The beginning of a new year is when standards-based grading is truly put to the test. Early momentum fades, real challenges surface, and teachers need clarity to keep moving forward. The strongest insights come from leaders who’ve built systems that make SBG sustainable.
In this session, school and district leaders shared the groundwork they laid, how they address mid-year roadblocks, and the long-term moves that keep SBG on track and sustainable to ease teacher workload strain.
Watch the full recording below:
When teachers start slipping back into averaging, participation points, or “Kleenex credit,” it’s a sign the system needs reinforcement. Fortunately, the fix is straightforward: re-anchor teams in a few shared grading principles, name what doesn’t belong in academic grades (behavior, compliance, extra credit), and set a clear expectation for fidelity. Pair that accountability with real support (coaching, PLC time, exemplars) so the response feels like “we’re tightening the process,” rather than “gotcha.”
If two teachers are using the same standards but defining proficiency differently, students will get mixed messages fast. The most effective reset is a calibration cycle inside PLCs: put current rubrics, student samples, and upcoming assessments on the table; score together; and require everyone to justify scores using the same success criteria. Do this more than once a year. Quick calibration touchpoints throughout the year prevent drift and reduce conflict later.
SBG becomes sustainable when collaboration isn’t optional or squeezed in “when there’s time.” Leaders can protect momentum by baking PLC time into the schedule, using structured work sessions (think summer workshops) to build pacing guides, rubrics, and assessments, and maintaining a living playbook that new staff can learn from and returning staff can revisit. When teachers know where the decisions live, how evidence is defined, and how grades are determined, they spend less time debating the basics and more time responding to learning needs.