Parents as Partners in Learning
For two years staff in School District No. 42 have explored a better way to communicate student learning. Instead of producing a formal written report card, teachers met with students and parents to conduct a reporting conference. Through the use of student portfolios, parents are able to see a sample of student work in several learning areas and are able to look at their child’s progress over time.
What Can You Expect?
Teachers are required to report on student progress 5 times during the school year.
- One parent/student/teacher conference at the end of Nov. This will be in-depth and will be based on a collection of student work. Teachers and students will comment on individual learning in a conference format rather than a formal written report. At the conference, a future learning goal will be determined by the student, parent and teacher. Notes of each conference will be kept on a conferencing report card template and these, along with literacy and numeracy learning achievements will be kept in the student’s file. Parents will receive a copy of the notes from the conference.
- A second parent/student/teacher conference will be completed prior to Spring Break. This process will be identical to that in the first term.
- A formal written report will be given at the end of the school year that details learning in the third term and summarizes learning through the year.
- Two informal reports will be done throughout the year. These can take many different forms (e.g. sending work samples home for you to review, phone calls, informal or formal meetings, shorter progress checklists throughout the year)
Our research indicates that this method of reporting was found to be more meaningful and informative for teachers, parents, and students. We appreciate your support as we explore this new way to report on your child’s progress and we will be very much looking forward to your feedback throughout the year as we work to refine the process. As always, please do not hesitate to contact your teacher if you have any questions.
Sincerely
The Data Review and Reporting Committee
Additional information on SD42 Reporting at http://schools.sd42.ca/sd42reporting/