Grading & Reporting Updates for SY 2026-2027

[Anonymous]

Here is what MCPS is saying at the Board meeting will be changing:

For 2026–2027
The goal of grades is to communicate student academic performance in a timely and accurate manner. Updates to Regulation IKA-RA include:
● Deadlines: Defined due date/deadline and extended time. No work
accepted after deadline.
● Rounding: Grading scales rounded up at .5 or higher.
● Attendance: Absences from skipping class disqualify for make-up work.
● Weights: Teacher-created tasks capped at 20% weight per assignment.
● Integrity: Zero for academic dishonesty; progressive discipline
for AI infractions.
● Retakes: Clarified criteria for retaking a course.
● Reassessments: Maximum of 2 per quarter.

https://go.boarddocs.com/mabe/mcpsmd/Board.nsf/files/DUKREU6DB050/$file/Leveling%20Up%202026-2027%20and%20Beyond%20260604%20PPT.pdf

[Anonymous]

How do the HSs apply these rules with excused absences/illness? I know a one day absence is usually no big deal in terms of due dates/deadlines, but what about when a kid misses a whole week? I hate having my sick kid worrying about getting work done and turned in remotely.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:How do the HSs apply these rules with excused absences/illness? I know a one day absence is usually no big deal in terms of due dates/deadlines, but what about when a kid misses a whole week? I hate having my sick kid worrying about getting work done and turned in remotely.

Are you asking if kids will be exempt from doing missed assignments if they are out sick?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:How do the HSs apply these rules with excused absences/illness? I know a one day absence is usually no big deal in terms of due dates/deadlines, but what about when a kid misses a whole week? I hate having my sick kid worrying about getting work done and turned in remotely.

Work missed for an excused absence can be made up in coordination with the teachers. This is only about unexcused absences.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:How do the HSs apply these rules with excused absences/illness? I know a one day absence is usually no big deal in terms of due dates/deadlines, but what about when a kid misses a whole week? I hate having my sick kid worrying about getting work done and turned in remotely.

Work missed for an excused absence can be made up in coordination with the teachers. This is only about unexcused absences.

Except the amount of notifications Inget about unexcused absences for my kid when they are excused for things like band, field trips, leadership experiences, etc. Like the teachers give a list and still it shows the kids as unexcused.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:How do the HSs apply these rules with excused absences/illness? I know a one day absence is usually no big deal in terms of due dates/deadlines, but what about when a kid misses a whole week? I hate having my sick kid worrying about getting work done and turned in remotely.

Are you asking if kids will be exempt from doing missed assignments if they are out sick?

I’m asking if kids will have a reasonable amount of time to make up missed assignments from when they are sick so they’re not trying to actually do them at home while they’re sick.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:How do the HSs apply these rules with excused absences/illness? I know a one day absence is usually no big deal in terms of due dates/deadlines, but what about when a kid misses a whole week? I hate having my sick kid worrying about getting work done and turned in remotely.

Work missed for an excused absence can be made up in coordination with the teachers. This is only about unexcused absences.

Except the amount of notifications Inget about unexcused absences for my kid when they are excused for things like band, field trips, leadership experiences, etc. Like the teachers give a list and still it shows the kids as unexcused.

As a teacher, I do not have an option in Synergy to designate an excused absence. I can only mark absent. The school attendance office has to be the one to designate if its excused or not.

Tardies on the other hand I can have a choice between Excused and Unexcused.

[Anonymous]

Attendance: Absences from skipping class disqualify for make-up work.

How on earth does MCPS plan on identifying, assessing and discerning which absences are legitimately due to skipping and not errors on their part due to subs not knowing how to take attendance, teachers forgetting to do attendance, or tardies being mistakenly marked as absences?

There's no way they have the scale and manpower to do this.

[Anonymous]

My DC goes to 2 high schools, his home school in the AM and Thomas Edison in the PM. There is zero coordination between the attendance offices and I constantly get absence notifications for the school sponsored events.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Attendance: Absences from skipping class disqualify for make-up work.

