NORTHVILLE, Mich. (WXYZ) — Right now, there is a bill proposed in Lansing that would throw out an A to F grading system for Michigan schools.
When lawmakers passed it a few years ago, they said the goal was to provide families with easily understandable measures of school quality.
“The system is flawed,” Northville Public Schools Superintendent RJ Webber, Ph.D., said.
Webber is one of many school leaders who say the grading system is so unfair that it confuses parents. One of his big complaints is how the state groups schools into groups of schools with similar demographics. Within their peer groups, someone has to get a poor grade.
“Nine of our schools had what would be considered A grades in the A through F grading system. But there is a mechanism where you have to compare them to your like districts. So realize that one of our schools received a D,” Webber said.
Webber says that school is among the most high-performing schools in the state, but it was within a peer group of other high-performing schools.
“We have these schools that are performing well, but because of the way the A through F was built in Michigan, there has to be a loser in this scenario,” Webber said.
Rep. Matt Koleszar, a Democrat from Plymouth, sponsored the bill to get rid of the grading system.
Opponents of the bill say it is important to give parents more ways to judge schools for accountability.
The Great Lakes Education Project, which supports the grading system, sent out a tweet saying, "Your kids get report cards. Shouldn't their school?"
You can hear lawmakers debate the bill here.
