LEWISTON — The School Committee met Monday night at the Dingley Center to discuss proficiency-based learning. 

Assistant Superintendent Shawn Chabot and the rest of the proficiency-based learning implementation committee gave an update on how implementation is working out across the 13 grades within the school system.

“We know we didn’t have it all right last year and had pieces to fix,” said Amber Eliason, principal at Thomas J. McMahon Elementary School.

Proficiency-based education refers to a system of academic instruction, assessment, grading and reporting that is based on students demonstrating mastery of the knowledge and skills they are expected to learn before they progress to the next lesson, get promoted to the next grade level or receive a diploma.

The committee is focused on improving and updating assessment criteria and working out the kinks in using the grading software Empower. 

The committee is also working on how students will be able to work ahead of or behind their current grade to catch up or move ahead in standards.

One of the main concerns from students and parents, according to the presentation, is going from a 0-to-100 grading system to a 1-to-4 system. 

Superintendent Bill Webster said an upside of the 1-to-4 system is that students are focused on “what they know and not what their grade is.” 

Student representatives on the School Committee, senior Matthew Hird and junior Rizzajem Reboquio, said they are concerned with how the shift in grading systems will affect their grade-point averages and college acceptances. 

The implementation committee did not have an answer on when the 1-to-4 grading system will be implemented in grades 10, 11 and 12. It is only used in grade 9 at the high school.

The Lewiston School Committee members meeting Monday night are, from left, student representative Rizzajem Reboquio, student representative Matthew Hird, Ward 7 Councilor Tina Hutchinson, Ward 6 Councilor Mark Cayer, Ward 5 Councilor Luke Jensen, Ward 4 Councilor Tanya Estabrook, Superintendent Bill Webster, Ward 3 Councilor Francis Gagnon, Ward 2 Councilor Monique Roy, Ward 1 Councilor Renee Courtemanche and Lewiston City Council representative Alicia Rea. (Daryn Slover/Sun Journal)

Lewiston Assistant Superintendent Shawn Chabot shares a lighter moment with the Lewiston School Committee on Monday. (Daryn Slover/Sun Journal)