January 13th, 2023

WRDSB will return to final grades composed of 70% evaluation gathered throughout the term, and a 30% final assessment assessment. This final assessment (30% of the grade) will be based on a final examination, performance, essay and/or other method of evaluation suitable to the course content and administered near the end of the course. Final evaluations offer students engaging opportunities to demonstrate their achievement of the overall expectations in a variety of ways and allow for teachers to gather triangulated evidence of student learning.

School staff have been working with administration, department leadership and learning networks to continue to refine the fair and equitable assessment practices we have learned so much about through the pandemic. Based on this, the use of exams will occur as a portion of the final assessment in some of the grades 11 and 12 courses at WCI. The decision to permit exams only in grade 11 and 12 courses aligns with the WRDSB’s commitment to de-streaming and single streaming core grade 9 and 10 courses. It removes high stakes exam final evaluations in the junior grades, and supports trauma-informed practices while still allowing students in post-secondary destination courses to experience preparation in developing study skills and exam writing skills and strategies.

There is an expectation that students complete all parts of a course’s final assessment.  Students who do not complete the final assessment do not take advantage of the opportunity to provide recent evidence to verify or confirm their consistent level of performance, at the end of a course.  If a student does not provide some significant evidence in the form of a final exam or final evaluation components (e.g. assignment, lab, presentation, performance task, etc.), it may result in the student attaining a reduced grade and/or failure based on the overall evidence as reflected in the term work and final evaluation components.

FINAL EVALUATION & EXAM INFORMATION:

  • For those courses without exams, final evaluations will occur during the week of Jan 23 – 30. Please speak with your course teacher regarding these timelines.
  • Courses with final exams are scheduled for Tuesday, January 31 through to Thursday February 2, starting at the posted times each day. During the exam preparation period, January 24 – 30, students are expected to continue to complete homework and review exercises to better prepare them for any formal exams. In addition to final exams, intensive assessment and evaluation will be occurring during the weeks prior to the exam period for those courses without exams posted in the above lists.

ABSENTEEISM: 

  • During the in-class evaluation days of Jan 23 – Jan 30, students are expected to attend all classes.
  • Students are required to be present on the assigned date for all their examinations and summative evaluations.
  • Vacations or trips abroad are not acceptable reasons for missing exams or final summatives.
  • During the exam period students are required to be in school only when they need to write an exam. 

LATES: 

  • Students late up to 10 minutes will go directly to the examination room without signing in at the Main Office. After 10 minutes, students must sign in at the Main Office and will be taken to the Overflow Room to write their exam.
  • Students must arrive before the end of the exam to be allowed to write the exam.

TEXTBOOKS:

  • Classroom teachers will share their expectations for textbook collection with students. 

MATERIALS:

  • Only writing implements and other approved aids should be brought into the exam room – unapproved exam aids will be referred to their VP for disciplinary measures.
  • Calculators are allowed on all exams unless instructions at the top of the exam state otherwise (cell phones may NOT be used as calculators).

SEVERE WEATHER INFORMATION

  • When a severe weather day occurs or any WRDSB buses are canceled in any geographic area of the Waterloo Region (Kitchener, Waterloo, Baden, Elmira, Cambridge), between January 31 to February 2, 2023,  all final evaluations will be shifted forward one day (i.e. the final evaluations scheduled for Tuesday, January 31 would be shifted to Wednesday, February 1, Wednesday the 1st move to the Thursday the 2nd, PA day remains on Friday the 3rd, and evaluations from the Thursday the 2nd move to Monday the 6th).
  • The February 3, 2023 PA day will not be moved if a severe weather day occurs leading up to this date as moving the PA day has a significant impact system-wide.

Please Click Here for the Exam Schedule