Attendance, Conduct, Courses & Grading - Every Day Counts
The Waterford School District is dedicated to creating and maintaining a positive learning environment for all students. The school community (students, staff, parents, school board and community members) must assume a responsible role for promoting behavior that enhances academic and social success. Respectful and responsible behavior fosters a positive climate for the learning community.
Schools must be free of disruptions that interfere with teaching and learning at school and during school-related activities and events. Therefore, school officials have the authority to regulate student conduct at school, school-related settings, and where the conduct creates a substantial risk of disruption to the educational process or to an orderly school environment.
Discipline procedures are necessary in order to protect the rights of each member of the school community. Therefore, effective student discipline can only be achieved through cooperation and a shared commitment among the school community. The Student Code of Conduct has been designed to establish student responsibilities and expectations.
Every Day Counts!
Code of Conduct
Course Catalogs
2024-2025 Academic Year
High School Course Catalog
Middle School Course Catalog
2023-2024 Academic Year
Middle & High School Grading Procedures
Grading for Learning
Middle and High School Grading Procedures
Procedures for Grading:
The purpose of grading is to ascertain and to communicate, fairly and accurately, the academic achievement of each student. Grades will reflect student level of mastery based on teacher professional judgment, not just on mechanical calculations. Waterford teachers will adhere to consistent procedures for grading
Categories will distinguish between Achievement/Assessment factors and Practice factors
- Parents and students must be aware of which category assignments fall into (i.e. marked in MiSTAR)
- Achievement/Assessment Factors should be clearly identified in the gradebook by adding an ! before the title of the assignment for long and short names in MiSTAR
Coursework may be weighted differently within a category
- Achievement/Assessment - Example: Tests may be weighted differently than quizzes
- Practice - Example: Daily assignments may be weighted differently than class discussion
Late work
- Practice: Late work, at a minimum, will be accepted for full credit through the end of the unit. Teachers’ policies should be clearly communicated to students and parents in the course syllabus. Missing Practice assignments: Assignments not received will be marked as missing, which will be coded in MISTAR gradebooks to count as zero in grade calculations. Missing assignments not turned in by deadline will be changed to a zero
- Achievement/Assessment: Missing work from the Achievement/Assessment category will be accepted for full credit until two weeks before the end of the semester
Achievement/Assessment Factor grading:
- No Attempt-Refusal to Attempt: Scored as Missing in MiSTAR (which calculates as 0%). Teacher must include comment in MiSTAR
- Attempt and score at 50% or below: Score of 50%; Teacher comment will be included with the actual score earned
Frequency of Assessments: At a minimum, each course should have at least 4 “Achievement/Assessment” grades each semester
Retakes for Achievement/Assessment Factors:
- Students will be allowed to complete Assessment retakes until the week before the end of the quarter for middle school and semester for high school courses
- The retake policy for each course will be clearly stated in the course syllabus. Teachers may require test corrections, completion of missing work, or other stipulations prior to retake
- All students will be given the opportunity to reassess regardless of their previous score and given the opportunity to earn full credit on the assessment
- When a student retakes an assessment, the original score and the fact it was a retake will be noted in MiSTAR comments
Extra credit: The district will no longer be offering extra credit in classes as students will have the opportunities to make up/retake assessments to improve their grades and demonstrate their learning
Earning a grade in classes for move-ins or late class entries: Course grade will be determined by the teacher considering any previous available body of work and their performance in the Waterford course.
Items in the grade book related to the course but that do not reflect an opportunity for learning (i.e. signed syllabus, attending a field trip, etc.) can be included but will be left ungraded
Grades/Progress will be updated weekly in MiStar and/or through parent communication
Final Exams will count for 10% of the overall semester grade
The table attached describes how “Practice” and “Achievement/Assessment” grading factors might be categorized when weighing grades, and includes weights and grading scales. The Course Syllabus will identify practice and achievement/assessment factors for each class
