Since August 2020, the North Allegheny District has switched to a Summative and Formative grading system, which resulted in a lot of changes for students.

The Summative Formative grading system created two grading categories: The Summative category carries more weight which includes tests, projects, and quizzes, while the Formative carries less weight including homework, worksheets, and tiny projects.

Students were quickly able to see just how detrimental or helpful it was to their grades. In the teachers’ case, they had the laborious task of deciding what assignments are Formative and which are Summative.

The guidelines are still not transparent. Many teachers interpret guidelines differently according to district policy in their own syllabi. For example, students in some World Cultures classes report having separate Summative quizzes and Formative quizzes instead of just Summative. 

Because of the new 70/30 grading split, teachers have noticed some students have placed less emphasis on their homework. A teacher from the History department said, “it (the grading system) has the least [effect], probably, with Formative stuff, just because you get enough Summative points and all [of a] sudden, you know, a kid blows off a 15 point Formative assignment and it’s like a fraction or fraction of a percentage of the grade and I think some kids come to, you know, kind of rely on knowing ‘hey I can blow this thing off tonight.’” 

Teachers also have noticed the harm of students depending on being able to ignore assignments, and then not understanding the material and looking for points elsewhere. The teacher pointed out, “and probably, I mean, if we’re talking about greatest, it’s probably the danger of kids thinking that the Formative doesn’t really matter, not paying enough attention to it, and then getting…then the Summative stuff comes up and bites them in the butt cause they didn’t do things…”

The teacher then went on to say kids were chasing points because they blew off little assignments.

Because the grading split creates a greater impact on test scores, in many classes students who are not strong test takers see their grades negatively affected. An NA student in classes last year stated, “Well, I can tell you it’s the only reason I got a B in an honors biology last year. I’m an OK test taker, but that class was a bit of a challenge, at least on the test.”

Many students and teachers have also seen the drawbacks of the system. Students are seeing a substantial effect on their grades based on large projects and tests/quizzes. One 10th grade student in an Honors class said, “I feel like teachers are starting to use it more for both tests and other random high point assignments and projects, which renders it almost completely useless because under a normal grading system those assignments would affect grades more than usual homework assignments too.”

Students have also noticed that they can ignore homework assignments while still being able to succeed in the class. However, in the long run, this can create struggles in learning the material. 

As one student pointed out, “I also feel like it’s kind of made doing homework less worthwhile, because even if I miss a few homework assignments, the absolute most it can bring me down is 30%. I know that as long as I get even just a 33% on all homework assignments, if I test perfectly I can still get a B.” 

The Summative-Formative grading system has also had adverse mental health effects for many. One student stated, “It has definitely put a lot of stress on me, and it’s caused a lot of anxiety to be able to focus. Luckily I’ve had a lot of friends around me [who] have helped me…it does cause a lot of stress, because it’s like, you know that if you don’t watch it, like, teachers are going to be on your back about it, so you just have to really pay attention.” 

However, there are still some positives to the system. One student said, “Honestly, the thing that makes me happy is that it feels like I’m doing less work for the same grade, even though I know that I pretty much make up all the time I don’t spend doing homework studying instead.” It helps students feel not burdened by homework and allows them to focus on what they need to. The Summative/Formative system also encourages students to review what they have learned and apply it.. 

Another student said, “Honestly, it mostly just affects my decisions when I’m at home. I’m more likely to just reread my notes than I am to complete any assigned homework now, because I know that the tests will likely have more weight than the homework.” Students are noticing that smaller point values are not affecting their grades as much as they used to, and they need to study to be successful.

Although the new grading system in the North Allegheny School district has many positives and negatives, many students are struggling to adapt to the new nature of the grading policy. It shows how switching the grading scale can affect all the teachers and students immensely in more harmful ways than helpful.