Morris School District
MORRIS SCHOOL DISTRICT
Morristown, New Jersey 07960

Policy
File Code: 6147.1
Monitored: X
Mandated:
Other Reasons
EVALUATION OF INDIVIDUAL STUDENT PERFORMANCE

Assessment of Student Performance

Accurate assessment of student performance and progress is an essential component of effective instruction. The fundamental role of assessment is to provide authentic and meaningful feedback for improving student learning, curriculum, instructional practice, and educational programs. Assessment activities should be designed to measure the level of student knowledge and proficiency.

The Board of Education encourages the certified staff, under the direction of the Superintendent or his/her designee, to employ a comprehensive approach to the use of appraisal and evaluative techniques in monitoring pupil progress, including, but not limited to:
  • Review of cumulative pupil records

  • Standardized ability and achievement tests

  • Teacher constructed tests

  • Performance tasks such as retelling, audio tapes, note-taking samples, drafts/revision/final copy, oral, presentation, drawing, dramatic play, reading and writing journals, and informal reading inventories;

  • Observation of performance in problem solving groups, shared reading experiences, shared writing experiences, on performance checklists, anecdotal records, inventories, and running records;

  • Open-ended questions for problem-solving, self-evaluation, and reading/ literature response journals;

  • Student-designed research and exhibitions, dramatic productions, poetry, journals, projects, reports, graphs, posters, letters, and stories;

  • Interviews such as peer conferences, student-teacher conferences, questionnaires, and surveys; and

  • Portfolios of reading lists, writing samples, project designs, laboratory observations.
Demonstrated performance shall be a factor in instructional grouping decisions and a qualification criteria for academic support programs and services (Basic Skills, ESL/Bilingual, and Gifted and Talented)..

Grading

The Superintendent or his/her designee, in consultation with the teaching staff, shall develop a marking system to be used uniformly in the same grade level throughout the district. The system should be clear, easily understood by parents/guardians and pupils, and able to be applied with consistency of interpretation. The grading system shall:
  • Assess student progress and performance relative to established proficiencies for the approved course of study;

  • Encourage students to evaluate their own progress and performance;

  • Reward students for constructive effort;

  • Use grading methods and symbols appropriate for the course of study and the maturity of students;

  • Provide a pass/fail grading option when appropriate;

  • Encourage teachers to identify individual abilities, interests, and talents and recommends strategies to improve a specific problem or an area of weakness; and

  • Provide regular reports of progress throughout the course of study.
The grading system shall be subject to continual review and revision to ensure accurate, consistent, and timely reporting of student performance. Staff, pupils, and parents/guardians should be involved in the review process.

The teacher shall evaluate student performance and assign appropriate grades. Grades shall be intended to appraise the pupil's progress and shall be a factor in program placement (i.e., course level, Basic Skills, ESL/Bilingual, and Gifted and Talented), promotion/retention, and graduation decisions. The building principal shall have the right to review disputed grades and, after a discussion with the teacher, when it has been determined that an error has been made, to adjust them. If the dispute cannot be resolved, the matter shall be resolved by the Superintendent or his/her designee.

Standardized Testing

The district standardized testing program shall incorporate the following:
  • State mandated assessments (ESPA, GEPA, and HSPA)

  • Grade level ability and achievement tests (Terra Nova, New Standards)

  • English Language Proficiency (IDEA)

  • Scholastic Ability and Achievement Tests (PSAT; SAT I and II)

  • Advanced Placement Examinations
Student performance on standardized achievement tests shall be a factor in program placement (i.e., course level, Basic Skills, ESL/Bilingual, and Gifted and Talented), promotion/retention, and graduation decisions.

Individual results of standardized tests, including intelligence tests, shall be made available to parents/guardians, but shall be considered confidential information to be available only to authorized persons. A report of district test results shall be presented to the Board of Education at a public meeting and shall be made available in each school for review by members of the community.

Assessment Instruments

School personnel shall not use tests, surveys, or other guidance and counseling materials that are differentiated or stereotype on the basis of race, color, creed, religion, sex, ancestry, national origin, or social or economic status. Multiple measures are encouraged.

Any requests for surveys, pupil observations, or pupil questionnaires must be forwarded through the principal's office to the Superintendent or his/her designee's office for approval before any survey or observation can be conducted.

Determining Grade Point Average and Class Rank

The Superintendent or his/her designee shall develop procedures for determining grade point averages and class ranking that takes into account:
  • Records of transfer pupils

  • Honors and advanced placement courses
Grade point averages and class rank shall be determined by the high school principal. The Superintendent or his/her designee shall have the right to review disputed grade point averages and class ranking and, when it has been determined that an error has been made, to adjust grade point averages and/or ranking.

Date: April 14, 1986 (formerly 5152)
October 29, 2001 First Reading
November 19, 2001 Approved

Legal References:
N.J.S.A. 18A:7C-3, -4, -6, -6.2 Remedial instruction for students not meeting graduation standards ...
N.J.S.A. 18A:11-1 General mandatory powers and duties
N.J.S.A. 18A:54-20 Powers of board (county vocational schools)
N.J.A.C. 6:4-1.5(g), (h) School and classroom practices
N.J.A.C. 6:8-1.1 Words and terms defined
N.J.A.C. 6:8-2.2 School-level planning
N.J.A.C. 6A:8-1.1 et seq. Standards and Assessments
See particularly:
N.J.A.C. 6A:8-1.3, -4.1, -5.1
N.J.A.C. 6A:24-4.1 Implementation of whole school reform model N.J.A.C. 6A:30-1.4 Evaluation process for the annual review
Talarsky v. Edison Township Board of Education, 1977 S.L.D. 862
Manual for the Evaluation of Local School Districts (August 2000)

Cross References:
1000/1010 Concepts and roles in community relations; goals and objectives
1120 Board of education meetings
5113 Absences and excuses
5120 Assessment of individual needs
5124 Reporting to parents/guardians
5125 Pupil records
5141.3 Health examinations and immunizations
6142.6 Basic skills
6146 Graduation requirements
6146.2 Promotion/retention
6147 Standards of proficiency
 

Morris School District | 31 Hazel Street | Morristown, New Jersey | Phone: 973-292-2300
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