Middle School Announces New Grading and Assessment for 2025-26

Starting in the 2025-26 school year, University School of Milwaukee’s Middle School will launch a standards-based grading (SBG) system for students in 6th through 8th grade. This change is the result of several years of research, faculty-led committees, and a successful transition to SBG in the 5th grade in the 2022-23 academic year. This approach not only aligns with the grading practices of USM’s Preschool and Lower School, but it also aligns with other K-8 schools, many of which use SBG throughout all these grade levels

SBG is an approach to assessment and reporting that measures a student’s progress toward clearly defined learning—called standards—rather than averaging scores from assignments, quizzes, and tests over time.

Instead of receiving one overall grade in a subject (like a B in math), students are evaluated on specific skills or concepts (e.g., “solves multi-step equations” or “interprets data sets”). The goal is to more accurately report what a student knows and can do.

Why is USM’s Middle School Transitioning to SBG? 

Teachers and administrators wanted to create a structure of grading and feedback to increase transparency, fast-track learning, and promote learning attributes. They also wanted students to feel confident and strong in the academic skills necessary for success in USM’s Upper School.
 
SBG provides detailed, skill-specific feedback that helps students, parents, and teachers better support growth and learning. Unlike a traditional letter grade, SBG allows teachers to pinpoint strengths and areas for growth using detailed, skill-specific assessments. Gaining an understanding of which areas students need to improve through targeted feedback allows them to target their efforts.

“The idea for SBG came out of USM’s strategic plan to cultivate excellence in learning, and to strengthen our assessment practices to honor the range of learners we have,” said Elaine Griffin, USM’s head of Middle School.

How Does it Work?

Teachers identify essential skills and standards that become the focus of instruction and assessment. Instead of receiving a single percentage or letter grade, students get feedback on how well they are progressing toward each standard—often in categories like “exceeds,” “meets,” “approaches,” or “needs support.”

Rather than displaying a single grade for a subject, the report card will show progress in specific skills. For example, an English class might rate a student’s ability and progress in several different areas, such as vocabulary, grammar, and reading comprehension. This results in an assessment that celebrates specific strengths, targets areas for growth, and gives parents a more transparent breakdown of how their child is progressing and how they can better support his or her success. It also gives teachers a way to objectively evaluate measurable skills that are practiced and communicated with students and families through assignments, assessments, and conferences.

With SBG, non-academic factors like late work, effort, and participation are reported separately from academic achievement to provide a clearer, more accurate picture of what the student has actually learned. It values progress and improvement, allowing students to demonstrate learning over time. Early struggles don’t permanently lower a grade if the student later demonstrates mastery. In addition, it is developmentally appropriate for middle-school aged children, who are still developing core academic and organizational skills.

How Does This Impact Students’ Transition to USM’s Upper School?

Starting in 9th grade at USM, students receive typical A-F letter grades, along with a grade point average. Eighth grade teachers will speak with students to help them understand how the standards on their report cards would translate into letter grades to ensure that 8th graders have a smooth transition to the Upper School. “In Middle School, students’ transcripts are not shared externally like they are in Upper School, and I feel that we should harness that to our advantage,” said Griffin. “Let’s support kids in having a true and transparent understanding of what they know, and then have really heartfelt conversations about the learning attributes or habits that they need to work on, so that they are prepared for Upper School.”