Grading Policy
When you start any course at Legacy—any Project, HRT class, Independent Study class, or Independent Learning Contract—you can expect to be told what you must know, understand, and be able to do when you finish the course. These are the “learning targets” you have to hit for credit.
You can also expect to be told how you will demonstrate your learning, i.e., how you will demonstrate to your teacher and others that you know, understand, and are able to do what is expected for a grade in the course. This is called the “summative assessment” of your learning.
Finally, you can expect to be told how that final summative assessment of your learning will be evaluated. This will probably be in the form of a “rubric” that helps you understand what proficiency and mastery “look like.” You may also be asked to contribute to the “rubric” that will be used for that final evaluation.
All of this information will be in a syllabus for the course. The syllabus is a sort of blueprint for the course. Besides saying what you must learn, how you will show you have learned it, and how your level of proficiency will be judged, the syllabus might also tell you what activities you will complete in the course. It might tell you what books and other instructional materials you will be using. In addition, the syllabus should say how much credit you will receive when you demonstrate proficiency on the learning targets.
Final Grades
All final grades are based on your learning. Final grades communicate to others your level of proficiency or mastery on the standards set for each subject and course.
At Legacy final grades are usually communicated as P or NC for Pass/No Credit. You earn a Pass grade (and credit) when you demonstrate your learning. While Legacy is built around nine-week periods of time (i.e., Project Cycles), how long it takes you to demonstrate learning might be less than the time it takes someone else. No one is locked into waiting nine weeks to demonstrate the required learning— you get the credit and move on to new courses/credits when you are proficient on the summative assessment. That’s part of how it is possible to earn
more than the minimum 1.5 credits each nine weeks.
When you need to take a little longer than nine weeks (i.e., up to 11 weeks) to demonstrate your learning, then you would see the letter “I” or the word “Incomplete” on your report card.
Another option you have is to tell the teacher at the beginning of the class that you want a letter grade. You also have the option to have a conversation with the teacher at the end of the Project Cycle regarding what option—P/NC or a letter grade— is the best for you. If you come back after report cards have been issued for a course and say you need or want a letter grade, it is usually not possible to change from the original option. If the grade can be changed, the best grade possible is usually a B.
Legacy uses the following grades on report cards:
P = Pass
You demonstrated proficiency or mastery on the required learning.
I = Incomplete
You did not complete the course with the required proficiency in the time given. If you demonstrate proficiency within two weeks of the last day of the Project Cycle, the I will be changed to P. (A grade of I is not available on any Cycle IV report card.)
NC = No Credit
You did not complete the course with the required proficiency in the time given. See your HRT Leader for what you can do.
W = Withdrawn
You left the class sometime between the third week and the end of the course. (If you think you are not going to finish a course, talk with your Human Relations Team Leader as soon as possible so that the best options may be worked out.)
If you request a letter grade, then the following apply.
A Mastery; Excellence beyond the norm
B Proficiency; Satisfactory or better
NC No credit
W Withdrawn
There are no C or D or F grades. We believe every student can succeed and meet high standards. No credit is ever awarded for work that is less than satisfactory, meaning it does not meet the minimum level of proficiency for the course. Courses are standards-based, which means you must meet the minimum standards to earn a grade and credit.
When you see Incomplete or I on your report card at the end of a Project Cycle, it means that both you and your teacher know you can reach the required level of proficiency within two weeks. As soon as you do, the teacher will change your grade to P. If for some reason you do not reach proficiency within two weeks of the end of the Project Cycle, then the grade will become NC. Usually, you can continue the course in the next Project Cycle, so you do not lose the learning you have done. Your teachers will work with you until you reach proficiency or mastery, assuming you are making satisfactory progress.
Report Cards, Progress Reports, Homework Days
At Legacy, your report cards look very different from the computer generated report cards you might be used to. Every teacher at Legacy not only reports the grade you earned but also writes specific comments about your performance in school. Your academic and your interpersonal performance are both worthy of note and you can expect very individualized comments about one or both from each of your teachers. Report cards are issued every nine weeks. These are final grades for your proficiency or mastery in your classes. The credit that shows on the nine-week reports is the credit you earned.
In addition to report cards, HRT Leaders also must document your progress every month. This is a lot of work and as a result, each month Project Program students will have one day when all of their school work will be done at home. This is a Homework Day and your teachers will give you work to do, plus you can get caught up or move ahead in courses. Your teachers think of it as a Documentation Day, when they “document” your alternative learning experiences for the past few weeks.
Homework Days for the 2010-2011 school year are:
September 29
October 29
November 29
December 17
January 27
February 4
February 25
March 30
April 29
May 27
June 13
