Anthony McNeely

EdSe 4525
Erin Pepelnjak
Grading Philosophy
How Grades are Distributed: When grading my students, I would like it
based around the students ability to learn and master the academic material
and not around compliance. Students will be graded on if they are able to
meet standards set by the school, district, and or state. Attitude, growth,
and effort will not be factored into grades unless specifically stated within an
assignment. This aspect of my grading philosophy may be different than
what you have experienced in previous classes. Considering that the district
still requires letter grades, the class will be run on an A, B, C, D, and F scale.
However, there will be no + or grades; all letter grades are given straight.
This is because I personally believe it is not fair to differentiate single
percentages. An A means that all students have fully met all required
standards with a high level of excellence and actively participates in class. A
B means that students are proficient at all standards and show adequate
progress. One of the key differences between getting an A and B in this
course revolves around participating during class. A C means that
students have met standards in some instances but not consistantly. A D
means that the students have inadequately met standards at a partial level.
An F means that the students have met no parts of any standard.
Compliance: Compliance is not officially part of my grade system.
However, I will be keeping track of students behavior and attitude within the
classroom setting, which will be communicated to parents or guardians, and
other teachers and administrators if needed. Responsibility is a major factor
in my classroom and will be emphasized and demonstrated. Students are
expected to demonstrate appropriate behavior that is indicated within the
school handbook. Within my classroom, I expect all students to have respect
for their teachers, their peers, and most importantly themselves. Once a
quarter, I will conduct an over-the-phone meeting with students parents or
guardians to discuss individual students classroom compliance.
Zeros and Late Assignments: Students will never receive a zero for any
assignment that is late or missing. When an assignment is missing students
will receive an M in the grade-book, which indicates that the assignment is
missing. Any M grade at the end of the semester will receive a 50% F.
Students will always have the opportunity to make up missing work for
partial credit and receive a C. Considering that this is a Communications
class, students must be willing to communicate with me. If an assignment is
late, students may set up a brief meeting (outside of their allotted class
time) to discuss why it was originally late or incomplete. If students are

willing to set up a meeting to discuss their assignments they will have the
opportunity to make up their work for full credit.
Assessment Revisions: All students will be offered the chance (and
encouraged) to revise any major assessment assignment until the end of the
current grading period to receive higher marks. Students will be first
required to arrange a conference with Mr. McNeely prior to revising/re-doing
an assignment.
Formative Assessment (including journals): Formative assessment will
be provided throughout classroom discussions, personal journals, individual
conferences, daily exit-slips, writing reflections, and group reflections.
Summative Assessment:
Extra Credit: Since students are offered the opportunity to re-do/revise all
major assessments there will be no extra credit chances.
Cheating: If students are caught cheating they will be subject to any
school/district policies. They will also be required to conference with Mr.
McNeely, at which point there will be a phone-call to the students parent or
guardian. If cheating becomes repetitive behavior students will be required
to have a meeting with Mr. McNeely and a school administrator.