Accurate & Equitable Grading Practices

PUHSD's Commitment to Accurate and Equitable Grading Practices

In 2016, PUHSD began our work with Joe Feldman, the founder and CEO of Crescendo Education Group and author of Grading for Equity, to examine and address the inherent inequities in traditional grading practices. Since then, our district has had four cohorts of teachers who have participated in a year-long training focused on understanding the principles of grading for equity and who conduct action research to assess its impacts. Our work with Feldman and district leadership has resulted in the adoption of a new Board policy that ensures grades are a measure of student learning and not tied to discipline, biases, or external factors.

Three Pillars of Equitable Grading Practices

1. Accuracy
2. Bias-Resistant
3. Intrinsic Motivation

How educators are tweaking grading approaches in response to the pandemic

Teachers are allowing students to revise work and stretch deadlines in attempts to fairly assess student performance this year.

PUHSD teacher, Kaitlin Jenkins, reflects on how she changed her grading practices in response to the pandemic.

How Teachers Are Changing Grading Practices With an Eye on Equity | KQED

Joe Feldman contends many of the earnest practices teachers continue to use are hold-overs from how they were graded and may actually be doing harm to student learning.

PUHSD teacher, Sarah Schopfer, discusses her shift to equitable and accurate grading practices.

Kelsey was a freshman at the University of California, Davis, after graduating in the top 10 of her high school class.