Skills based or Grade based report cards for grade K-4?

I will start with a definition of what I mean. Grade based is easy, it is a report card that will show a single grade for each subject either with a number (percentage) or letter grade.

Skills based lists specific skills within each subject. For example, under Math for 2nd grade they may have: addition, subtraction, counting money, reading graphs and tables, etc. For each skill a child will get a score, typically a 1 through 4, with 4 being the "best".

Which would you prefer? I am curious what you think before I give my assessment, and why I am posing this topic.

 

I'm not sure which one I prefer. Andrew is in fourth grade this year and it's the first year they've had "grade based reports." Previously, they've done letter grades, but every three weeks we would get a progress report that broke it down into a skills based assessment. I'm not sure what will happen next year. Our district only does K-4, then 5th and 6th, 7th &8th, and then 9-12, so it's a little strange.

Last year, they changed how they send home their report cards. Before, we got the regular heavy paper type card with a place for teachers to write out their comments on behavior or progress. But, now it's just a regular sheet of paper with their grades at the top and then a list of skills, behaviors and comments that the teacher can check off on if she feels the need to. So, I guess it's really a little bit of everything here, which probably doesn't help you out at all!

 

Skill based.

It allows parents to see strengths/weaknesses within each subject area and allow for broader grasp of their child's abilities.

For example (I'll use math but could apply to almost any subject): if a student got a C- one semester and then a A+ the next-- you think they studied more or got tutoring, etc. But in reality, the class could have done geometry/fractions one semster and then addition subtraction the next : the student understood on concept more than another. Skill based assessment would show the different skill sets that a student has and also allow you to see the growth across the year instead of isolated grades and allow for a better idea of exactly 'when and what' a student knows.

I REALLY like skill based for my special education students since they often have splintered skills and it is good for them to see the idea that they are doing well in some areas and specifically see what areas they need to to work on (it makes it easier to answer the 'why' do I go to resource room? To help with ________skills) Often Reading is such a complex process that one weak area can bring down a 'letter grade'. But skills set grading is much more helpful in knowing exactly how to help. For example a students report card could show a strength in decoding (skill) but need to work on comprehension (skill) instead of a flat grade for language arts. It allows them to take pride in what they DO know since often their learning disabilities make it difficult to be successful in a traditional letter grade per subject.

 

Is it possible to kind of have both?? I ask because my oldest is in 4th grade and gets letter grades however on every single one of his report cards it has the skill under the main grade with the numbers. This is the first year that he's had letter grades given, k-3rd he had the numbers. It's nice to see what areas he needs work in.

 

We do skills based, and I really don't like it. I would prefer if I could see if they re getting and A, B, C D or F. That is much more clearer in my mind.

 

We get skills based, with some of the skills getting tougher throughout the year. I'm trying to remember what was on the report cards. I know there is a section for knowing letter sounds (and it lists all the letters individually). The counting is 1-20 first quarter, 1-50 second quarter, etc. There is a section for identifying shapes. A section that gets progressively harder about drawing a picture, then adding a sentence to tell about the picture, then telling a story about the picture. A section for the kids knowing their address and phone number. And there's a behaviour section. There's also a section about handwriting and phonics skills. It's like a small book.

I like the skills based. It gives me a great look about what the kids are doing great at, and what they might need help on. I've also been in the class when she's getting ready for report cards. She uses parents at centers doing enrichment activities with the kids rotating between them. Then she pulls the kids over for one-on-one face time with her where they work through skills. By doing the skills based report card, she knows exactly what each kid knows.

Marissa

 

I don't know what we get. ardon: At this point - with just boys in K - I want more progress reports. K only gets them mid-year and end of year (all other grades get them quarterly). The first parent-teacher conference was 4 weeks into school, before any of the assessments of language and math skills were done. So now I have their language assessment "scores" but I don't understand them. I see our boys blossoming and obviously learning, but I have no idea whether they are on track or what. I could just assume that they are doing fine because I haven't heard otherwise, but...

So from what little experience I have, I think I would want skills-based report cards. But I want that paired with information on how at home we can work to their strengthens and help them stengthen weaknesses.

