assisted four K-8 schools in the past with this process.
Here are some things that came up:
1. Posting grades in general was not a major problem for middle school
teachers. Initially, they did get parents emailing and calling with
questions.
2. Most parent questions / issues with middle school were related to
grades not getting posted quickly enough. If an assignment is turned in
on a Monday, parents will log in Monday night and want to see the grade.
There needs to be clear expectations for the parents AND the teachers on
how much time there will be between assignments and grade postings.
3. Online grades can be used in two ways: Final grades or Full Grade
Book. Final grades is the easiest, as the grades are put in after the
assignment is given and graded. The power of a grading program though,
is to use it as a full grade book. Teachers post the assignments when
due, with the points possible, and then grade them after it is turned
in. Parents love this, most teachers hate it. Once in black and white,
it is much more difficult to change things like date due, % of grade,
etc. Some teachers like the flexibility to decide that a 100 point
project worth 10% of the grade went so well they want to make it 20%
after the fact. This can't happen if it had been posted to parents at
10%.
4. K-5 teachers had an entirely different set of issues. Most of the
teachers in the four schools I worked with, did not keep on-going grade
books. Their semester grades, especially at K-3, were based on what
they knew of the kids, in-class work, observations, etc. and not on
cumulative assignments and grades. Even at 4th - 5th grades, a lot of
the final grade was based on observations, participation, etc. Once an
online gradebook was in place, teachers needed to quantify these things,
and for many teachers it was a very difficult process.
RECOMMENDATIONS:
Start at HS, then add MS after a year, then evaluate whether you want to
add elementary school.
Train and expect all teachers to participate.
Set out very clear expectations to teachers, students and parents.
Decide early on if the online grading system will be final grades only,
or if you plan on using it for assignments too.
Renee Ramig
Seven Hills School
-----Original Message-----
From: A forum for independent school educators
[mailto:ISED-L@LISTSERV.SYR.EDU] On Behalf Of Linda Swarlis
Sent: Monday, April 20, 2009 6:36 AM
To: ISED-L@LISTSERV.SYR.EDU
Subject: Online grades available to parents at your school?
We are a Prek-12 school and are debating the value of posting grades
online for parents. I would like to hear from schools who have made the
transition to posting online grades. If you are making your grades
available to parents could you list the pros and cons and if overall it
has enhanced parent communication or if it has caused problems with
parents who may tend to micromanage (as many people have feared)?
I have read through past discussions and found a few comments from
schools who are posting grades online, but I would like to know how many
schools are posting grades and about their experiences with online
grading, both good and bad.
Best regards,
Linda
Linda L. Swarlis, Ph.D.
Director of Information Services and Library
Columbus School for Girls
56 S. Columbia Avenue
Columbus, OH 43209
lswarlis@columbusschoolforgirls.org
614-252-0781, ext. 129
FAX: 614-252-0571
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