Posts tagged with reading.

Report cards: reporting on the whole person

Kathy Dobson, April 2, 2009 at 12:28 PM

  

Combed hair, clean fingernails, tidy clothing: 60 years ago, I would have had a straight A report card. Times have changed.

Forget spelling, math, or reading. When my mother was in elementary school, students were routinely judged and graded on their appearance.

All that other academic stuff mattered too, but just as important as studying for that math test was combing down that cowlick.

When my son David, who is almost 13 and in Grade 7, brought home his report card this week, there weren't any comments about his physical appearance or hygiene habits. Instead, in addition to marks for math, science, geography, and visual arts, his teachers also rated his initiative, conflict resolution, and problem solving abilities.

What have report cards become? And what exactly are they reporting on?

According to the Ontario Ministry of Education, the provincial report card* ensures that all students attending publically funded schools in Ontario receive a standard report card based on the Ontario curriculum expectations.

The report card focuses and reports on two specific aspects of student achievement:

First, how well the student did on meeting the curriculum expectations. This refers to the more academic parts of the report card. It's an accumulation of your child's tests, assignments and projects.

The second part of the report card is an evaluation of a student's 'learning skills.' Combing your hair might not earn you marks anymore, but playing nice with others and participating in class will. These 'learning skills' include initiative, class participation, homework completion, problem solving, and setting goals to improve work habits.

Teachers' comments in this section might be more important than the marks.

If a teacher says my child is struggling with time management skills, isn't completing his homework, and needs to work on his conflict resolution skills, that's vital information about how my child is performing at school.

Of course, it shouldn't take a report card for me to realize that my child is having those kinds of problems at school.

Back in my parents' day - heck, even in my day - you'd know you were screwing up with those 'conflict resolution' skills based on the number of whacks you got with the school's strap.

But schools have evolved. Now they torture the parents.

Report cards now include a 'Response Form.' My son David has to fill it in with me, then bring it back to school. It states, "Please complete in conversation with your child."

Heh.

David is supposed to list what he's proud of having achieved, and identify his strengths. There's also a section for him to list an "academic goal" for next term, and one "learning skill" goal as well.

Then he needs to explain how he plans to achieve these goals.

As for my part, I need to share what accomplishments and progress David has made that I'm most pleased with. And also where I'd like to see some improvement, and how I'll "support my child at home" to help him achieve these goals.

Or I can simply check off the box: "I have received the report card," sign it, then send it back.

I wonder how many parents, for whatever reason, just check off that box, sending their child's report card back without any comments or feedback?

Of course, you're probably saying more with that one check mark than you ever could with any detailed response.

*Ontario report card, Grades 9-12  (Editor - education is a provincial matter, so different provinces will have different policies. For instance, see British Columbia's.)

 (Editor - these articles may be helpful in dealing with your child's report card: Reading report cards, Reacting to report cards, Five tips on dealing with report cards.)

 

Tagged with school, reading, spelling, math, standards, participating, skills, solving, cards, learning, report, problem, academic | Comments (12) |

University graduates who can't read?

Kathy Dobson, March 27, 2009 at 11:24 AM

 

How many university students are unable to read this sentence? According to a report recently published by the Canadian Council on Learning, it might be more than you think.

 

A lot more.

 

In the CCL's report, "Post-Secondary Education in Canada 2008-2009," 20 per cent of university graduates in 2006 were below Level 3 on the prose literary scale (see page 63 for the stats). A Level 3 is considered the minimum literacy level necessary for coping in our society. Below Level 3 means struggling to understand even the simplest text.

 

And the numbers are expected to get even worse.

 

The CCL's report, released last month, predicts the amount of university graduates falling below Level 3 to increase to almost one in four (24%) by 2031. As a comparison, the numbers for non-university post-secondary graduates are 38% (as of 2006) and a predicted 45% for the year 2031.

 

This steady decay of Canada's literacy rates arguably poses an even greater threat to our country's economic future than the current recession.

 

When I first attended university in the early '80s at Concordia University in Montreal, a prerequisite for graduation from the English department included having to write an English language proficiency test. At the time, it was considered a bit of a joke. If I recall correctly, you had about 45 minutes to write a brief essay, and when it was over, you got a pass or fail. As far as I know, very few, if anyone, ever failed.

 

My two oldest are attending the University of Waterloo. By next April they have to write and pass the school's "English Language Proficiency Exam." On the school's website, where it explains and answers questions about the exam, it states that if a student did well in high school English, they should have "no trouble completing this short essay-based examination."

 

So why insist that those who did well - even exceedingly well - in high school English courses, still have to take the test?

 

Because approximately 25% of incoming students, most of whom are from Ontario high schools, are not able to pass the test at Waterloo.

 

The English Language Proficiency Examination (ELPE) at Waterloo requires students to write a 300- to 500-word essay in 50 minutes. This means a four- to five-paragraph essay in response to a choice of topics. Depending on which program you're in, you need a minimum grade of 60-65% to pass.

 

But failing the test doesn't necessarily mean failing university. Like many schools today, the University of Waterloo offers a lot of support for those students who don't pass the test. On the school's website, it states: "You are not alone. There are options for you."

 

Those options - which are available to any student struggling with literacy skills - include free writing clinics and workshops.

 

Yes, we're now playing catch-up at the university level.

 

The CCL reports that although Canadians are more educated now than ever, our literacy skills will continue to erode until we do something to stop it. As it stands now, 40% of our high school graduates "have insufficient reading skills. Two in 10 university graduates, five in 10 adults, and six in 10 immigrants also have insufficient literacy skills."

 

Why are literacy levels in Canada continuing to decline?

 

If you don't already know the words to, Goodnight Moon and Green Eggs and Ham, it might already be too late. According to the Ontario Ministry of Education, the best time for us to begin learning how to read is even before we start kindergarten. Children should be exposed to books and start developing basic reading skills at the preschool level.

 

As parents, like most of us already know, this means we need to be reading to our kids right from the start.

 

Because if we don't, we can't blame the public school system later, when 40% of our kids leave the system functionally illiterate.

Tagged with university, graduates, illiterate, preschool, reading | Comments (65) |