Grading & Report Cards

Middle and High School Report Cards

For most Jeffco middle and high schools, progress reports are issued at the end of each six-week grading period with a report card issued at the end of each trimester or semester. A student's middle and high school grades can be reviewed on the district's online parent portal.

Parents of high school students may wish to view the Board policy on high school grading for details on weighted classes, class rank and grade point average.

Dunstan Grading Policy and Grading Scale

Dunstan utilizes a Standards Based Grading model (SBG). We are an official pilot middle school for this type of grading system in Jeffco.

What is Standards-Based Grading?
Standards Based Grading is a system of grading that measures students based on their mastery of grade-level content standards and communicates their progress toward meeting those standards (meets, exceeds, approaches). We ground all assessments of mastery in the Colorado Academic Standards and align our instruction to them.

Occasionally, Exploratory classes do not have CO Academic Standards and may instead anchor to national standards like the International Society of Technology in Education (ISTE) Standards

Grading Scale:
In SBG we limit the number of levels for student performance, which makes grades more meaningful since each score reflects students' understanding and mastery of the grade-level expectations for learning within each content area.

Score	Proficiency	Details
4	Exceeding grade level standard	Student is able to demonstrate understanding/abilities that goes beyond the grade level expectation for the Colorado Academic Standard. Demonstrates high level of depth and complexity in thinking
3	Meeting grade level standard	Student is able to demonstrate the identified criteria that meets the grade level expectation for the Colorado Academic Standard
2	Approaching grade level standard	Student is partially able to demonstrate understanding of the Colorado Academic Standard. They may grasp some components and not others. Or, they may not yet be at the depth/complexity required by the standard
1	Beginning grade level standard	Student is able to show the most basic or beginning of understanding on the Colorado Academic Standard. Lowest grade that may be given for an assignment submitted with partially completed work.
0/IE	Insufficient or No Evidence	No work submitted to be able to assess students' understanding of the Colorado Academic Standard. IE - student did not have the opportunity (due to absences, life events, etc) to show evidence of the standard 0 - student had multiple opportunities but did not submit evidence of the standard

How are grades calculated?
Students will receive a grade for each academic standard that is assessed in their classes each semester. The number of academic standards assessed varies by content. There are two cumulative grades that are calculated for each class: Term Final & Work Habits Final

Term Final
*This in-progress grade averages together the grades for the individual standards in each class
*It is based only on students performance in academic assessments of their content knowledge
*Impacts student GPA

Work Habits Final
*Each content has a work habits rubric that measures students based on their soft skills such as
work completion, participation, and collaboration. Assignments that measure these skills are inputted throughout the semester and average together to the Work Habits final grade
*Does not impact student GPA but is used for on/off track

Here is an example of what this could look like in a class (mid-semester):

Evidence of Learning
In each class, you may click on the standard to see a list of assignments and assessments that contribute to the overall grade on that academic standard. These are listed as “Evidence of Learning”

For example, if a student takes a quiz at the start of the semester and scores 2 on this skill but later in the semester takes a unit assessment and improves their performance to a 3, the overall grade will be a 3.

Here is an example of what this could look like in a class (mid-semester):

Evidence of Learning Example

Navigating the Gradebook

Video walkthrough of the grade book in Infinite Campus (parent view)
Video walkthrough of the grade book in Infinite Campus (student view)

Retakes & Multiple Methods of Assessment
All teachers are expected to provide additional instructional support and retake opportunities for students to try again to meet or exceed the grade-level standards. If students are not on grade level they have additional opportunities to improve their performance.

Late/Make-Up Work

Per Jeffco policy regarding absences, students will have two days for each day of absence to make up missed assignments.
Students will be expected to look at Google Classroom as well as connect with teachers to get any makeup work or tests completed.
Students are encouraged to use Travel Days (Tuesdays and Thursdays during Advise) to help them make up work and tests.
Students may access Google Classroom and email teachers during their absence in order to stay caught up.
Students are allowed to make up work regardless of the reason for absence.
Teachers may set unit deadlines and cut-offs for when late work may no longer be accepted as long as they have honored the two days for each day of absence policy for students.

Transcripts

Student GPA’s are based on their Term Final Grades for each class and include the entire year on the transcript.
All grades are unweighted (honors and advanced classes do not count more than general education classes in the calculation of a student’s GPA).
Student transcripts are ready for viewing within two weeks of the end of the semester.

Questions About Grading

If you have a question about a specific grade in a class, please first contact your child’s teacher
If a grading question is not resolved, please feel free to reach out to the grade-level administrator for support.
- Jen Pennell
- Megan Haggstrom
- Michael Kitch
Have questions about SBG policy, research, or philosophy? Please contact our Instructional Coach Lauren Elder