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Thousands of McLean students regularly use StudentVue to monitor their academic progress, but the portal becomes unavailable for an extended period after each quarter ends. The shutdown can leave students waiting until the following quarter to see final grades, including scores from late assignments and tests.

Sophomore Murad Feroze said the timing is particularly frustrating when teachers grade major work near the deadline.

“I think it’s very frustrating that we can’t see our grades once the quarter ends because sometimes I want to see what I got on a test or assignment that was due at the end of the quarter and I just can’t,” Feroze said.

School policy closes StudentVue after each quarter so teachers can finalize grades before report cards are issued. The pause is intended to reduce mistakes and prevent confusion while grades remain incomplete or subject to change.

Supporters of the closure also argue that teachers need time to finish grading without pressure from students repeatedly checking the portal or asking about updates.

For students who rely on the gradebook to measure their performance, however, the loss of access can create uncertainty.

“Seeing my grades helps me know what to improve and what I’m doing well with,” freshman Grayson Terzaken said. “When it’s closed, I’m always worrying about my grades and GPA.”

Some students believe a read-only version of StudentVue could offer a compromise. It would let them review posted scores without interfering with teachers as they complete the grading process.

Because students already know that grades can change before they are finalized, advocates of limited access say a complete shutdown causes more anxiety than it prevents. A view-only option, they argue, could preserve transparency while still giving teachers room to close out the quarter.