"Linking report cards to state standards is the newest report card trend. Here's why schools are doing it and what you can expect if your school makes the change. "
~Great Schools Staff
Though parents are the second to complain (only behind teachers), standards based report cards offer specific information for how children are performing compared to what the requirements are. For those who are against schools using them, I have a not-so-simple question, what does an "A" or a "94" represent? Though we'd love to be able to say they represent true learning, that grade could depict a number of things, including attitude, behavior, and completion of homework (not necessarily done well, but completed). Wouldn't putting the specific standards students are to meet listed on a report card truly clarify where each child is at in their learning? Not only would this clarify the content the teacher is to cover, but it would also give specifics on how parents can help their children.
Along my travels, I've heard that it is a seven-year process to transfer from traditional report cards to those that are standards-based. Some prolong the beginning of this transference because of fear of the unknown, while others do it because of the outcry from the community. Wouldn't it be interesting to include our students in the process and see how they handle the change?
As a teacher, grading is one of those things that I don't particularly enjoy. There is a lot of ambiguity assigned to a number (94) and a letter (A) that you addressed in your article.
ReplyDeleteThat being said, in my district our elementary teachers have the standards based report card. The hours that is spent completing these cards go well beyond the hours they are paid to teach. Our district is (and has been for over 5 years) cash-strapped. Our teachers are not given time off nor are they given subs to help out during report card grading time.
For a teacher with 30 students, it has been reported that it takes 20 to 30 minutes to complete one of these report cards. Times that by 30 kids and that's a lot of hours. Imagine it at the secondary level where you have 100 or more (usually a lot more) students.