WLCS institutes new grading scale at middle schools

The Walled Lake Consolidated School District will be implementing a new grading scale at the middle school level this school year with hopes of implementing it at the high school level for the 2012-13 academic year.

The four middle schools will be using a 0-14 point grading scale, as opposed to the more traditional and current 0-100 point grading scale.

The district convened a grading committee to review the current grading policy due to concerns that grade deflation was occurring due to the “disproportional impact” that grades of 0-percent to 49-percent have on student’s averages.

According to district officials, the new scale equalizes grade distribution, creating equal proportions for grades A-E.

Essentially, the new grading point system converts raw percentages into a scaled score as follows:

• 90-100 (A- to A+) would correlate to 12-14;

• 80-89 (B- to B+) would correlate to 9-11;

• 70-79 (C- to C+) would correlate to 6-8;

• 60-69 (D- to D+) would correlate to 3-5;

• 40-59 (E+) would correlate to a 2;

• 20-39 (E) would correlate to a 1; and

• 0-19 (E-) would correlate to a 0.

According to the committee, if a student consistently fails, he or she will still receive a failing grade for the class. However, if a student occasionally fails, he or she will be able to recover from the failing grade through future improved achievement.

A student’s grade point average will still be calculated on a 4.0 scale.

While the four middles schools will be making the switch to the new grading scale this year, the three high schools will be remaining on the current grading system this year due calculation issues. According to Judy Evola, the district’s communications director, the issues were specific to high school grading needs and will take time for programmers to correct.

“We are moving toward the 0-14 point grading scale at our three high schools for the 2012-13 school year,” she said.