The Country School is an independent, coeducational, Pre-K through 8 school founded in 1934.
News
Changes to Effort Grades and Policy in Grades 4-8
Upper School Head Wilson Everhart shares news of changes to effort grades and policy in grades 4-8.
In the opening week of school, the Upper School teachers dedicate a significant amount of time clarifying expectations, empowering students to define and defend a productive and positive class environment, and helping students articulate and achieve their hopes and goals for the year.
Relatedly, I want to highlight this year’s important changes in our effort grade policy for students in grades 4-8, as well as the way students can earn a spot on the Effort Honor Roll.
There are now three effort grades rather than five. The three new effort grades are Exceeding Expectations (EE), Meeting High Expectations (MHE), and Needs Improvement (NI). As it says in the Parent Handbook posted on StarNet during the summer, students will earn their way onto the Effort Honor Roll if they earn three Exceeding Expectations (EE’s) with at least two of these EE’s earned in academic classes. Students will not be eligible for the Effort Honor Roll if they earn a Needs Improvement (NI).
As teachers we are excited about this change, for our policy now more accurately acknowledges that all of our students are expected to meet a thoughtful progression of age appropriate standards. In truth, the vast majority of our students do what the adults in their lives expect of them most of the time, and this is one of the reasons our teachers feel so blessed to work with your children. As such, I predict that the vast majority of the effort grades our students will earn will be Meeting High Expectations (MHE). Given the high standards of our school, earning a MHE is a significant accomplishment, and we hope it will be celebrated as such at home; it will certainly be seen in a positive light in the eyes of the school.
A small number of students in each class will manage to exceed even the high bar set by the teachers in their consistency and their commitment to embracing the school’s motto of “Do your best always.” Conversely, some students will earn a Needs Improvement (NI), and this grade will be a reflection of the fact that a student needs to further develop their work ethic or attention to detail. The years in our Upper School are a wonderful time to lay the foundation for important habits of scholarship, engagement, and collaboration; and a grade of Needs Improvement (NI) is a way of gently but firmly reminding students that we believe they are capable of even more.
In closing, I have copied the overarching definition of Meeting High Expectations (MHE) from our Parent Handbook below. I hope that you will read through it and realize that our teachers believe your students have the ability to demonstrate true excellence in their initiative and personal responsibility, especially when they have the support of dedicated teachers and engaged parents.
From page 33 in the Parent Handbook:
“A grade of MHE (Meeting High Expectations) means that a child is consistently putting forth a strong effort, as evidenced by these types of behaviors: consistently arriving with all materials; handing in work that is thoroughly, thoughtfully, and neatly completed; engaged actively, respectfully, and thoughtfully; being thorough, punctual, and creative with written work and projects; pushing oneself to stretch, think, and engage with what is being taught; being cooperative; helping to create a positive learning environment; being age-appropriately independent; meeting all of the class’s unique requirements, showing responsibility for class materials; promptly taking initiative to make up any work from missed class days; incorporating teacher feedback and striving to meet classroom goals; and showing tenacity, perseverance, and grit. While this list is not exhaustive, it represents the kind of high standard our teachers properly set for all of our students to achieve.”
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