Seriously - we get more commotion over a change that has been around for years than towns that have real changes going on!
Last year the decision was made to change up to grades 4 to have assessment type grading instead of letter grades (previously it was through grade 2). We were told then that this would expand out to grade 6 at some point. Now that we have made the decision, everyone has a comment.
I digress - let me start from the beginning. A decision was made to go to assessment type grading. Some people were concerned, some weren't. I had my doubts about it, but as in my usual style, I have confidence in our administrative team and will always give them the benefit of the doubt that they are the experts when it comes to education. I talked to teachers - and to parents. Basically, teachers explained the hard position they were in with younger children. They were learning difficult concepts - but at that age each child is learning at a different pace. One child reading in 1st grade is excellent, but it doesn't mean that the child who hasn't caught on yet is not making progress and giving every effort to learn to read - and it absolutely doesn't mean they aren't on the cusp of figuring it out! So - for this child that is having some difficulty but giving it every effort - does the teacher really give them a C?? or worse yet - fail them because they haven't caught on quick enough? What does that do to the child - they are trying hard and will learn it - it is just taking them a bit longer to do it. Getting a failing grade in 1st grade certainly isn't going to do anyone any good in the long run. This isn't high school people- it is elementary school!
So - the current grading is more explanatory. Instead of getting an F in reading, that same child might be told he is making progress. He isn't there yet - but he will get there if he continues to try. In this case, the teacher has told the truth, the parent has heard the truth, and the child doesn't give up trying. You also can get a child like mine - who is an extremely fluid reader and can read books well above her grade level and appear to be reading them well - but does she understand them?? Now I see her on her report card that her fluidity in reading is exceeding the expectations of a child in her grade, but her comprehension is on target with her peers. It gave me a little more insight into the fact that although she can read the book, she might not necessarily understand it (how many people really think that all of those 8 year olds really understood the Twilight series?).
This is not a grading system that is carrying through to higher grades - it is for the elementary levels. It is a way for teachers to be honest about grading without demotivating a child to learn. If a third grader has received a C grade every year, is he ever going to strive for that A - or is he going to assume he is a C student and never try harder? Even though he has the will and ability - but the basics are taking a little longer to catch on. Once he has the basics he could soar - let's give him that opportunity. As an educational community - that is what we should be trying to do - get every child to want to reach their potential.
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There are certainly positives and negatives about the change in the grading system. One positive: It'll give the students a better sense of self esteem. One negative: A parent can become bewildered when the student has been given a borderline letter.
ReplyDeleteOne very helpful feature would be to include a comments section for the teacher to illiterate where the student needs the help.
Example: student is a great test taker but needs help with the essay portion.
Have you seen the report card? Each subject comes with a group of items - ie for math you get assessed on computations, problem solving, etc. It isn't one math score. I have found that I have such a better understanding of my child's abilities with this report card than with the letter grade. ex, Instead of getting a B in Math - the parent can see that they may be excelling at computations but they are having difficulty in other areas of Math. I don't really understand how anyone can say they get more information from one letter grade than from an explanatory report card.
ReplyDeleteYes, I've seen the report cards as I do have a child in this age group. A lot of the time not all of the descriptions have been marked and no comments have been added. Unless the report card is complete filled out by the teacher a parent could become confused by a mid line letter. Again, thanks for your wisdome.
ReplyDeleteNot sure about all of the sections not being marked - every report card I have received has had all sections marked on it. Maybe talk to the teacher on that one?? As for a mid line letter, going on the theory that meeting expectations is that they are meeting the expectations of their grade level, how is using that as a guideline less explanatory than a letter grade? Is C an average student meeting the expectations of the grade? or is that a B? Is an A a child who is excelling - or is it a child who is working exactly at their grade level? And you have to understand - the assessments on the report card are made from the same assignments that the letter grades came from - so you are still seeing all of the same work come home to judge how they are understanding the lessons.
ReplyDeleteWhen my child was in third grade a couple of years ago, they had letter grades (A+, A, A-, B+, B, B- and so on). Many of us parents were quite surprised with the new grading. Personally, I thought that it was completely ridiculous at that grade level. My child is a bit advanced academically and received all A's, all year. However, the grading system was extremely tedious and the teacher was completely obsessed with giving everything a percentage grade - homework, classwork, workbook pages, centers, etc. I know many of the other children were feeling very stressed and had great difficulty all year. Most of the parents just couldn't believe this type of grading for third grade (8 and 9 year olds!).
ReplyDeleteIn fourth grade they went back to the assessment type grading and as you said, a great deal of info is given on the report cards. Many different specific skills are scored under each subject and any involved parent can see quite easily how their child is doing, and what areas of weakness there might be. It certainly took a lot of pressure off the kids because, honestly, at that age the focus should be on LEARNING, not just the grade, the grade. My child actually had to get used to it though, because there were no more "A"'s to be had. A parent sometimes has to make sure that the child still puts in the effort and doesn't think why try so hard, there aren't any "A" grades anyway. Still, that can be overcome and overall, I think the assessment type grading is much more appropriate for 5th and 6th grade and I'm happy with this change.