Signals: Reports

For Whom: Signals

Getting Smart Resources

Beyond Report Cards: Louisville Students Use Portfolios to Curate and Defend Their Personal Learning Record

This Getting Smart article examines how Louisville schools are replacing or supplementing traditional report cards with student-led portfolio systems that allow learners to curate evidence of their growth and defend their learning records to an audience. The resource details how students take ownership of documenting their competencies, experiences, and achievements in ways that go beyond letter grades, presenting a more holistic and personalized picture of what they know and can do. For practitioners and school leaders, it offers a concrete model of assessment transformation that shifts power to students while addressing long-standing critiques of standardized grading systems. It matters because reimagining how learning is reported is foundational to broader innovation efforts — if schools change instruction and curriculum but keep the same reporting structures, the signal sent to students, families, and post-secondary institutions remains unchanged.

Building Coherent Grading and Reporting Systems in Competency-Based Education

Aurora Institute
The Aurora Institute’s “Building Coherent Grading and Reporting Systems in Competency-Based Education” is a practitioner-focused resource that guides schools and districts in redesigning how student learning is measured and communicated within competency-based education (CBE) frameworks. It addresses one of the most persistent implementation challenges in CBE: creating grading and reporting systems that accurately reflect mastery of skills and knowledge rather than seat time, compliance, or averaged performance. The resource offers concrete guidance on aligning transcripts, report cards, and grading policies to competency-based principles, helping educators move away from traditional letter grades that obscure what students actually know and can do. For school leaders navigating the shift to CBE, this matters because incoherent grading systems undermine the entire model—when reporting structures contradict competency-based values, stakeholder trust erodes and students lose the clear feedback loops essential to mastery-based progression.

Sweet Home Central School District (NY) – Elementary School

Sweet Home Central School District (NY)
The Sweet Home Central School District in New York offers a practitioner-focused resource examining how an elementary school within the district uses Signals reports to inform instructional decision-making and student support. Signals reports function as data tools that surface early indicators of student progress, engagement, or risk, allowing educators to intervene proactively rather than reactively. This resource provides school leaders and practitioners with a concrete, real-world example of how a public district school has integrated data reporting into its regular practice at the elementary level. For those exploring learning innovation, it matters because it demonstrates how actionable data systems can be embedded into existing school structures to drive more responsive, evidence-informed teaching without requiring wholesale systemic overhaul.

Digital Promise
This Digital Promise resource documents how Utah Schools for the Blind and Deaf undertook the complex work of developing standards-based report cards tailored to the unique needs of students with visual and hearing impairments. It offers an in-depth look at the practical challenges and decision-making processes involved in aligning reporting systems to academic standards while honoring the diverse learning profiles of specialized student populations. The resource provides school leaders with a concrete example of how to rethink traditional grading and reporting structures to better communicate student progress in meaningful, equitable ways. For practitioners driving learning innovation, this case is particularly valuable because it demonstrates that standards-based reporting reform is not one-size-fits-all and requires intentional design when serving students whose educational experiences differ significantly from mainstream settings.

Fulton County Schools – Building the Components of a Competency-Based Framework

Digital Promise
This Digital Promise report examines how Fulton County Schools in Georgia developed and implemented the foundational components of a competency-based education (CBE) framework, detailing the district’s strategic process for defining competencies, aligning instructional practices, and building systems that prioritize demonstrated mastery over seat time. The resource offers school and district leaders a concrete case study of how a large, diverse public school system navigated the structural and cultural shifts required to move toward competency-based progressions, including insights on stakeholder engagement, policy alignment, and the role of professional learning. For practitioners and leaders exploring CBE or personalized learning models, this report matters because it translates an often abstract reform concept into actionable district-level practice, providing a replicable roadmap grounded in the real challenges and decisions of a system operating at scale.

Competency-based Reporting Playbook

Learner Centered Collaborative
The Competency-based Reporting Playbook, developed by Learner Centered Collaborative, is a practical guide designed to help schools and districts move away from traditional letter grades toward reporting systems that communicate what students actually know and can do. It offers concrete tools, frameworks, and examples for designing and implementing competency-based report cards and progress reports that provide meaningful, actionable information to students, families, and educators. The resource addresses common implementation challenges, including stakeholder communication and system alignment, making it useful for schools at various stages of the transition. For practitioners and leaders pursuing learner-centered transformation, this playbook matters because reporting systems are a high-leverage lever—how progress is communicated shapes expectations, equity, and the degree to which assessment actually drives learning rather than simply ranking students.

Transparently Tracking and Communicating Progress and Growth in Competency-Based Schools

Aurora Institute
This resource from the Aurora Institute addresses one of the most practical and persistent challenges in competency-based education: how schools communicate student progress in ways that are meaningful, accurate, and transparent to students, families, and educators. It examines the design and use of reporting systems that move beyond traditional letter grades to convey what students actually know and can do relative to specific competencies. The resource offers guidance on aligning reporting tools and communication practices with the principles of competency-based learning, helping schools ensure that progress data reflects genuine mastery rather than compliance or time-served. For practitioners and leaders navigating the shift to competency-based systems, this matters because weak or inconsistent communication of student progress can undermine stakeholder trust and stall broader transformation efforts—making credible, transparent reporting not just a logistical concern but a strategic one.

