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[quote=Anonymous]From DCPS via admin:

Grading, Promotion and Graduation Guidance: 4.22.20
Background and Context
On March 16, 2020, DCPS physically closed all schools due to the spread of COVID-19. The return date is still uncertain, and the duration of school closures is rapidly evolving in states and districts around the nation. During this unpresented and difficult time, DCPS is committed to supporting students academically through at-home learning and non-punitive grading, promotion, and graduation policies. Our instruction and support are largely being offered online, and students have different levels of access to technology and workspaces for learning. The guidance below is designed to encourage maximum participation in at-home learning while creating a safety net for students that are facing difficult circumstances. We considered the following factors in establishing this guidance:
Equity: We examined how different subgroups of students may be impacted, with a focus on ensuring that students furthest from opportunity will be not be additionally disadvantaged.
Stakeholder Feedback: We presented several options for feedback to the following groups: instructional superintendents, principals, teachers, students, community partners, college admissions officers, and central office teams.
Student Data: We examined trends in data from previous years to determine how students who become off-track in terms 1 and 2 generally progress in terms 3 and 4. We also conducted a scenario analysis with the class of 2020.
National Best Practices and Advocacy: We have been tracking the policy responses from other states regarding grading, promotion and graduation, along with the national advocacy and media coverage.
Grading
The general premise of this guidance is to ensure that a student’s academic status is not adversely impacted by our COVID-19 emergency closure of schools. During this distance learning time where much of our instruction is being offered online, we know that students will have different levels of access to technology and workspaces for learning – so much is out of their control. At the same time, our expectation remains that every student be engaged during this learning at home period, either through a physical learning packet or online opportunities. With this in mind, we ask that teachers grade student work without penalizing them for assignments that they were not able to access or complete. We are also distributing technology and support widely and students who can continue working have an opportunity to increase their academic standing during this time. With this equity frame as our guidepost, we issue the following guidance for Elementary and Secondary teachers for term 4 and final grades.
Elementary Grading
For Term 4, students should receive a “P” (pass) in content areas where they were able to consistently engage (a minimum 2 times per week) in at home learning assignments and activities. Students should be assigned a “NM” (no mark) in content areas where students were unable to engage in at home learning assignments and activities. Students in elementary school do not receive final grades.
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Secondary Grading
Term 4 will begin on Monday, April 27 and conclude on Friday, May 29. The guidance below covers how teachers should handle term 4 grades and how final course grades will be calculated.
Term 4 Grades
During this final term, teachers will continue to introduce new material from the curriculum. Because of the challenging circumstances many students and families are under, we are asking that teachers give students robust pathways to success through: 1) adjusting the grade weights for the term; 2) assigning an equal balance of regular credit and extra credit assignments; and, 3) accepting work at any time during the term.
Please note: While we won’t penalize students who cannot participate in term 4 instruction for extenuating circumstances, our expectation is that everyone should continue to participate as possible. We have been distributing technology to help enable this, and a high grade in term 4 can benefit a student’s final grade in the course.
Adjusting Grade Weights
We believe that engagement is very important during this period of at home learning, so we ask that teachers adjust their gradebooks to reflect the following weights in term 4:
50%: Practice and Application (this should be used for all packet work and other assignments)
50%: Participation (this should be used for participation in virtual/ remote/ at-home learning).
We ask that teachers refrain from administering assessments/ exams during this time.
A step-by-step tutorial and video of how to set this up in the Aspen gradebook will be shared with school leaders and available on the Aspen landing page for teachers by April 24.
Assigning an Equal Balance of Regular Credit and Extra Credit
We believe that it is important that students have multiple routes to earn credit during this period of at home learning, so we ask that teachers assign two assignments per week in term 4. One assignment should count as regular credit and the next should count as extra-credit. The assignments should carry equal value (they should be out of the same number of points). At the end of the term, the term 4 gradebook should contain an equal number of points for regular credit and extra credit assignments. This adjustment will give students an opportunity to earn high term 4 grades and increase their overall course grade.
A step-by-step video on how to create extra credit assignments can be found here. Accepting Work at any Time
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Given various challenges that students are facing, they may have periods of time in which they are unable to participate in at home learning activities. Teachers should be responsive to this by ensuring that students can participate in learning asynchronously (for example students can watch a recorded class session and get credit for participation by completing a reflection, even if they are not able to watch the lesson and participate in real time). Teachers should also accept work from students at any time during term 4 without penalty.
Finally, teachers should make sure that students have a clear understanding of the assignments for each week and how students can earn participation points. This should be reinforced through weekly communication from teachers. School leaders should synthesize this information and ensure students have access to it.
Final Grades
The final grade calculation this year will be adjusted to act in the best interest of students by focusing on the work they were able to complete and awarding credit accordingly.
Calculation for full year courses
The final grade calculation for full year courses will be the average of the 4 term grades. If, a student’s term 4 grade is higher than the average or terms 1-3, the overall final grade will increase. However, if a student’s term 4 grade is lower than the average of the terms 1-3 grades, that term 4 grade will be ignored in the calculation, and the student’s final grade will be the average of the terms 1-3 grades.
Calculation for semester courses
The final calculation for semester 2 grades will be an average of term 3 and term 4 grades. However, if a student’s term 4 grade is lower than their term 3 grade, the final grade will simply be the term 3 grade.
School leaders, staff and teachers should be thoughtful about how they communicate to students and families regarding how term 4 grades impact the final grade calculation. We want students to continue engaging to earn high grades in term 4.
