O'Connor Academy

A Message from the Principal

Hello OCA Community,

This year, Monroe One BOCES will continue its commitment to implementing equitable practices for all students by furthering the transition to a fully standards-based instruction, grading and reporting framework. This framework will provide a more accurate and comprehensive assessment of students' learning by breaking down the curriculum into specific learning standards or objectives.

Here are some key reasons for our transition to a standards-based grading and reporting framework:

Clarity and Transparency:
Standards-based grading provides a clear picture of a student's strengths and areas for growth in each subject. This transparency allows teachers, students and parents to identify where to focus their efforts for improvement.
Individualized Feedback:
Teachers can provide more targeted feedback to students based on their performance in specific learning standards. This feedback helps students understand their progress and how to make improvements.
Focus on Mastery:
Standards-based grading emphasizes the importance of mastery and long-term retention of knowledge and skills. It encourages students to keep working on a concept until they have truly mastered it.
Fairness and Equity:
This approach reduces the impact of extraneous factors such as homework completion or learner behaviors on a student's grade. Grading is centered on what students know and can do while reporting on learner behaviors separately.
College and Career Readiness:
Standards-based grading better prepares students for the real world by emphasizing critical thinking, problem-solving, and subject mastery, which are important skills for college and career success.
Consistency:
It promotes consistency in grading across the schools/programs, making it easier for parents and students to understand performance standards.

Standards-Based Grading practices will further improve our ability to differentiate and personalize learning for each child. These practices fully align with our goal of becoming a restorative, inclusive and equitable organization. It is our hope that this Parent Guide to Standards-Based Assessment, Grading, and Reporting will provide an understanding of how to navigate your child’s report card and grades.

With appreciation,

Mark Frenzel

Principal
O’Connor Academy
Monroe #1 BOCES

Assessment (Grading) System

Our teachers’ gradebooks will collect evidence of students learning for content domains. Each domain contains various NYS standards. For more information on course specific domains, see the High School Course Content Domains page. When scoring an assessment, it will be broken down into each standard that is covered. Students will receive a score of 4-1 on each standard from the assessment:

Assessment Scores and Student Language
Score	Student Language
4=Extending the Standard: Student demonstrates a deep conceptual understanding of the learning standard(s) and consistently applies/adapts their proficiency to authentic situations.	I am proficient, can apply this knowledge/skill to new/unfamiliar situations, and can teach others.
3=Achieving the Standard: Student demonstrates deep understanding of the learning standard(s).	I am proficient with very few errors.
2=Approaching the Standard: Student demonstrates a partial understanding of the learning standard(s).	I am making progress with guidance.
1=Beginning the Standard: Student has begun to demonstrate an understanding of the learning standard(s).	I am just beginning to learn.
IE=Insufficient Evidence: Student has not provided adequate evidence to assess level of understanding of the learning standard(s).	I have not submitted any evidence of this learning.
NA=Not assessed: Learning standard(s) not assessed during this marking period.

Progress Reports

Report Cards

At the end of the quarter, teachers determine the Levels of Performance in each domain assessed. Teachers use the most recent evidence, most frequent evidence, or professional judgement when determining Levels of Performance. All domains may not be reported each quarter, but by the end of the school year all domains will be reported. Teachers record the levels on the report card as a 4, 3, 2, 1, or IE. The performance level scores are then averaged to provide an overall quarter score on a 0.0 to 4.0 scale.

Levels of Academic Performance by Domain
Levels	Descriptions
Excels (4)	Student excels in the standards that have been assessed. They demonstrate knowledge of the skills and practices that exceed the expectations of this course. This would be evidenced by students receiving 4’s and 3’s on all standards within the domain, with the majority being 4’s.
Proficient (3)	Student is proficient with the standards that have been assessed. Student demonstrates sufficient knowledge of the instructional skills and practices. This would be evidenced by students receiving 3’s and/or 4’s on half or more of the standards within the domain.
Developing (2)	Student is developing their understanding of the standards that have been assessed. They demonstrate partial knowledge of the instructional skills and practices. This would be evidenced by students receiving 2’s on more than half of the standards within the domain.
Initial (1)	Student demonstrates an initial understanding of the standards that have been assessed. They demonstrate limited knowledge of the skills and practices and may require additional support/prompting. This would be evidenced by students receiving 1’s on more than half of the standards within the domain.
Insufficient Evidence (IE)	Student has not provided sufficient evidence to assess the standards during this marking period.
Not Assessed (NA)	No standards from this domain were assessed during this marking period.

Academic Recovery Plan

Students who have not shown sufficient evidence or demonstrated only an initial understanding of the standards may be given an opportunity to engage in an academic recovery plan.

The content teacher develops an academic recovery plan with the student to improve their quarter score. The content teacher will share the plan with the student’s team. The case manager will also communicate the plan with families. The student has up to 5 weeks to complete the plan. Depending on the completion of the academic recovery plan in the given timeframe, the score on the report card will be adjusted and updated on Parent Portal.

Final Average

At the end of the school year, the final score of the course is calculated by averaging all four quarter scores. Students must receive a final average of 1.6 or higher to earn credit for the course.

We recognize there may be some cases where a percentage score is required for non-reporting purposes (scholarship applications, awards criteria, etc.). In those cases, please contact a school counselor or administrator to provide you with our conversion chart.

Learner Behavior Performance

Teachers will assess student learner behaviors based on New York State Social Emotional Learning Standards.

Respectful

Was the student respectful to all community members?

Listened to staff giving instruction/direction
Accepted the responses/perspectives of others
Maintained personal space/property and boundaries
Used kind & considerate language

Responsible

Was the student responsible for their action?

Was responsible for their own materials
Accepted responsibility for actions/choices
Used appropriate coping skills
Communicated needs appropriately
Used time productively
Completed work

Ready to Learn

Did the student persist through challenging tasks & use available resources (supports) responsibly?

Asked for/accepted help when needed
Communicated thoughts/needs
Ignored external distractions

Levels of Learner Behavior Performance
Levels	Descriptions
Consistently	The student has consistently demonstrated this learner behavior.
Usually	The student has usually demonstrated this learner behavior.
Sometimes	The student has sometimes demonstrated this learner behavior.
Rarely	The student has rarely demonstrated this learner behavior.

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