Otsego Elementary School Faculty Handbook - Half Hollow Hills

REPORT CARD GUIDELINES (continued)
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Carefully chosen comments will communicate to parents that
you know their child as an individual. Comments, not grades,
are the way to encourage a child who is trying hard, but still not
achieving to grade level standards. The effort grade can be
used for the same purpose. For example, a performance level
of “1” and an effort grade of “E” are not necessarily incongruous.
The comment section is also a good place to offer concrete
suggestions as to how parents can help their children at home.
For example, the phrase “Use flash cards to review math facts
with Eric” is more helpful than “Eric needs to learn his math
facts.”
Try to avoid making “predictions” in the comments sections. No
one can really anticipate what will happen in the future. Avoid
statements like, “I’m sure Ethan’s reading performance will
improve during the next quarter”, or “With more effort on Sally’s
part, her science grade should improve,” are dangerous to
make. While it is certainly acceptable to point out the need for
greater effort, it is speculative to foresee any specific results.
It is also important that your comments are congruent with the
grades you’ve given. Don’t give parents an opportunity to
criticize you because there are inconsistencies between your
grades and your comments. For example, if the comment reads,
“Nicole excels in mathematics concepts and applications,” she
should not have a grade of “2.”
Most importantly, PROOFREAD YOUR COMMENTS. You will
be judged by what, and how you write.
• BE HONEST – Honesty is ultimately the best policy. If difficulties exist
and the report card does not indicate any sort of a problem, it makes it
hard for the parent to understand that his/her child may need support
services. In addition, if the previous year’s teacher did not indicate a
problem and the current one does, it may look like the problem is with
the teacher, not the child. Therefore, it is always best to tell it like it is
and back up what you say with hard data.
REMEMBER: Poor effort or behavioral issues should not be reflected in
academic grades. These issues can be reported through effort grades or
comments.