The following is a release from the Lake Washington School District:

When the Lake Washington School District changed from a junior high school (grades seven through nine) model to a middle school (grades six through nine) model, it focused on making these schools a smooth transition from elementary school to high school. In the course of that transition, staff and administrators realized the middle school report card was not serving students and parents as well as it could.

The district uses two different grading systems in elementary school and in high school. High schools use the traditional letter grades. Those grades are used in determining college admissions and other post-secondary opportunities. Elementary schools use a report card that assigns a number between one and four based on whether the student is not at, approaching, at or exceeds standard. This system, known as standards-based grading, is widely considered “best practice” for accurately reporting student performance as measured against learning standards.

In fall 2015, the district will transition to a grading system in middle school that helps students and their parents understand student progress toward meeting the new state standards. An advisory group of administrators, teachers and others are looking for parents to help shape a balanced, research-based report card that provides middle school students with a transition from elementary school to high school. This report card should help students understand how they are doing in learning the standards they will need to success in high school.

The district seeks parents and community members to serve on the Middle School Grading Advisory Committee for the 2014-15 school year. Those interested in serving need to complete the brief online application by Dec. 5 indicating availability, or email Linda Stevens, director of assessing and reporting. Volunteer members will be selected based upon geographic location and diverse representation as well availability on the meeting dates.

Meetings will take place at the Lake Washington School District Resource Center, 16250 NE 74th St, Redmond, WA 98052. The dates and times for the meetings are:

Dec. 10, 3:30-5:30 p.m.

Jan. 22, 3:30-5:30 p.m.

Feb. 24, 7:30-10:30 a.m.

March 31, 7:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m.

April 24, 3:30-5:30 p.m.

May 29, 3:30-5:30 p.m.

June 22, 3:30-5:30 p.m.