Calculation for quarter courses (applies to CHEC and Twilight Courses)
Final grades for term 4 courses are calculated using the term 4 grade only. All final grades will be published on the transcript record as follows:
 Grade Earned on A-F Scale
     Grade Published on Transcript
   Rationale
    A
    A
  Students who earn an A or B will have the benefit of this grade published on their transcript and the associated GPA weight.
       B
      B
   C
  P
 Students who earn a C or a D will not be penalized for this lower grade being published. Instead they’ll be assigned a “P” (for passing) and it will be GPA neutral.
   D
    P
  F
    I
  Students who are earn a failing final grade will be assigned an “I” for incomplete.
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• Students who are assigned an “I” have until January 2021 to earn a passing grade in the course. If they have not done so by that date, the “I” will convert to an “F” and the student will need to repeat the course. More information on summer school and is forthcoming.
• Students who wish to have C and D letter grades published as is or wish to have A and B letter grades published as “P” s may request this modification to their transcript.1
• This modified final grade calculation applies only to the time period after March 16th since this
was when at home learning began. All grades published prior to March 16th will not be subject
to change outside of traditional appeals processes. This includes final grades from term 1, term
2 and semester 1 and “F” s students have accrued due to unexcused absences prior to March 16th.
Opportunity Academy Grading
Teachers are expected to continue working with students to complete their courses on their learning platforms. Students who have not completed their courses by the end of the traditional school year will be given “I”s and will have the opportunity to continue working on those courses until January 2021. Teachers, in collaboration with school administrators, may exempt students from coursework assigned after March 16. Final grade values will appear on the transcript as shown above.
Credit Recovery Grading
Credit recovery courses may continue through the end of term 4. Because these classes are already designed to be competency-based and self-paced, the grading expectations will stay the same and will differ from the modified weights and calculations above. As always, grades should be based on the following:
• 50% Student practice & application
• 50% Assessment (students in credit recovery courses must sign an academic honesty pledge) Final credit recovery grades will be published as follows:
   Grade Earned on A-F Scale
     Grade Published on Transcript
   Rationale
    A
    A
  Students who earn an A or B will have the benefit of this grade published on their transcript and the associated GPA weight.
       B
      B
   C
  P
 Students who earn a C or a D will not be penalized for this lower grade being published. Instead they’ll be assigned a “P” (for passing) and it will be GPA neutral.
   D
      P
   Students who are unable to complete a credit recovery course will be assigned a “W” (withdrawn).
        1 This modification requires a system override that must be conducted Centrally to stop the automated procedure of converting the calculated grade of C or D to a mark of P.
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As always, credit recovery course grades do not replace original credit course grades on a student’s transcript.
Promotion (Grades K-8)2
Promotion Decisions
DCPS believes that it is our responsibility to meet the needs of all students through tiered supports. Some students will require intensive interventions so they can meet standards to promote. Because students have not had in-person access to critical supports and interventions during the closure, we do not think it is generally in their best interest to keep them from progressing to the next grade through mandatory retention. For school year 2020-2021, no student should be retained unless the family and school agree that it is in the student’s best interest. In addition, students who have already been retained once should not be retained for another year even if the family and school agree that such a retention would be in the student’s best interest.
Key Action Steps
      Date
    Action Step
    4/24
   Schools will receive a list of students that have been previously retained. These students should not be retained again, even if the school and family believe retention would be in the student’s best interest.
  4/24- 5/15
        Schools should reach out to the families of students who are not meeting promotion criteria to discuss what is in the best interest of the student for next year.
     5/22
     School should complete support plans for all students that are being promoted despite not meeting promotion criteria.
   5/29
  Schools should document all retentions through a form (forthcoming) that indicates consent from the family and justifies why the retention is in the best interest of the student.
 6/3
      Principals should click the “retention” button in Aspen for all students being retained this year.
        Student Supports for Next School Year
We know that many students will need additional supports next year due to gaps caused by the closure. Schools are responsible for ensuring all students who are promoted without having met the official promotion criteria in the DCMR have a robust support plan for next year. More information about support plans is forthcoming. In addition, DCPS is working on academic planning for a strong start next year that will include embedded supports for students with academic gaps.
2 Promotion for grades 9-11 is based on graduation credit accrual. 5
  
 Graduation
We’re proud of the accomplishments of our potential graduates to date and we want to make sure they have every opportunity to earn their diploma this year—especially given all of the disruption they are facing. Schools should make all possible efforts to support our potential graduates in meeting graduation requirements.
Graduation Requirements
Credits
Students must still earn a total of 24 credits for a traditional DCPS diploma (and additional credits for specialty diplomas as defined by the program of study).
Schools should proactively reach out to all potential graduates who receive a “W” in credit recovery or an “I” in a traditional course. These students should enroll in summer courses for the opportunity to earn a passing mark. Students who do not earn a passing mark by January 2021 must repeat the course.
Potential graduates with between .5 and 3 credits remaining should have access to credit recovery and twilight courses this spring/ summer. Additional information about summer school offerings is forthcoming.
Community Service
The D.C. Council waived the 100-hour community service requirement for this school year’s prospective graduates. Please note: This only applies to 2020 graduates and the full 100-hour requirement is expected to be in full effect for the next class of graduates.
Graduation Ceremonies and Senior Activities
We’re committed to finding ways to celebrate the accomplishments of the class of 2020. More information is forthcoming regarding options for graduation ceremonies and other senior activities if these activities cannot take place in person this spring.
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