Standards-based Grading
The Laveen School District is committed to helping students reach proficiency and beyond on Arizona’s rigorous academic standards. Therefore, we are utilizing a standards-based grading system which allows us to better communicate with parents on the progress students are making toward mastering the content standards.
Beginning with the 2017-2018 school year, students’ grades for each subject area will be reported in two separate categories: academic achievement and effort. The academic grades will only include assignments or tests that measure the students’ mastery of the learning standards. These grades will reflect each student’s individual understanding of the academic content.
A separate grade will be included for each subject area for effort. The effort grades will include such things as class assignments, homework, and participation. These factors are important to help ensure student learning, but separating them from the achievement grade will give parents a clearer picture about what each student’s level of mastery is regarding the state academic standards.
Parents are encouraged to monitor student progress by logging into our online gradebook through the ParentVue parent portal. If you are new to ParentVUE, please ask your child’s teacher for an activation key to get started. Through the gradebook, parents will see that some assignments will be recorded as part of the academic grade, some will be recorded as part of the effort grade, and others may not be included for grading, but simply serve as practice for the students to help ensure mastery of the academic content.
Report cards will be distributed quarterly, and parent/teacher conferences will be scheduled at least twice per year to provide an opportunity for teachers and parents to dialogue about the progress students are making. However, open communication between home and school is vital to our success, so parents are welcome to request a conference or email their child’s teacher with questions at any time. We look forward to partnering together to ensure our students’ success.