By Richard Bammer

After considerable discussion of the matter during a Vacaville Unified governing board meeting, Wood High English teacher Tracy Ruiz called the district’s grading practices “a culture change.”

Her characterization of the practices, already being used by some of the district’s 700 teachers, came Thursday in the Educational Services Center, where Mark Frazier, chief academic officer, and Kelley Birch, director of secondary education, updated trustees on district grading practices, which sparked considerable discussion, including comments from two student board representatives.

In a computer-aided slide presentation, he and Birch justified the change, noting that the district has adopted a standards-based approach to teaching — one requiring more student participation, including writing and clear communication across the curriculum, in every class — but still uses a 100-year-old practice for grading.

Source: Vacaville Unified School District grading practices ‘a culture change’ – The Reporter