Dissatisfied with the mismatch between letter grades and their new (state-mandated) curricular emphases, the Tucson (Arizona) Public Schools began experimenting with rubric descriptions of student progress. The prototype progress report assesses students in two general categories: learner qualities and content areas. Frequent communication with…

Describes student-performance data-analysis system developed by the Hueneme School District in Port Hueneme, California, to meet state and federal accountability requirements. Tracks student-achievement data from four measures into database: Districtwide assessment, report cards, SAT-9 results, a California achievement test, and comprehensive…

A structured daily report card program can provide more consistent and efficient feedback on students with behavior problems than traditional approaches. The article details specific steps in designing a daily report card intervention, emphasizing how parents and teachers must work cooperatively to create and implement the intervention. (SM)

Examines how teachers use computerized comment menus on report cards and what teachers and parents think of the process, An analysis of report cards for 475 Wisconsin middle-school students shows teachers used comments most of the time. Only 52% of students received two comments. Most comments were positive. Parents and teachers found the practice…

Traces development of educational accountability in California; examines role of state political leadership; considers impact of requirements of reauthorized Elementary and Secondary Education Act. (PKP)

Grades, report cards, and other progress reports are important vehicles for communicating with families about their children's strengths, areas to target, and interventions that can be used at home. For families of children with disabilities, accurate information on learning progress is essential for understanding intervention effectiveness and…

School administrators in a small suburban school district in Southeastern Pennsylvania were concerned about grade inflation at the elementary and secondary levels. Specifically, they wanted to know if students in grades 5, 8, and 11 who scored at the basic or below basic performance level on the 2003-2004 Pennsylvania System of School Assessment…

For the first time ever, Citizen Through Sports Alliance (CTSA) convened a panel of youth sports experts from across the country to evaluate youth sports in the United States and articulate its successes and failures. The panel evaluated only community-based youth sports programs, focusing on those that serve children ages 6 to 14. The panel is…

This digest explains why teacher comments on report cards are important, offers suggestions on how to construct effective comments, points out words or phrases to be cautious about using, and indicate sources of information for report card comments. Teacher comments are important in that they often convey information that is not completely…

A study investigated the writing of language arts report cards. Eleven elementary teachers from three districts volunteered to compose report cards while thinking aloud. The teachers worked in districts that exerted varying degrees of control over teachers' choice of language arts instructional materials and assessment. Analysis of the 75 report…

Provides solutions to the problems of recording the progress of individuals and providing a comprehensive report to the parent. Poses problems on microscope projection, electronic components in junior science, and innovative science projects throughout Australia. (GS)

Walker-Grant Middle School has moved from the traditional failure-oriented method of measuring student progress to one that measures continuous student progress. The concept of standards for each grade and subject was replaced by the concept of "taking the child where he is and working from that point." Under the old system, a student's…

Methods and forms are described that are in use for reporting student progress and performance to parents at a junior high school with varying degrees of individualized instruction in each subject area. For the 8th grade science program, in which all work is performed on individual or group contracts, the teacher records each date of completion…