“Clearly communicating student achievement through targeted curricular outcomes”

Standards Based Grading Overview (.pdf)

SBG&R Roll Out Update: 1/25/12 (.pdf)

Policy Sub-Committee:

Tina Brennan* (leader)
Donna Painter
Jo Anna Gogl
Jackie Lewis

Revised Policy 2420
NOTE: July 19, 2011 - School board reviewed Revised Policy 2420 for first reading.

Revised Policy 2420 (.pdf) ----- *Elementary scheduled to implement Revised Policy 2420 - Fall 2012

Current policy: Policy 2420: GRADING AND PROGRESS REPORTS (.pdf)

Josh Wolcott* (leader)
Martin Telstad
Julie Schisler

Brett Cox* (leader)
Kirk Jameson
Anne Swant

Kim Doepker* (leader)
Mindy Meyer
Jack Mehn
Chris Gardea

• Phase I:  Laying the Foundation
• Phase II: Developing the Framework
• Phase III:  Implementing the Rollout Plan
• Phase IV: Implementing the Middle School Standards Based Reporting System 
• Phase V:  Implementing the High School Standards Based Reporting System

Dr. Harvey 2011-2012 Agenda & Timeline (.pdf)

Bill Calhoun* (leader)
Gina Yonts
Heather Abajian
Jackie Lewis
Jim Sporleder
Robin Peterson
Kerri Coffman
Danae Jacky
Mike Lambert
Patrick Kofler

Mark Higgins* (leader)
Chris Plucker
Pete Peterson
Julie Laufenburg
Kay Barga

Standards Based Grading Operational Plan (.pdf)

Standards Based Grading Communications Plan   

Goal:
To raise awareness the school board believes standards based grading and reporting provides a research-based practice that provides consistency across the district on essential learning outcomes. The reporting process is clear, concise, and provide information that assists students and parents with the information needed to determine the level of proficiency.

Objectives:

• Educate parents and students on the new district practices for grading
• Explain implementation timeline
• Make sure everyone knows why these standards are being used and why this reporting tool is better
• Inform and educate the community on these changes
• Educate and train staff (include central office and school board) on these changes
• Educate higher education on these changes
• Better preparing students for college/work and to be successful in college/work

Audiences:
School Board • Administrators • Principals • Teachers/Staff • Parents • Students • Community • Media

Key messages:

• Increases student success
• Grades are based on curriculum standards
• We are not getting rid of grades
• This is what’s best for students
• Grades will be based on academic standards and not behaviors
• Consistent grading across the district
• Standards based grading helps educate parents on their child’s skill level

Communications Tactics:

• Web and Social Media
• Media
• Publications, brochures, fact sheets, flyers, posters
• Email and telephone
• Meetings, face-to-face, small group
• Presentations
• Special events
• School visits

Leah Crudup* (leader)
Maria Garcia
Kathy Pritcher
Tammy Baker
Sue Schultz
Shelley Mann
Marcia Follett
Elizabeth Razo
Debbie Schade

Rob Ahrens* (leader)
Vivian Glaeser
Shannon Ahrens
Suzann Rose
Andrea Sundburg
Crystal Holmes
Michelle Carpenter
Janifer Sams

Walla Walla Public Schools will create new report cards for all grade levels to reflect the new Standards Based Grading and Reporting initiative. Elementary report cards will be the first to be modified.

Over the past 10 years, Walla Walla Public Schools has explored and tested a number of data warehouse applications in an attempt to place meaningful, easy to understand student data summaries in the hands of our teachers and staff. Unfortunately, none of the "off-the-shelf" products seemed to measure up to our expectations. So, for a number of years, WWPS struggled to find an efficient and user-friendly way to manage and display multiple sources of student assessment information.

During the Spring of 2009, the district began a partnership with Miriam Technologies, a custom software development company with local roots. Ken Treis, president of Miriam Technologies and a Walla Walla High School graduate, proved to be very adept in understanding the unique requests and needs. The software his company has developed for Walla Walla Public Schools has been named OASIS: Online Access to Student Information Systems. OASIS has exceeded all expectations.

