Reply to MS grades on HS transcript

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]IMHO, 
If your kid does not get an "A" in the HS credit course taken in MS, you should just not take the Semester exams and get that completely wiped out from the transcript.

Why start HS with a bad grade that will ensure that you will never have a 4.0?

[/quote]

So how do you know that the child will or will not get an A?  When is the Semester exam given?

Sorry for these simplistic questions- I have a 5th grader.[/quote]

OK. Here is a 101 on how grades work and get reported in MS.

The academic year is divided into two semesters.  Each of these two semesters have two quarters each.   So  Semester 1 is made of quarter 1 and 2 and Semester 2 is made of quarter 3 and quarter 4.

In MS, every grade - from tests, HW, projects etc, is posted on a website called Edline.  A parent and student can go into the account of  their student and see what their grades are.  Most students and parents keep a track of how the student is doing by looking at the reports on edline.

Quarter grades are calculated based on hw, tests, projects etc. And Semester exam grades are calculated based on the exam.

Your final grade is calculated based on the two quarter grades as well as an end of semester exam.  The Quarter grades are given a weightage of roughly 40% each. So, the two quarters will comprise roughly 80% of your final grade for that semester for that course.   The semester exam is roughly 20% weightage.  (Someone please chime in to tell the exact weight that the quarters and semester exam carry, because I do not remember)

Thus, if you get A in the first and second quarters, and get a C in the semester exam, you will still get an A in that course.

(Yeah, this is an odd grading system. And that is the reason Washington Post keeps running stories about how kids game the system and get A's on quarters but actually fail on Semester exams for Algebra, because they do not know their subject content.)

Here is the table which breaks it down for you...this is what is being used to game the system...
 
www.mccpta.com/resolutions/GradeConfigurationTable.pdf

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FWIW, I don't actually consider this "gaming the system".  IMO, if you got an A the first AND second quarters, you have shown you know the material and should get an A overall.  Conversely, no one's perfect and if you slacked off or got sick or forgot something you should have a chance to bring your grade up on the final exam.  I think it's perfectly rational for kids to weigh how much time and effort they have to put in to exams and decide NOT to put in effort on exams that won't change their overall final grade.  That's a big life lesson -- where to focus your energy to have the maximum effect. 
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