Explain how grades are inflated.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It sounds like the presentation on grading and reporting this Thursday is a nothingburger. It sounds like they are just announcing they will be soliciting input and considering possible changes.

I hope they will move to averaging the actual percentage earned each marking period for a final grade, and adding plus/minus. Grades would become more meaningful and better reflect level of course mastery. I also think it would take away the race to have as many APs and IB courses as possible. Right now, grade inflation is such that that's the main way students distinguish themselves. With grades that better reflect mastery, they wouldn't have to do that as much.

Here are the docs they are presenting to the BOE this week:
presentation: https://go.boarddocs.com/mabe/mcpsmd/Board.nsf/files/DFHRPN6EFA43/$file/Grading%20and%20Reporting%20Regulation%20Revision%20250410%20PPT%20REV.pdf

memo: https://go.boarddocs.com/mabe/mcpsmd/Board.nsf/files/DFCL3R529256/$file/New%20Business%20Item_250318%20Community%20Engagement%20and%20School%20Safety.pdf

This is what Niki Hazel described as the plan. No mention of adding plus/minus.

[Anonymous]

They're also doing an audit of Honors courses to assess the Honors-for-all prevalence.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:They're also doing an audit of Honors courses to assess the Honors-for-all prevalence.

THANK GOD.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It is very challenging to get an A or A+ in my daughter's private school, especially in AP classes. A typical MCPS student getting As could very well be a B+ to A- student in our private. Here is the grading scale:

A+ 97-100
A 93-96
A- 90-92
B+ 87-89
B 83-86
B- 80-82
C+ 77-79
C 73-76
C- 70-72
D 65-69

That’s the scale in a lot of area private high schools so is the work just harder? Not a troll just really wondering.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It is very challenging to get an A or A+ in my daughter's private school, especially in AP classes. A typical MCPS student getting As could very well be a B+ to A- student in our private. Here is the grading scale:

A+ 97-100
A 93-96
A- 90-92
B+ 87-89
B 83-86
B- 80-82
C+ 77-79
C 73-76
C- 70-72
D 65-69

MCPS doesn’t use pluses or minuses. Everything in your school’s A+, A, A- range would just be considered an A in MCPS. However, the letter grade ranges are all the same for MCPS that they are in your school.

I attended a public school with an even more challenging grading scale than your private. Only a 100% was an A+. The minimum for an A- was 93%. The minimum for a B- was 85%. The minimum for C- was 76% and the minimum for a D- (passing grade) was 67%.

Even the valedictorian of our graduating class had less than a 4.0 unweighted. That’s how hard it was to get straight A’s.

However, my kid at Poolesville has had a much more rigorous high school curriculum than I had, so a grading scale really doesn’t tell the whole story.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:They're also doing an audit of Honors courses to assess the Honors-for-all prevalence.

THANK GOD.

That’s good. How anyone can claim with a straight face that the Health requirement is an honors class that should be equally weighted to AP Physics is beyond me.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It sounds like the presentation on grading and reporting this Thursday is a nothingburger. It sounds like they are just announcing they will be soliciting input and considering possible changes.

I hope they will move to averaging the actual percentage earned each marking period for a final grade, and adding plus/minus. Grades would become more meaningful and better reflect level of course mastery. I also think it would take away the race to have as many APs and IB courses as possible. Right now, grade inflation is such that that's the main way students distinguish themselves. With grades that better reflect mastery, they wouldn't have to do that as much.

Here are the docs they are presenting to the BOE this week:
presentation: https://go.boarddocs.com/mabe/mcpsmd/Board.nsf/files/DFHRPN6EFA43/$file/Grading%20and%20Reporting%20Regulation%20Revision%20250410%20PPT%20REV.pdf

memo: https://go.boarddocs.com/mabe/mcpsmd/Board.nsf/files/DFCL3R529256/$file/New%20Business%20Item_250318%20Community%20Engagement%20and%20School%20Safety.pdf

This is what Niki Hazel described as the plan. No mention of adding plus/minus.

This is a pretty big change if enacted. If your kid gets an A in MP1 and a B in MP2 it will be an A but if the kid gets As in both MP1 and MP2 it’s an A*. Which is good and will stop kids from skipping school in MP 2 and 4 when they have less to lose.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:They're also doing an audit of Honors courses to assess the Honors-for-all prevalence.

THANK GOD.

That’s good. How anyone can claim with a straight face that the Health requirement is an honors class that should be equally weighted to AP Physics is beyond me.

Most colleges recalculate GPA's so it really doesn't matter.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It sounds like the presentation on grading and reporting this Thursday is a nothingburger. It sounds like they are just announcing they will be soliciting input and considering possible changes.

I hope they will move to averaging the actual percentage earned each marking period for a final grade, and adding plus/minus. Grades would become more meaningful and better reflect level of course mastery. I also think it would take away the race to have as many APs and IB courses as possible. Right now, grade inflation is such that that's the main way students distinguish themselves. With grades that better reflect mastery, they wouldn't have to do that as much.

Here are the docs they are presenting to the BOE this week:
presentation: https://go.boarddocs.com/mabe/mcpsmd/Board.nsf/files/DFHRPN6EFA43/$file/Grading%20and%20Reporting%20Regulation%20Revision%20250410%20PPT%20REV.pdf

memo: https://go.boarddocs.com/mabe/mcpsmd/Board.nsf/files/DFCL3R529256/$file/New%20Business%20Item_250318%20Community%20Engagement%20and%20School%20Safety.pdf

This is what Niki Hazel described as the plan. No mention of adding plus/minus.

I wonder what they mean in the slide called “return of graded work” where they talk about having graded assignments with timely feedback. Who is not getting grades?

[Anonymous]

So is the BoE presentation a proposal for discussion or is it something they’re enacting starting next year?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:So is the BoE presentation a proposal for discussion or is it something they’re enacting starting next year?

It's not finalized yet, but the revised regulation is supposed to take effect next school year. There was some debate at the meeting on whether it should apply to all students immediately or be phased in with 9th graders.

[Anonymous]

The grading table on page 9 is not updated.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The grading table on page 9 is not updated.

You mean slide 9? the addition of the Grade* is new, I believe.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The grading table on page 9 is not updated.

Right, that was an example of the prior (current) system.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It sounds like the presentation on grading and reporting this Thursday is a nothingburger. It sounds like they are just announcing they will be soliciting input and considering possible changes.

I hope they will move to averaging the actual percentage earned each marking period for a final grade, and adding plus/minus. Grades would become more meaningful and better reflect level of course mastery. I also think it would take away the race to have as many APs and IB courses as possible. Right now, grade inflation is such that that's the main way students distinguish themselves. With grades that better reflect mastery, they wouldn't have to do that as much.

Here are the docs they are presenting to the BOE this week:
presentation: https://go.boarddocs.com/mabe/mcpsmd/Board.nsf/files/DFHRPN6EFA43/$file/Grading%20and%20Reporting%20Regulation%20Revision%20250410%20PPT%20REV.pdf

memo: https://go.boarddocs.com/mabe/mcpsmd/Board.nsf/files/DFCL3R529256/$file/New%20Business%20Item_250318%20Community%20Engagement%20and%20School%20Safety.pdf

This is what Niki Hazel described as the plan. No mention of adding plus/minus.

This is a pretty big change if enacted. If your kid gets an A in MP1 and a B in MP2 it will be an A but if the kid gets As in both MP1 and MP2 it’s an A*. Which is good and will stop kids from skipping school in MP 2 and 4 when they have less to lose.

I think that A* is just an asterisk for the note below