Proficiency Scale

To help families clearly understand student progress, NKC Schools uses a proficiency scale to show how well students are meeting specific learning goals. Instead of using percentage scores or averaging points, this scale highlights a student’s current level of understanding for each standard.

The scale helps families see where their student is starting, how they’re growing, and when they’ve fully met a learning goal. It breaks learning into clear steps, giving teachers, students, and families a shared language for discussing progress.

Elementary (K-5)
Secondary (6-12)

Elementary (K-5)

Proficiency Scale at Elementary Level (Kindergarten - 5th Grade)

In elementary grades, students will get feedback about their learning on a five-level scale. Each level has an abbreviation that families may see in feedback from teachers, shown to the left.

Icon: green circle containing white letter P

Students independently met the learning target related to the standard.

Icon: light blue circle containing white letters NP

Students demonstrate understanding of most concepts/skills related to the standard.

Icon: purple circle containing white letters DEV

Students demonstrate understanding of simpler concepts/skills related to the standard.

Icon: yellow circle containing white letters NY

Even with help, students have limited understanding of concept/skills related to the standard.

Icon: gray circle containing white letters NE

There is no demonstrated understanding or insufficient evidence to assess learning at this time.

Secondary (6-12)

Proficiency Scale at Secondary Level (Grades 6-12)

From 6th grade on, students will continue get feedback using a five-point number scale, from zero to four. These numbers correspond to the same levels of proficiency as they are already used to from elementary school. The difference is that beginning in 6th grade, students will also receive a letter grade on their final report card at the end of each quarter or semester. These are shown on the right side of the chart below.