As the move to Standards Based Grading and Reporting (SBGR) developed interest and momentum, an analysis of the feasibility of continuing to use the district’s current electronic grade book program, Easy Grade Pro (EGP), as the SBGR tool revealed severe limitations in using EGP program for that purpose. Thus, it was a natural fit to turn to Treis and Miriam Technologies for a Standards Based Grading and reporting solutions.

With OASIS already holding vast amounts of information about Walla Walla students, it only made sense for the new grade book to be incorporated into this existing software application. This fall an operational version of the OASIS SBGR tool will be available for targeted pilot use by some district elementary teachers.

Depending upon the feedback and modifications from that pilot use, training on the OASIS SBRG tool could follow in Spring 2012 with implementation of a new OASIS SBGR tool at the elementary level for the beginning of the 2012-13 school year with middle school and high school to follow soon thereafter.

Report Card Committee:

Danae Jacky
Suzann Rose
Jo Anna Gogl
Jeremy Hubbard
Tina Brennan
Michelle Carpenter
Denise Jausoro
Janifer Sams
Martin Telstad
Maria Garcia
Ron Higgins
Elizabeth Razo
Tammy Baker
Debbie Schade
Julie Schisler
Kay Barga
Robin Peterson

Development Sub-Committee: 

Monica Nelson* (leader)
Marit Nierman
Denise Jausoro
Mira Gobel
Jeremy Hubbard
Brandi McIntire
Matt Bona
Casey Monahan

Development Committee

CHARGE:

• Develop Standards Based Grading and Reporting System for designated grade configurations;
• Select appropriate nonacademic indicators for the grade level configurations;
• Develop a marking system for the nonacademic indicators at the grade level configurations;
• Develop rubrics for use in marking the nonacademic indicators;
• Develop monitoring documents for use by teachers in collecting bodies of evidence;
• Revise documents based on feedback from Advisory Committee.

Elementary

Middle School

High School

Professional Development Meeting Notes: July 6, 2011 Meeting

• PD ideas (our year one work)
• Readiness – assessment for high school, middle and elementary according to where they are
• Annotated bibliography of research based resources for buildings to use. The resources will be organized by suggested yearly PD, as well as, grade level (elementary, middle, high school)
• Ken O’Connor’s 15 Fixes For Broken Grades – guided book study
• Marzano’s Classroom Assessment and Grading That Works
• Note: Ask Karen Harvey for resources that will support and are aligned with our work
• Representatives from each building to attend the Sound Grading Practices Conference each year – December 8 & 9, 2011
• Identify areas that are under represented – Special Ed in elementary, for an example
• Things to do for the Module One PD
• Timeline: to be distributed by December 2011
• Finalized hard copies of policy and guiding principles
• Finalized copy of the rollout plan
• Talk with Ron as the host
• Write script for Ron  - interview with Mick, board member, and grade level teachers
• Contact Mick (question 1)
• Write script for Mick
• Contact board member (policy and principles)
• Write script for board member
• Identify elementary, middle, high school teacher who will answer Ron’s questions (ask Development committee for recommendations)
• Write script for the teachers
• Create a presentation guidelines to go along with the DVD – lesson plan
• Questions for the larger group
• When will be board policy go to the school board for approval?
• When will the five-year roll out plan be finalized for publishing?
• When will the monthly committee work for the year one be completed?
• Before our next SBG PD meeting in August:
• Meet in August to create bib.
• Jeremy will contact Karen for bib and resources
• Mira will meet with Ron and Linda (will she fund building level PD? Stipend for Dennis?)
• Mira will ask Dennis DeBroeck
• Recruit some more member for this committee
• Matt will contact Kim for rollout plan timeline
• Ask Linda to create a SBG development group email list
• Monica will email out to the development group asking for recommendations for the teacher to be interview in the DVD

CHARGE:

• Serve as a feedback mechanism to the Development Committee
• Provide representative advice from stakeholder groups on documents necessary for implementation of the system
• Provide oversight of the timeline for the development of the Standards Based Reporting System
• Provide oversight of policy and regulation implementation

Elementary

Middle School

High School

Parent/Community

Video	Support Materials
Module 1	Rollout Plan Module 1 (.pdf) Question Page (.pdf) SBG&R Bibliography (.pdf)

Dr. Linda Boggs
Assistant Superintendent
Phone: 526-6734
Email: lboggs@wwps.org