CV Will Install More Precise Grading System Program Assigns Values To Plus And Minus Grades

The grading system at Central Valley School District’s two high schools will change next June, translating pluses and minuses into specific grade points.

Right now, an A-minus is worth a 4.0 grade points.

Starting with the third trimester, that same A-minus will be worth 3.7 points on the scale used to determine grade point averages.

Right now, a B-plus, a B and a B-minus are all worth 3.0 points. In June, the B-plus will be a 3.3 and the B-minus will be a 2.7. And so on, down the line.

“Our teachers have always said, ‘Why can’t we do that?”’ said Mike Pearson, director of secondary education for the Central Valley School District. Teachers were eager to have their grading system reflect the more differentiated system used at most colleges and universities, as well as on the statewide high school transcripts.

The new policy will require approval from the Central Valley School Board, which is scheduled to review the change at its next board meeting.

Under the new policy, A-plus will be treated as an A.

East Valley and West Valley high schools have used a differentiated grading policy for some time.

The sticking point at Central Valley and University high schools was the computer software. The district’s software translated any kind of A into a 4.0, any kind of B into a 3.0 and so on.

The technical changes have been made. But the district is holding off until the end of the school year to ensure consistency in use of the new policy - and to make sure that parents and students with 4-point fever have time to adjust.

The delay “doesn’t sound necessary,” said Gary Gainer of Spokane, president of the state Board of Education and a former District 81 school board member.

The state board in August adopted a position statement urging, but not requiring, districts to make exactly this change.

Central Valley officials defend the delayed change-over.

“After being here for 20 years, I think it makes sense to move into this slowly,” said University High School teacher Steve Bernard. “Let’s face it. Our community takes time to change.”

It will allow the schools plenty of time to work out the transition, Pearson said. Teachers will have a chance to thoughtfully rewrite their course outlines. Pearson and other officials also say they’ve heard from a few parents who are concerned that their sons or daughters maintain a high grade point average.

“We felt maybe spending this year talking to students and parents, giving more time for teachers to adjust would be better,” said Paul Sturm, principal at Central Valley High School. “The new system really won’t have any impact on seniors for ‘val’ and ‘sal’ selections. And most scholarships will have been selected. We kind of felt it would be a little more fair to do it that way.”

“We don’t want to change the rules in midstream,” Pearson said.

Central Valley high schools recently have graduated senior classes with as many as 18 valedictorians, many more than the neighboring high schools. The district is phasing in additional requirements to narrow that group.

The new grading policy will not only be fairer than today’s, it will help produce “the best of the best” valedictorians, Bernard said.