Custom Setup 2 Grading Scale for Standards-Based Report Cards

The Custom Setup 2 option is used with standards-based report cards, which are popular in the primary grade levels. This setup lets you map assignments to custom assessments on the report card, which enables GradeBook to automatically calculate grades for each assessment. The report cards and assessments are defined by your school district and set up by your GradeBook system manager.

Your system manager may have already set up your grade book to automatically use the Custom Setup 2 option. Whether or not your grade book has already been configured to use the Custom Setup 2 option, you may still customize your grade book to meet your needs by selecting a different grading scale or calculation method. If your grade book has not been previously set up for standards-based report cards and you want to map assignments to assessments on the report card, complete the following procedure:

1.On the Teacher Home Page, click Set Up Grading Scales.

2.On the Grading Scale Setup screen, select the appropriate class in the Class list.

3.Select Custom Setup 2.

Note: On the Grading Scale Setup screen, when you select Custom Setup 2, you receive the message below. This message displays even if the class has no assignments. The warning is alerting the user that changing a grading scale setup option after assignments have been created may require you to convert the assignments to the proper format for that grading style. Once the grading scale change is made and until the assignment conversion is completed, the user is unable to see the previously created assignments in the class.

4.On the warning message window, click OK.

5.Click Save.

Note: You only have to convert assignments if you have already created assignments for this class.

Note: To finalize Custom Setup 2, you must complete tabs in the following order: Mapping, Report Cards, Grading Scale, Student Override, and Copy. If you try to click on a tab out of this order, the screen remains on the current tab until you make a selection and click Save Next.

6.Click Save Next.

7.On the Report Cards tab, select the report card, and if applicable, the interim you want to use.

8.Click Save Next.

9.If you want to set up a default assessment to show an overall grade for a class, on the Grading Scale tab, in the Choose the default assessment to show for the students’ progress list, select an overall assessment, which your grade book displays wherever a single student average appears.

Note: When a default assessment is selected, on the Assignment Details screen Main tab, the default assessment is highlighted, and when you hover your cursor over the default assessment field an informational tooltip displays that explains the default assessment. This field updates as points are entered for individual assessments; however, the field is editable.

Note: If the system manager adds an assessment in Report Card Builder and a teacher already has their grading scales set up, the teacher must click Save on the Grading Scale tab, which displays the newly added assessment in yellow, so that the assessment displays on the Assignment Details screen.

Note: If a default assessment is selected and a teacher weights all the assignments to zero, the students’ averages display a zero in GradeBook on the Student Profile screen Progress tab.

10.Select the appropriate grading scale from the Grading Scale list to use for each report card assessment.

Note:                      The default grading scales and calculation methods that display are based on the settings selected by the GradeBook system manager in the Report Card Builder.

11.Select one of the following calculation methods from the Calculation list to use for each report card assessment.

•None – Grade or mark is not calculated by the GradeBook. Teachers must enter the appropriate mark manually.

•Average – Calculates average using points or percentages for assignments in the current grading period. If letter grades are used for assignments, the average is calculated based on the point value associated with each letter grade. For example, if A = 4 and B = 3, etc., these point values are used to calculate the average.

•Power Law – Industry-standard algorithm that applies less weight for assignment marks given earlier in the reporting period than for assignment marks given later in the reporting period

This calculation method can be used with numeric as well as alphabetical mark types and must meet the following conditions:

-At least three assignments must be associated with the assessment

-All the assignments associated with the assessment must have the same point value

-All the assignments associated with the assessment must have a weight of 1

-Does not include missing assignments

•Highest Achieved – The highest mark achieved on an assignment in the current grading period. If points are used as the mark type, GradeBook translates the point value into a percentage for each assignment to determine the highest mark. If letter grades are used as the mark type, the letter grade with the highest point value is used. Missing assignments are not included.

•Last Achieved – The last mark achieved on an assignment based on the assignment due date, not including missing assignments, in the current grading period. If points are used as the mark type, GradeBook translates the last mark achieved point value into a percentage to display as the student's grade.

