Verona Public Schools, after talks between its administrative team and teachers, have decided to implement a pass/fail grading system at H. B. Whitehorne Middle School and Verona High School for the remainder of the academic year.
The news came in an email to parents and caregivers from Dr. Charles R. Miller, Director of Curriculum, Instruction & Assessment.
“We particularly believe this is necessary when considering the myriad of hardships that may present themselves at this time, such as a family member becoming ill, a parent losing a job, a family-owned business that is struggling, increased and ongoing social isolation and more. In short, while we all desire a measure of continuity, we do not believe that traditional practices are sufficient or appropriate in the chaotic and unstable environment we currently find ourselves in.”
Moreover, we are a district that believes in supporting our students’ social, emotional, and mental wellness. In fact, we know that in order for a student to be successful in school, these three components need to be solidified before the fourth component, academic learning, can begin to take shape. We are indeed living in a unique time and since we will most likely not be returning to school for an extended period of time, we have decided to implement a pass/fail grading system at HBW and VHS for the remainder of the academic year.”
We do not take this decision lightly but rather sincerely believe that the uncharted territory we are now forced to navigate requires us to rethink standard grading expectations that were designed for more normal times,” says Dr. Miller.”
The email provided examples of how the pass/fail grading would work:
Read the full message from Verona Public Schools here.
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