Central, South Grading Policy On Hot Seat

HINSDALE, IL – Hinsdale High School District 86 board members on Tuesday criticized the district's grading policy.

And they blamed a previous board majority.

However, they did not explain at Tuesday's meeting why the district had not addressed the issue in the 2½ years since voters elected a new majority.

In a text to Patch, board member Jeff Waters said the new board majority wasn't to blame.

"We’ve asked repeatedly, and the administration repeatedly told the Board they weren’t ready," Waters, the longest-serving member, said.

During a presentation at Tuesday's meeting, Waters noted that the previous board's policy was that only a majority could approve an issue to go on the agenda. Only three of the seven asked for the grading policy to be discussed.

"Thanks to the (current) board for not having such a ridiculous policy," Waters said.

A key grading policy is that no more than 30 percent of a grade could be for homework, quizzes and class activities. The rest is for major assignments such as finals, projects and essays.

In many science and math classes, major assignments make up 90 percent or 100 percent of a grade. Nearly all English classes are at 80 percent.

Board members and residents say those thresholds are too high. They contend that homework and class activities are important for preparing students for tests.

About the policy, Waters said, "I can't tell you how many complaints I have gotten from families and students."

The other day, he said a student told him that he and a classmate wanted to retake a test, which is allowed under the grading policy. The teacher told the students they needed to do their homework to get a retake.

But Waters said the teacher had generally discouraged homework, saying students don't have to do it.

Hinsdale Central's principal, Bill Walsh, said teachers shouldn't put out mixed messages.

"We should be communicating upfront that homework is an essential part of the learning process," Walsh said. "I think there are a lot of stories out there, and the truth lies somewhere in the middle. I hope we don't have teachers who say homework is optional and then turn around and say it wasn't optional if you want to do a retake."

When board members hinted at making changes this school year, Walsh advised against doing so. He said the district should continue digging into the numbers and give an end-of-the-year presentation.

Board President Catherine Greenspon said the district should remember its current students.

"We're losing time, and students are being affected," she said. "They could be negatively impacted."

She added, "I've been on the board for 2½ years, and for 2½ years, the board has consistently asked for presentations on grading."

Member Bobby Fischer said administrators "soft-shoed" the history of the grading policy, which he said came three years ago as a "complete surprise."

"This policy was implemented capriciously in 2022 with no board discussion and with very little input from the teachers," he said. "We're acting like this policy was implemented well, and the fact is, it wasn't."

A few years ago, district officials sought a uniform grading policy. They said they eliminated 38 different grading scales and developed a unified one.