Time to Evaluate Your Child’s Progress for the School Year
posted October 5, 2009 - 11:00amWhere I live in the south, school has been in session for a almost 2 months and report cards are about to com
e out. Other schools have been in session for a month and report cards are not that far away for these kids either.
As a homeschooling parent, I spent last week going over my children’s program for the year and making sure they were on track. While we don’t deal with report cards in all subjects (they do take some classes outside the home), evaluation is necessary to make sure children meet their goals for the year.
Whether your kids are in public school, private, or homeschool, you should also be checking over and evaluating our kid’s progress at this time.
Most parents wait for the first report card to come out, to see how their kid’s school year is shaping up. By that time it may already be too late. Having C’s, D’s, and F’s on that first report card can be devastating to the ego of the child and can tell them that they are going to have another bad year. If this is the first time they have seen such grades, they can think there is no way to improve such a bad start.
But how do you know how the kid is doing before the report card comes out? Well, you should be looking at every quiz, every test paper, and homework as it is done. You should be in contact with the teachers and asking questions about schoolwork and behavior, especially if this has been a problem in the past.
This way, if the child is having a bad start to the school year, parents can help turn it around before those first report cards are out and the tone of the school year is set.
Also read 10 http://www.xomba.com/10_steps_having_great_school_year">Steps to Having a Great School Year (for teens and preteens)
(creative commons image by flicr member apdk)
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Comments
Education article.
As the spouse of a full time teacher I know this is crunch time for many schools using standardized testing. Kids and teachers are stressed out like never before in history, and the whole "no child left behind" plan is a farce. I would encourage any parent out there to stand up and oppose standardized testing, at least in the way it is being applied, and get back to looking at if kids are learning how to think. Teaching kids how to really think and question is essential, and that is something no standardized test can yet do. Parents need to be involved, as you seem to be, and ask questions about what is really going on. Thanks again for the article.
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Timely article!
I hope everyone reads this article.
Too often parents neglect that aspect of parenting because they are trying to focus on so many other tasks.
Excellent advice...
Great advice for any parent. Well written article. Thank you for sharing.
Technology Can Help!
The company that I work for on a seasonal part-time basis sells a computer program to school districts that track each individual students grades on tests, assignments, etc. The parents can have a password to view only their children's progress. Schools then mail a letter to the parents at the beginning of the school year giving instructions on how to access the program. This beats the old fashioned way of tracking the child's progress by the parents just asking the child if they finished their homework. Before purchasing the software program Chandler Unified School District , would give the child a paper report that the teacher's would sign, record and date the completed assignments, and then the parent would initial the report at the end of the week, and in turn the child would turn it back into the homeroom teacher the following Monday. Of course, the kids would either forge the teacher's signature and grade, or lie and say that they finished their homework. And of course, the old standby the dog ate the report!
Good parent? IS knowing what's going on with your kids education
Excellent points you have brought up are exactly what parents should be doing right from the start. Why?
I student taught kindergarten for two years under the supervision of a 30-year kindergarten teacher - Scott McBeth in the Portland Public Schools. One time I ask Scott; What is your biggest fear for these kids? Here is what he said, "my biggest fear for these children is that they will end up with a teacher who just doesn't care.
That's a pretty heavy statement! So, I thought I'd add this in because if a parent is not in the hands-on mode within their child's education and monitoring the progress and interaction between teacher and student, they will not know who's fault it is that brought on the Cs, Ds, and Fs. It's not always the kid.
Your article is just the right length and presses on hard-reality points.
I applaud your efforts to bring this issue to the forefront, as, well, as your timing -- at the beginning of the school year.
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