SC Uniform Grading Policy

Policies, Procedures & Protocol

Faculty and Staff Training

Beaufort County School District

What is the SC Uniform Grading Policy?

• The uniform grading policy was implemented in

all South Carolina high schools in the 2000-2001

school year.

• In January 2007, the State Board of Education

approved the revised uniform grading policy to

ensure its alignment with recommendations in the

Report of the South Carolina High School

Redesign Commission (March 2006) and the

Education and Economic Development Act

(2005). The revised policy was effective for all

students in the 2007–08 school year.

SC Uniform Grading Policy Is Made Of Different Components • Letter to Number Grades

• Grade Conversions

• Grade Point Averages

• Courses Carrying Carnegie Units

• Courses Weighted With Rigor

• EOCEP and Credit Recovery

• Withdraw Penalties

• Failure Due to Attendance

• Converting Grades on Transcripts

• Retaking a Course

• HS Credits Earned At Middle School

Letter “2” Number

All grades on report cards and transcripts

in South Carolina public high schools will

be numerical. The numerical breaks for

corresponding letter grades are:

SC UGS

• 93-100% = A

• 85-92% = B

• 77-84% = C

• 70-76% = D

• 62-69% = F

• 0-61% = F

Grade Conversion Chart

A student's grade point average

and rank in class will be figured

from a grade-point conversion

table to ensure Uniform Grading

Across the State of SC.

Grade-Point Conversion Table Grade Weighing Chart

Average Grade CP Honors AP/IB

100 A 4.87 5.37 5.87

99 A 4.75 5.25 5.75

93 A 4.00 4.50 5.00

92 B 3.87 4.37 4.87

91 B 3.75 4.25 4.75

90 B 3.62 4.12 4.62

89 B 3.50 4.00 4.50

86 B 3.12 3.62 4.12

85 B 3.00 3.50 4.00

62 F .12 .62 1.12

0-61 F .00 .00 .00

Computing Grade Point Averages

All South Carolina public schools will use the

following formula to compute all GPAs:

• GPA = sum (quality points x units)

sum of units attempted

Computations will not be rounded to a higher

number.

Courses Carrying Carnegie Units

• The uniform grading scale and the system for

calculating GPAs and class rank will apply to all

courses carrying Carnegie units, including units

earned at the middle or junior high school level.

• All report cards and transcripts will use

numerical grades for courses carrying Carnegie

units.

• Transcripts and report cards will specify the

course title and the level or type of course the

student has taken (e.g., English 1, Algebra 2

honors, AP U.S. History). The grading scale

must be printed on the report card.

Courses Weighted With Rigor

• Honors Courses

One half of a quality point (.5) is added to

the CP weighting for honors courses.

• Dual Credit Courses

One Quality Point is added to the CP

weighting for dual credit courses that are

applicable to baccalaureate degrees or to

associate degrees offered by accredited

institutions.

Courses Weighted With Rigor

• Advanced Placement and International

Baccalaureate Courses

Only AP or IB courses can be awarded a full

quality point above the CP weighting. Seminar or

support courses for AP or IB may be weighted as

honors but not as AP or IB courses.

An AP course can carry only one quality point.

A standard level (SL) IB course can carry only

one quality point. However, two quality points of IB

credit can be granted for higher level (HL) courses

in the IB program that require a minimum of 240

hours of instruction.

EOCEP and Credit Recovery

Students will be allowed to take the

examination only once, at the end of the

regular course duration and not at the end of

an extended period granted through the

credit recovery option. Students who repeat

the course must be treated as though they

are taking the course for the first time, and

all requirements will apply.

Withdraw Penalties

With the first day of enrollment as

the baseline, students who withdraw

from a course within 3 days in a 45-

day course, 5 days in a 90-day

course, or 10 days in a 180-day

course will do so without penalty.

Failure Due To Attendance

If a student fails a course due to excessive absences, an FA will be recorded on his or

her transcript. The grade of FA will carry no Carnegie units but will be factored into the

student’s GPA as a 61.

Converting Grades On Transcripts

• When transcripts are received from

accredited out of state schools and numerical

averages are provided, those averages must

be used in transferring the grades to the

student’s record.

• If letter grades with no numerical averages

are provided, this conversion will apply: A =

96, B = 88, C = 80, D = 73, F = 61. If the

transcript indicates that the student has

earned a passing grade in any course in

which he or she had a numerical average

lower than 70, that average will be converted

to a 73 numerical grade on the new scale.

Converting Grades On Transcripts

• If the transcript shows that the student has

earned a grade of P (passing), that grade

will be converted to a numerical

designation on the basis of information

secured from the sending institution as to

the appropriate numerical value of the P.

• If no numerical average can be obtained

from the sending institution, the student’s

cumulative transfer GPA will be calculated

and the corresponding number equivalent

will be assigned to replace the P.

Retaking A Course

Students may retake courses to improve their

grades:

• Only courses in which a grade of a D or F was

earned may be retaken.

• The course in which a D or F was earned may only

be retaken during the current academic year or no

later than the next academic school year. Both the

D or F earned and the grade earned in the retake

will be figured into the overall grade point ratio.

HS Credits Earned at MS Policy

The student's record will reflect all courses

taken (including units earned at the middle

school) and the grade earned with the following

exceptions:

Students taking courses for a Carnegie unit prior to

their 9th grade year may retake any such course during

their 9th grade year. In this case, only the 9th grade

retake grade will be used in figuring the student's GPR

and only the 9th grade attempt will show on the

transcript. This rule will apply whether the grade earned

is higher or lower than the pre-ninth grade attempt.

Resources

SC Uniform Grading Policies

Documents

• 1999 Grading Scale Policy

• 2007 South Carolina Uniform Grading Policy

• Side-by-Side Comparison of the 1999 Grading Scale Policy

and the 2007 South Carolina Uniform Grading Policy

http://ed.sc.gov/agency/Standards-and-

Learning/Academic-Standards/old/hsr/UGP.html

Questions and Answers

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