An article in the New York Times (3/25/09) reported that a growing number of school districts have adopted standards-based report cards.  These new report cards have replaced the traditional letter grades with number grades. The lowest grade is 1, which represents that a student is not meeting standards.  The highest grade is 4, which indicates that a student is meeting standards with distinction.

This trend, which began in urban districts, has since moved out to suburban districts. The hope is that standards-based report cards will ensure more consistent grading across classrooms, hold down grade inflation, and increase focus on specific academic skills.

This numerical grading system measures each student against a stated set of criteria, rather than comparing members of a class with each other.  Adherents claim that this approach promotes more accurate grading, and reduces teacher subjectivity. Opponents claim that standards-based report cards do not distinguish enough between student performance and ability levels.  There is also concern about how to reconcile this grading system with standard markers such as honor roll and class rank. Some educators and parents are further concerned that bright students will find it easy to obtain grades of 4, so that they will not be stimulated to reach their full potential.

We think that standards-based report cards deserve a fair trial.  They can allow teachers to focus on individual goals for students, and can redirect students’ focus from competing with each other to a focus on improving their learning.  What do you think?