Content Areas
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Grading Philosophy
PORT VLP is committed to maintaining rigorous performance and achievement standards for all students and to providing a fair process for evaluating and reporting student progress that is understandable to students and their parents/guardians and relevant for instructional purposes. Tracking Student Progress Students and families will receive a syllabus from the teacher highlighting grading practices for the course or grade level within the context of this policy. All teachers will use Infinite Campus as their official gradebook and, with the exception of resource classes or when assignments take more than a week to complete, will enter at least one grade per week. Parents and students can track grades using the Infinite Campus Parent Portal, which can be access by receiving an access code from the main office and visiting www.baltimorecitypublicschools/campus-portal.. Make-up Work Due to Absence Teachers will provide makeup work within three (3) school days of the student’s last absence, and students must turn in assignments within seven (7) school days after they are provided by the teacher. The time allowed for makeup work may be extended on a case-by-case basis for extenuating circumstances determined by the teacher. Grade Calculations Grades are calculated in the following manner: |
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Failing Grades
If a student receives an F as a marking period grade, the numerical equivalent of that grade cannot be lower than a 50 when used to calculate the student’s final grade. If a student failed a marking period by earning a 50-59, that score should remain unchanged when calculating the student’s final grade. A student’s overall course grade may be less than a 50 as final examination grades ranging zero to 100 are included in the final grade calculation. Grading Scales |
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NC = Incomplete. The “INC” grade may be used temporarily for secondary students who have been lawfully absent from school and have not had an opportunity to make up missed work prior to the end of a marking period.
Calculation of GPA Final grades are used to calculate students’ GPA. The table below represents the GPA equivalent of all letter grades on the standard course scale. This GPA is to be used for calculating class rank and will appear on students’ transcripts. Grades are rounded to the nearest percentage point. |
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Types of Assessments
Formative Assessments (used for grades): This category of assessment is the most commonly experienced. Formative assessments typically occur in classrooms daily as they are designed to be an ongoing process that take place during instruction. The primary purpose of formative assessments is to inform instruction and daily learning by providing feedback, updates on movement toward mastery, and the opportunity to improve upon learning by students. Results from this category of assessment ARE appropriate for use in determining a student grade. Common Examples: Chapter quizzes, debates, presentations, performances, essays, Socratic seminars, checklists, drawings, quick-writes, projects, teacher-created assessments, notebooks, self-reflection journals, and annotated bibliographies. Summative Assessments (used for grades): This category of assessment is best viewed as an evaluation of student learning (content/skill mastery) at the end of a specific instructional period – typically at the end of a unit, marking period, semester, course, or program. Summative assessments are experienced less frequently than formative assessments and tend to have more influence on informing long-term instructional strategies than formative assessments. Results from this category of assessment ARE appropriate for use in determining a student grade. Common Examples: Integrated Performance Assessments (IPA), quarterly interim assessments, document-based questions, evidence-based argument sets, extended research opportunities like National History Day or science fair, end of module tasks, portfolios, laboratory activities, product creation, unit tests, skill-based performance task, and research papers. |