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SAU16 committee wins board approval for clearer K–8 proficiency scale
Summary
The Kensington board approved a switch to a four-point proficiency scale and added performance indicators after staff and caregiver surveys found current competency language was unclear; the change is intended to improve clarity for families and classroom reporting.
Jill, chief academic officer for SAU16, told the Kensington School Board that a district committee recommends moving the elementary report card to a four-point proficiency scale and adding performance indicators beneath competency statements.
The committee surveyed 163 staff members, 464 caregivers and middle-school students and found families and staff struggled to interpret terms such as “developing” and “proficient.” “Caregivers frequently indicated that proficiency levels such as developing and proficient don't clearly communicate student performance,” Jill said during the presentation.
Why it matters: Board members said clearer language should help families understand student progress and reduce reliance on narrative comments. Under the proposal the K–8 card would use a consistent scale—beginning, developing, proficient, and proficient with distinction—while reporting at the more specific performance-indicator level to give clearer, actionable information about what students know and can do.
Committee work and input: SAU16 convened district and building administrators and teachers for multi-hour meetings and used Qualtrics and a Google form to collect feedback. The presentation noted that middle-school students reported they "understand CMS proficiency levels," while caregivers and staff reported difficulty interpreting broad competency statements. To address that, the committee recommended keeping existing “I can” statements where useful and adding scored performance indicators so families see both the overarching competency and the specific skills being reported.
Implementation and training: Staff said they will update rubrics from three-point to four-point scales and map performance indicators into the district’s student information system, Infinite Campus. The plan includes a communication and training strategy for families (kindergarten orientation was cited as an example) and summer curriculum-mapping to align ELA with science and social studies where needed.
Board action and next steps: The board moved, seconded and approved the committee’s recommended changes for next year. Officials said they will continue calibration work with teachers, provide family-facing communications and bring final report-card materials and rubrics into the student information system before rollout.