How on earth does MCPS plan on identifying, assessing and discerning which absences are legitimately due to skipping and not errors on their part due to subs not knowing how to take attendance, teachers forgetting to do attendance, or tardies being mistakenly marked as absences?

There's no way they have the scale and manpower to do this.

As a teacher I can do this by requiring a student submit proof of excused absence when they attempt to turn in the assignment late. I'm not denying them from doing it. I'm just denying them from getting credit for it when they can't prove that it was excused. It's not hard to produce a doctors note, e-mail from guidance, teacher, coach, administrator, etc. A parent writing a note saying "Student overslept" is not an excused note.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:How do the HSs apply these rules with excused absences/illness? I know a one day absence is usually no big deal in terms of due dates/deadlines, but what about when a kid misses a whole week? I hate having my sick kid worrying about getting work done and turned in remotely.

Work missed for an excused absence can be made up in coordination with the teachers. This is only about unexcused absences.

Except the amount of notifications Inget about unexcused absences for my kid when they are excused for things like band, field trips, leadership experiences, etc. Like the teachers give a list and still it shows the kids as unexcused.

Usually, the staff member who oversees the activity, such as a band, field trips, etc., will not submit the attendance list to the attendance office until it is done or they have returned to school. That way, students who are on the list to go don't skip it and skip class without being marked absent at all. If something hasn't been adjusted by the next business day, then reach out directly to the attendance office secretary, who has all the power.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:How do the HSs apply these rules with excused absences/illness? I know a one day absence is usually no big deal in terms of due dates/deadlines, but what about when a kid misses a whole week? I hate having my sick kid worrying about getting work done and turned in remotely.

Work missed for an excused absence can be made up in coordination with the teachers. This is only about unexcused absences.

Except the amount of notifications Inget about unexcused absences for my kid when they are excused for things like band, field trips, leadership experiences, etc. Like the teachers give a list and still it shows the kids as unexcused.

You need to follow up with the attendance secretary and get it corrected in the system

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:How do the HSs apply these rules with excused absences/illness? I know a one day absence is usually no big deal in terms of due dates/deadlines, but what about when a kid misses a whole week? I hate having my sick kid worrying about getting work done and turned in remotely.

Work missed for an excused absence can be made up in coordination with the teachers. This is only about unexcused absences.

Except the amount of notifications Inget about unexcused absences for my kid when they are excused for things like band, field trips, leadership experiences, etc. Like the teachers give a list and still it shows the kids as unexcused.

As a teacher, I do not have an option in Synergy to designate an excused absence. I can only mark absent. The school attendance office has to be the one to designate if its excused or not.

Tardies on the other hand I can have a choice between Excused and Unexcused.

As a teacher why are you posting during school hours?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:How do the HSs apply these rules with excused absences/illness? I know a one day absence is usually no big deal in terms of due dates/deadlines, but what about when a kid misses a whole week? I hate having my sick kid worrying about getting work done and turned in remotely.

Work missed for an excused absence can be made up in coordination with the teachers. This is only about unexcused absences.

Except the amount of notifications Inget about unexcused absences for my kid when they are excused for things like band, field trips, leadership experiences, etc. Like the teachers give a list and still it shows the kids as unexcused.

You need to follow up with the attendance secretary and get it corrected in the system

Ours contact the teacher. I gave up fixing it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:How do the HSs apply these rules with excused absences/illness? I know a one day absence is usually no big deal in terms of due dates/deadlines, but what about when a kid misses a whole week? I hate having my sick kid worrying about getting work done and turned in remotely.

Work missed for an excused absence can be made up in coordination with the teachers. This is only about unexcused absences.

Except the amount of notifications Inget about unexcused absences for my kid when they are excused for things like band, field trips, leadership experiences, etc. Like the teachers give a list and still it shows the kids as unexcused.

As a teacher, I do not have an option in Synergy to designate an excused absence. I can only mark absent. The school attendance office has to be the one to designate if its excused or not.

Tardies on the other hand I can have a choice between Excused and Unexcused.

As a teacher why are you posting during school hours?

As a teacher I have days off.

Shocking I know.