•Median – Calculates average using the middle value of the sorted list of marks in the current reporting period. Given an even number of marks, the two middle values are averaged to calculate the median. All assignments must have the same points possible. Assignment type weights and individual assignment weights cannot be used with this method. This method can be used only on new mark entry screens and is not compatible with classic mark entry.

•Mode – Calculates average using the mark that occurs most frequently in the set of values in the current reporting period. Given multiple mark types occur with the highest frequency, the mark with the higher value is used. All assignments must have the same points possible. Assignment type weights and individual assignment weights cannot be used with this method. This method can be used only on new mark entry screens and is not compatible with classic mark entry.

•YTD Average – Calculates average using points or percentages for assignments from the beginning of the school year to the end of the current grading period. If letter grades are used for assignments, the average is calculated based on the point value associated with each letter grade. For example, if A = 4 and B = 3, etc., these point values are used to calculate the average.

•YTD Power Law – Industry-standard algorithm that applies less weight for assignment marks given earlier in the school year than for assignment marks given through the end of the current grading period of the school year. The same conditions must be met as for Power Law.

•YTD Highest Achieved – The highest mark achieved on an assignment from the beginning of the school year to the end of the current grading period. If points are used as the mark type, GradeBook translates the point value into a percentage for each assignment to determine the highest mark. If letter grades are used as the mark type, the letter grade with the highest point value is used. Missing assignments are not included.

•YTD Last Achieved – The last mark achieved on an assignment based on the assignment due date, not including missing assignments, from the beginning of the school year to the end of the current grading period. If points are used as the mark type, GradeBook translates the last mark achieved point value into a percentage to display as the student's grade. This method can be used only on new mark entry screens and is not compatible with classic mark entry.

•YTD Median – Calculates average using the middle value of the sorted list of marks from the beginning of the current school year to the end of the current reporting period. Given an even number of marks, the two middle values are averaged to calculate the median. All assignments must have the same points possible. Assignment type weights and individual assignment weights cannot be used with this method.

•YTD Mode – Calculates average using the mark that occurs most frequently in the set of values from the beginning of the current school year to the end of the current reporting period. Given multiple mark types occur with the highest frequency, the mark with the higher value is used. All assignments must have the same points possible. Assignment type weights and individual assignment weights cannot be used with this method. This method can be used only on new mark entry screens and is not compatible with classic mark entry.

12.Select the appropriate grading scale from the list to use for each interim assessment, if applicable.

13.In the Calculation list, select the calculation method to use for each interim assessment, if applicable. See the options listed in step 11 for further details.

14.Click Save Next.

15.On the Student Override tab, select the student that requires an alternate grading scale, and then select the alternate grading scale for each report card assessment.

16.Click Save Next.

Note:                   If you need to override more than one student, click Save and then repeat step 15.

17.To copy this setup to another class, on the Copy tab, select a class from the list.

If there are no available classes to which you can copy the grading scale setup, the following message is displayed: “There are no compatible classes to copy to because you do not have any other classes that use the same report card assessments. Return to the Mapping tab to set up another class.”

Note:                   On the Copy tab, only classes associated with courses in the same course group on the selected report card are available. Class groups are not available.

18.Click Copy.

If the process was completed successfully, the message “Copy Complete!” displays.

Note:                   Student override settings are not copied to other classes.

Convert a Default or Custom Setup 1 Grading Scale to a Custom Setup 2 Grading Scale

If you already have assignments created in the class, you need to convert them to use the different grading scale.

1.On the Grading Scale Setup screen, select Custom Setup 2.

2.On the warning window that displays, click OK.

3.Click Save.

4.Click the Report Cards tab.

5.Below Available Report Cards/Interims, select report cards/interims.

6.Click Save Next.

7.In the Choose the default assessment to show for students’ progress drop-down list, select a default assessment.

8.Click Save.

9.Click the Mapping tab.

10.Click

.

11.On the message window, click OK.

Your previously added assignments are converted to the Custom Setup 2 grading scale option.