 

Now, I will add my input. This year, the school changed to skill based, and parents are all going nuts about it. One lady told me yesterday, "but I want to see that my child has 99%, and with that grade I know they know everything." But when I pointed out that not every kid gets a 99%, her response was that she didn't care, she just cared about her kid-so basically, all she wants is a grading system where she can brag that her kid is "better/smarter" than someone else's.

I much prefer the skills based, for all the reasons mentioned above. And I can look at it from another angle. On Jon's last math test (mental math for 2 digit addition without regrouping), he earned an 80. Not because he didn't know the material (he has been doing 2 digit addition with regrouping in his head since K), but he made one careless mistake, and didn't read the question carefully on another problem. Is that 80 really representative of his skills? No way, his daily work is more of a true picture. IMO, the early elementary grades should be about what they do know, and what they need to work on rather than a "number".

 

I use both in my classroom. Our K-3 report card needs to be updated and report card focus groups have been meeting off and on since I started with the district 13 years ago. A new report card is actually being piloted this year. I have not gotten a chance to see it yet, but am hoping it will be aligned with the updated state standards.

The way the current report card is laid out, reading and writing each have only one grade. The grades given are O for above expectations, S for meeting expectations, N for needs support/practice, and AC for area of concern. Math is divided into several strands including computation, number sense, estimation, geometry, graphing, and problem solving. I use Easy Grade Pro to record my grades. I've set my gradebook up using the report card as a guide, so it is laid out in the same order as the report card with the same overall categories. What I then do is create categories within each of the overall grades. Reading is divided into comprehension, vocabulary, and phonics/phoneme awareness. Writing is divided into whatever skills we are working on that term-grammar skills, mechanics, writing complete sentences, paragraphs etc. I do like that math has 8 categories on the report card, but I do add the subcategories there too. For instance, number sense includes expanded form, identifying place value, writing numbers to 1,000, counting by 10's and 100's, using base ten blocks to make a model of a number and a few more skills. I identify all of these skills by the state standard as a reference point. I love using the EGP this way. When I do report cards, I fill out the form using my EGP printout but also include the printout for the parents with all the information I have. This lets parents know exactly where their children are doing well and where they need help. I have several children that do well overall in the report card categories but had weaknesses in some of the subcategories. For instance, one student had an overall O in number sense but an N in expanded form. It would then be evident that this is where the child needs extra help. Of course, he's already getting it from me but extra help at home woul help even more.

 

I perfer skills based. Even here in university we break the students scores down into skills, then total them and give them an overall grade.
This is foriegn language teaching but for example, Speaking ability is broken down into command of grammar, range of vocabulary, pronunciation, interactive communication and discourse management. Listening, Reading and Writing are similiarily broken down. Everyone has strengths and weaknesses and areas where they need to focus their efforts. Two students who get 80% are not the same.

Here in K my girls don't get anything but a "ready to advance" or "not ready to advance" rating.

 

I like the skills based report cards because it helps me to see what the kids are doing well in and what they may need extra help with. For our school, the 1st grade doesn't get a report card for the 1st quarter but at conferences the teachers gave out progress reports showing what their skills are, what they have been doing, etc. and I like that better than just a general letter grade without a clue as to what they really are doing or know.

 

My oldest is in Kindergarten this year, and I like the way his Report Card/Progress Reports are broken down. They are skill based using numbers 1-4, and also the Letters (O)utstanding, (S)atisfactory, and (N)eeds Improvement. As a pp mentioned, there is an overall number or letter grade and then the subcategories, or skills that fall under each heading. Each of those can also be marked if they are an area that needs to be worked on. For example, on my sons first Report Card (I forgot what the Category was, but it was behavior related), he received a 3 out of 4 possible score, and then there was an X marked next to Self Control. This way I knew what the area of concern was. He talks out of turn, and doesnt control his urges to share his thoughts.

I like this, and I hope this is how they do it for the rest of Elementary school. I think it is good to know exactly what needs to be worked on.

To the OP, even with the Skills Based assessments, if your child gets all 4's or O's, or whatever the highest ranking is, then the parent you mentioned should still be able to 'brag' on her child for being smart. It doesnt sound like she had her priorities straight in regards to her childs education, if all she is worried about is the ability to brag.

As a side note: We are supposed to be getting 2nd Quarter Progress Reports next week, before the holiday, and we received a note stating that only Children who are at risk to receive a 2 or 1 on their Report Card will be getting a Progress Report this term.