student any learning adjustment needed prior to the summative assessment. Formative assessment is assessment FOR learning.

Formative assessment provides ongoing feedback and will be recorded a minimum of two times per summative assessment. The formative assessments recorded must align to the standards of the summative they precede and are to provide guidance to the student and teacher on progress towards learning goals. Formative grades should reflect progress on standards only, not compliance, i.e. returning a progress report for a grade or bringing a box of tissues at the beginning of the school year.

Formative assessment is practice that takes place both formally and informally. Formal assessment occurs when regular instruction is stopped to assess student understanding. Informal assessment happens during the course of instruction.

Examples of informal formative assessments include, but are not limited to the following:

• Class discussions
• Daily practice
• Teacher observation
• Questioning
• Checking for understanding

Examples of formal formative assessments include, but are not limited to the following:

• Classroom assignments/assessments
• District assessments
• Performance assessments
• Quizzes
• Homework

All homework should be completed, reviewed in a timely manner, and used as a method to provide students with specific feedback on their performance of the assigned tasks. The research on homework indicates that providing feedback is critical, but assigning a grade to every homework assignment is not necessary. Homework should result in a higher performance level on summative assessments. Homework that the teacher has determined should be part of the report card grade will contribute 10% of the formative assessment grade.

Student effort is critical to student success. Therefore, formative assessment work not submitted on time will be recorded as an Incomplete (INC) and will receive a penalty of one letter grade (-10 points) when submitted. If work is not submitted within the summative reassessment window, the INC will be changed to a zero.

Summative Assessment

Summative assessments are designed to provide information about a student’s mastery of the curriculum/learning goal(s). Summative assessment occurs after providing frequent feedback to students through formative assessments. Summative assessment is assessment OF learning that occurs at the end of a sequence of instruction.

A minimum of three summative assessments is required each nine weeks. The district supports a balanced assessment approach and recommends using multiple assessment formats that require students to write, to create, and to perform to document learning. Extenuating circumstances* for individual students may alter the time frame in which a summative is administered. Grades should be based on mastery of the curriculum. In secondary, semester exams shall be comprehensive in nature and measure the mastery of the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills. The semester exam will represent 20% of a student’s final semester grade.

Examples of summative assessments include, but are not limited to the following:

• Tests
• Projects
• Presentations
• Portfolios
• Performance Assessments
• Papers
• Reports
• District assessments

Summative assessments not submitted by the due date will be recorded as Incomplete (INC) and will receive a penalty of one letter grade (-10 points) when submitted. If the work is not submitted within five school days of the due date, the incomplete will be changed to a zero.

The teacher will examine the preponderance of assessment evidence over the course of the grading period and when appropriate, will use the most recent achievement data when determining the final grade.

Tutorials should be used to assist students with concepts/knowledge/skills with which they are struggling. The teacher will assign tutorials based on evidence from formative or summative assessments. If tutorials are assigned, then attendance is mandatory.

*Extenuating circumstances will be determined by the teacher and the principal or designee.

Reassessment Procedures for Summative Assessments

1. Reassessment provides students the opportunity to demonstrate they have increased their knowledge, skills, and/or concepts from the first assessment. Therefore, students who have already demonstrated advanced learning or mastery will not be reassessed. Advanced level or mastery is defined as a student receiving an A or a high B on an assessment.
2. Students who fail a summative assessment shall be reassessed. Students who receive a 70 – 84 shall have the opportunity to be reassessed.
3.  On a summative reassessment, the teacher shall record the higher of the two grades up to an 85.
4. Reassessment occurs under the following conditions:

• • The student completes formative assessments/assignments related to the summative (as determined by the teacher) prior to the reassessment opportunity.
  • The student engages in additional learning opportunities/assignments.
  • The teacher selects the time for reassessment, which may include before/after school.
  • Time frame:
    • Normally within fifteen school days of the student receiving the grade on the original assessment unless extenuating circumstances* exist
    • No later than seven calendar days into the next grading period if the summative was given the last week of the grading period.

5. Students who meet the aforementioned reassessment criteria may be reassessed one time. Any reassessment beyond the stated procedures would be determined by the teacher and campus administrator.
6. The same assessment shall not be given to determine mastery. However, the assessment format is subject to the teacher’s discretion.
7. The semester exam is not subject for reassessment.

Per District Policy, academic dishonesty includes cheating or copying the work of another student, plagiarism and unauthorized communication between students during an examination. Evidence may come from written materials, observation, and/or information from students. The determination that a student has engaged in academic dishonesty shall be based on the judgment of the classroom teacher or other supervising professional employee and the principal. Students found to have engaged in academic dishonesty shall receive a zero on the assignment/assessment involved in the incident. The student shall be given the opportunity to reassess the assignment for a grade of no higher than an 85. The student is required to complete the formatives associated with that assignment. All assignments that the student is required to fix must correlate directly to the standards of the original assignment.

