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Des Moines' School District Tries New Approach with Grading

The school year has begun once again, and students heading back to Iowa’s largest school district may notice a difference in the way they are graded.

Middle schools and some high schools in the Des Moines Public School District are adopting a grading practice called "standards-referenced grading." Nanci Smith, a national curriculum consultant supports this new style of grading, saying it eliminates bias and gives a more accurate assessment of what students learn. River to River host Ben Kieffer also talks with Mary Cooksley, of the Oskaloosa Community School District, who describes how the program has worked in those schools over the past three years.

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Ben Kieffer is the host of IPR's River to River