How to check your math grades

Please find below a short guide to reading your (or your student’s) math grades. 

Grading approach: Grades are a useful way to measure progress to mastery of the various skills we are learning, but they don’t always reflect a student’s true ability. As I tell our students “your ability grows with your effort”, so I give students every opportunity to improve and see growth, not matter where their grades begin.

Types of graded assessments: Each unit, students typically submit two to three graded assessments. Assessments usually consist of a notebook grade, an end-of-unit test, and one or more classroom assignments. Notebooks are graded against a rubric provided to students, focusing on completeness and accuracy. Assessments labelled “classroom” or “group work” typically have a higher average because students are often working collaboratively to learn from each other and complete their work. Assessments labelled “end-of-unit test” are completed individually and are intended to assess progress toward mastery of the skills being taught. End-of-unit assessments are composed of past STAAR questions.

Meaning of letter and number grades: Generally, 90% or above (an “A”) indicates that the standard for the assessment was met and the student is showing mastery of the skill. 80% or above (a “B”) indicates very good application of the skill but some room for growth in accuracy, thinking, or completeness. 75% and above (a “C”) indicates that the student is learning the skill but has significant gaps which we need to work on. 71% to 74% indicates some application of the skill but major gaps in accuracy or completeness. Below 70% (a failing grade) indicates the student has not yet developed the skill being learned. 

Retaking scores below 70%: If a student scores below 70% on any assessment, they will review the concepts with me and then have the opportunity to take the assessment again. Their score will be the average of the first and second attempts, with a maximum of 70%. 

Missing work: Any missing work may be submitted up to the end of the six-week grading period. Students are expected to ensure their work is complete and submitted on time. This is an important skill to develop as students transition to middle school. Students should log into PowerSchool periodically and check that they are not missing any items. Missing work is flagged in the system.

Viewing grades through the PowerSchool app on a mobile device: You can also view grades by downloading the PowerSchool Mobile app for iOS or Android. The app walks you through the log in process using a parent account or student credentials.

Viewing grades though HISD Connect (PowerSchool): Students and parents should log into HISD Connect to view all grade information. To log in, go to www.houstonisd.org and select “Grades” in the top gray menu bar. On the next page, select “Log in to HISD Connect”. This will direct you to the HISD Connect (PowerSchool) log in page: https://hisdconnect.houstonisd.org/public/. Students log in with their regular credentials, while parents may create an account. Please let me know if you have any problem logging in.

Grading periods: The District has six grading periods per year. Each grading period is 6 weeks long. By policy we have between six and nine grades per six-week grading period. I aim to give as many grades as possible so that students have lots of opportunity to show their progress.

Progress reports vs. report cards: A progress report is sent home after the first three weeks of each grading period, while a report card is sent at the end of each six-week grading period. In HISD Connect / PowerSchool (our online grading system), progress periods are marked P1, P2, P3, etc. and report card periods are marked C1, C2, C3, etc.

Determination of overall grade: The overall grade for each three-week progress report period is the average of the grades during those three weeks. The overall grade for the six-week report card period is the cumulative average of all grades for that six-week period. This means that students can increase (or decrease) their overall average grade between the progress report (three weeks) and final report card (six weeks). A student’s final annual grade is an average of the grades earned for each of the six-week grading periods.