Per NSHS, academic dishonesty will be at minimum, an automatic strike 3.

An “Incomplete” or “INC” will be issued based on a student’s non-attendance in class and/or missing summative assessment(s) due to extenuating circumstances*. If a student enrolls in the last 15 days of the grading period without grades from the previous school, an “NG” for “No Grade” will be issued. Students entering C-FB with grades from a previous school will receive the grades awarded from the previous school/district.

*Extenuating circumstances will be determined by the teacher and the principal or designee.

Effort Grades

In addition to reporting a student’s academic mastery of standards, the report card shall also denote the student’s efforts toward achievement.

A quality work ethic is defined as:

• Timeliness – turns in work by stated due date; arrives in class on time;
• Persistence – strives to achieve personal best even when faced with challenges;
• Focused participation – remains on topic; demonstrates a commitment to class activities or discussions and group/team projects; and
• Preparedness – arrives at class having completed prerequisite work and bringing necessary supplies and resources.

Conduct Grades

The following criteria will be followed when determining Conduct grades for each student. Assigning Conduct grades is mandatory within the district grading policy. Failure to assign Conduct grades for each student may result in a conference with an administrator as well as further action if necessary.

Teachers must make parent contact for a conduct grade that is below a B. In addition to reporting a student’s mastery of standards, the report card shall also denote the student’s conduct.

Conduct includes:

• Honor
• Integrity
• Loyalty
• Achievement
• Truth

Grading Scales

9th Grade – 12th Grade
The grading scale for all other courses and grade levels is as follows.

• A (100-90) = Exceptional performance exceeding standard expectations
• B (89-80) = Successful performance of standard expectations
• C (79-70) = Inconsistent performance with progress towards standard expectations
• F (68*-0) = Unsatisfactory performance with little progress towards standard expectations

If students are functioning below grade level, the grade will reflect the progress/performance of their functioning level. However, it will be noted on the report card that the student is not performing on grade level.

For special education students who have a modified or alternative curriculum, evaluation of successful achievement will be based on the Individual Education Plan (IEP) goals and mastery expectations.

The awarding of grade points for high school credit courses is as follows:

100-90
4 grade points

89-80
3 grade points

79-70
2 grade points

68*-0
o grade points

*A grade of 69 shall not be recorded on the report card.

Semester Grades
1st/3rd grading quarter grade (40%) + 2nd/4th grading quarter grades (40%) + exam grade (20%)

Final Grade
1st semester (50%) + 2nd semester (50%)

Additional Grading Information:

Graduation Credit Requirements:
High School Entry Year: After 2014-2015
Number of Credits Needed: 26 credits (Foundation plus Endorsements)

Students are classified according to the number of credits they have earned.

Classification Credits:

Sophomore: 6 credits
Junior: 12 credits
Senior: 19 credits

Reclassification of grade levels is made at the beginning of each school year. However, students who have not been promoted to a higher grade due to lack of credits, may be eligible for reclassification at the end of the 1st semester if sufficient credits have been earned during the first semester to warrant a reclassification. Additionally, senior classification requires completion of English IV or enrollment in English IV.

Semester Exams

1. Semester exams should be used to certify mastery of objectives by students. All high school credit course semester exams shall be comprehensive in nature and must measure the mastery of the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills. The semester exam counts 20% of a student’s final semester grade.
2. Senior students may be exempted from final exams during the spring semester only if they meet the following criteria.

• Better than ninety (90) percent attendance in all classes, all year. (If a student has had to attend after school make-up during the fall or spring semester, then he/she does not meet this criterion.)
• No more than two (2) or three (3) absences with at least a ninety (90) percent average in the class requesting an exemption from the final exam
• No more than (1) absence with at least an eighty-five (85) percent average in the class requesting an exemption from the final exam

Retrieval of Credit

A 2020 cohort student who does not receive a passing grade of 70 or does not receive credit may retrieve credit through various options such as summer school, college-approved credit by exam (CBE) (prior instruction), and Edgenuity (former PLATO) assigned periods. Students in grades 11 – 12 may also retrieve credit through correspondence courses. Students below below cohort 2020 must attend summer school or use the Edgenuity Lab on offered Thursday evenings or offered Saturdays.

Grade Points (Policies EIC, EID)

1. The valedictorian, salutatorian, and honor graduates of a senior class will be determined by the cumulative grade point average calculated through the grading period prior to the final grading period of their senior year. To be eligible for valedictory, salutatory honors or top ten student honors, the student shall have attended high school in the District continuously for two school years commencing with enrollment no later than the end of the first 15 school days of the first semester of said student’s junior year until graduation.
2. Students enrolled in Advanced Placement courses receive 9 additional grade points for those courses. Students enrolled in Pre AP courses receive 6 additional grade points for those courses.

Summer School Grades

A student failing the regular semester and attending summer school for that respective semester shall receive a passing grade for that course if the curriculum is mastered