CBE in Practice: Grading

CompetencyWorks
CBE in Practice: Grading is a practitioner-focused resource from CompetencyWorks that examines how competency-based education systems approach grading as a meaningful signal of student learning rather than a measure of compliance or time spent. It explores how schools and districts can redesign grading practices to accurately reflect what students know and can do, addressing common challenges such as separating academic mastery from behaviors like attendance or effort. The resource offers concrete guidance on building grading systems that are transparent, equitable, and aligned to clearly defined competencies, making it particularly useful for schools in transition from traditional point-accumulation models. For education leaders pursuing systemic transformation, this resource matters because grading reform is often one of the most contested and culturally embedded barriers to implementing competency-based education at scale.

CompetencyWorks Resources

CompetencyWorks
CompetencyWorks Resources is a curated collection of reports, guides, and research publications produced by CompetencyWorks, a leading initiative focused on advancing competency-based education (CBE) in K-12 and higher education settings. The collection offers practitioners and school leaders access to signals reports that track emerging trends, policy developments, and implementation insights across the competency-based learning landscape, drawing on real examples from schools and systems navigating this shift. These resources provide actionable evidence and frameworks that help educators move beyond traditional seat-time models toward personalized, mastery-focused approaches where students advance upon demonstrated proficiency. For those driving education transformation, the CompetencyWorks library serves as a reliable reference point for understanding both the promise and the practical challenges of CBE, grounding innovation efforts in research rather than assumption.

Measuring Student Progress in Competency-Based Education Programs

California Competes
California Competes’ report *Measuring Student Progress in Competency-Based Education Programs* examines how schools and institutions can effectively track and document student learning within competency-based education (CBE) frameworks, where advancement is tied to demonstrated mastery rather than seat time. The resource explores the tools, metrics, and systems used to assess student progress in CBE contexts, offering practitioners and leaders concrete guidance on aligning measurement practices with the core principles of competency-based approaches. For school leaders pursuing personalized or mastery-based learning models, this report is particularly valuable because credible, defensible progress measurement is one of the most persistent implementation challenges in CBE—without it, programs struggle to earn stakeholder trust and meet accountability requirements. As interest in alternatives to traditional grading and credit systems grows, this resource provides evidence-informed direction for building assessment infrastructure that genuinely reflects what students know and can do.

Strategies for Tracking Student Progress

Knack
Knack’s “Strategies for Tracking Student Progress” is a practitioner-focused resource that explores how educators and school leaders can use reporting tools and data signals to monitor student learning over time. It offers concrete strategies for interpreting progress indicators, identifying patterns in student performance, and using that information to make timely instructional decisions. The resource is particularly relevant for schools working to move beyond summative assessment toward continuous, evidence-informed approaches to teaching and learning. For leaders driving education transformation, it provides a practical framework for building a data-responsive culture where student progress is visible, actionable, and central to instructional planning.

← Back to For Whom: Signals

	Beginning	Piloting	Implementing
From Fixed Standards to Competency-Based Mastery	BeginningFrom Fixed Standards to Competency-Based Mastery Beginning	PilotingFrom Fixed Standards to Competency-Based Mastery Piloting	ImplementingFrom Fixed Standards to Competency-Based Mastery Implementing
From One-Size-Fits-All to Adaptive Learning	BeginningFrom One-Size-Fits-All to Adaptive Learning Beginning	PilotingFrom One-Size-Fits-All to Adaptive Learning Piloting	ImplementingFrom One-Size-Fits-All to Adaptive Learning Implementing
From Prescribed Knowledge to Innovation & Inquiry	BeginningFrom Prescribed Knowledge to Innovation & Inquiry Beginning	PilotingFrom Prescribed Knowledge to Innovation & Inquiry Piloting	ImplementingFrom Prescribed Knowledge to Innovation & Inquiry Implementing
From Subjects as Silos to Transdisciplinary, Real-World Learning	BeginningFrom Subjects as Silos to Transdisciplinary, Real-World Learning Beginning	PilotingFrom Subjects as Silos to Transdisciplinary, Real-World Learning Piloting	ImplementingFrom Subjects as Silos to Transdisciplinary, Real-World Learning Implementing
From Schools as Self-Contained to Schools as Embedded in Communities	BeginningFrom Schools as Self-Contained to Schools as Embedded in Communities Beginning	PilotingFrom Schools as Self-Contained to Schools as Embedded in Communities Piloting	ImplementingFrom Schools as Self-Contained to Schools as Embedded in Communities Implementing
From Standardized Testing to Meaningful Assessment	BeginningFrom Standardized Testing to Meaningful Assessment Beginning	PilotingFrom Standardized Testing to Meaningful Assessment Piloting	ImplementingFrom Standardized Testing to Meaningful Assessment Implementing
From Institutional Ownership of Student Data to Student-Controlled Learning Wallets	BeginningFrom Institutional Ownership of Student Data to Student-Controlled Learning Wallets Beginning	PilotingFrom Institutional Ownership of Student Data to Student-Controlled Learning Wallets Piloting	ImplementingFrom Institutional Ownership of Student Data to Student-Controlled Learning Wallets Implementing

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