Currently at Mount Vernon High School, teachers are required to grade based off of EBR standards. EBR stands for evidence based grading. There has been a lot of controversy on the grading system. A big flaw in EBR is that it is very hard to be a “B” student. In EBR grading scale you can earn a 1, 2, 3 or 4 with 1 being the lowest and four being the highest. A “1” is equivalent to a “D”, “2” is equal to a “C”, “3” is equal to “A” and “4” is a “A” as well.

 EBR based grading was made to show students growth in a classroom. The idea is that a student may have gotten a “1” on a test for the standard, but by the end of the semester grows to understand and achieve the standard, earning a “3”. This gives them the opportunity to raise a grade by showing growth. But with this you must transfer those compiled grades from a number grade to letter grade. For example if the student “Y” by the end of the semester had a 2,2,2,3 in a standard the student “Y” has earned a “2” which is a “C” letter grade. Student “R” in the same class had a trend of 1,2,3,3 earns a “2” and a “C” letter grade as well. Clearly student “R” has shown the growth in their trend to earn a “3” but by requirements of EBR the student had a “2” overall because of the “1” in the standard, according to PowerSchool. 

Another flaw in EBR is the inconsistency of grading. In PowerSchool when it transfers grades it automatically rounds down. Varying from teacher to teacher you can earn grades with different trends. For example if you use student “R” grades above, some teachers would give that student’s trend a “3” which is a “A”. It also varies from teacher to teacher whether you can have retakes or rewrites on papers and tests. Other teachers will even have harder grading because the large margin to earn a “2” is so big that students who are usually a “B” student in percent grading are now equivalent to a “D+” student. Without any explanation that is clearly fair for students and their gpa’s. That could hurt a “B” student’s opportunity to get into their dream college because of EBR.