CHARLESTON, W.Va. — The first grades for West Virginia’s public schools could be out by November.
The state Board of Education is now accepting comments on a policy change clearing the way for A-F grades for elementary, middle and high schools in the Mountain State, a grading system that grew out of the 2013 education reform law.
Dr. Michael Martirano, state superintendent of schools, said the straightforward structure will allow parents, students and school officials to monitor progress in student achievement.
“I’m looking at this as a model of support so that we provide feedback to our schools so that they can use that data to make adjustments in terms of their performance,” Martirano said.
The comment period for Policy 2320, A Process for Improving Education: Performance Based Accreditation System, ends on May 16.
The revised rule establishes an accountability system for West Virginia public schools and an approval process for school systems based on (1) multiple measures of academic achievement and student success standards and (2) a system of reviews through which school and district quality is examined and publicly reported.
Factors that will be considered in determining school grades include student academic growth, testing proficiency scores, attendance rates, graduation rates, career and college readiness standards and progress in closing achievement gaps among groups of students with an emphasis on improvements in student and school performance.
Martirano sees the future comprehensive school report cards as “feedback” that school officials at the local level can use to make adjustments.
Once the policy is fully implemented, grade calculation will be handled through the West Virginia Department of Education.
“If we’re truly about improving student achievement, we have to have accurate data in the hands of our superintendents and our principals and teachers so they can use that daily to help improvement,” Martirano said on Wednesday’s MetroNews “Talkline.”
“The work that occurs in our schools is extremely important because we’re talking about the lives of young children and we want to make certain that every child is performing at a high level.”
To comment on Policy 2320, click here.