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Report Card Changes To Reflect TCAP Scores

October 21, 2011

Please note: This article was originally published on 10/21/2011. Information and/or dates from past events may be not be relevant for the current school year.

Beginning this year, to be in compliance with State Law, the TCAP test that 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th, 7th, and 8th grade students take in the spring will count 15% of their second semester grade. Because of this change, report cards will look different this year. There are two additional columns called semester averages and TCAP. There will be no score in the TCAP column until the last report card.

The percentage had to be determined by the local board from a range of no less than 15% and no more than 25%.  The policy must use performance levels by the State Board of Education and be developed and implemented for the spring semester of 2012.  This was to take effect last year, but the state could not get the information returned in a timely fashion.

Meanwhile, for middle and high school students who are taking classes that require end of course examinations, the EOC scores have counted as a percentage of the student’s grade since they have been administered.  This range has been from 15% to the 20% that began in 2009.  According to Tennessee Code Annotated 49-1-302, beginning in the fall of 2011 and thereafter, the weight of end of course. There is no option for the End of Course grade percentage for high school students.

School districts in Tennessee are not yet certain of how the TCAP test is transferred to a numeric grade, but it will be done so that 15% of the final grade is the TCAP.

TCAP provides us with helpful information. Each year our staff spends many hours at the beginning studying the results together in great detail. They make adjustments in scope and sequence within the curriculum and identify areas that they need to work on .  I am especially proud of our teachers’ work in this as we do more than most districts. The scores do now count 35% of their evaluation now and can count up to 50%.