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Learn about Cobb County Standards-Based Report Card
1. What is Standards-Based Instruction and Reporting? 2. Primary Years (K-3) Reporting System—Update April 2009 3. Background Research 3.1 . Sedalia Parks SBRC 3.1.1. MDJ article from 8/30/2008
April 30, 2009 New school report card supporters keep silent By Jon Gillooly jgilloly@mdjonline.com MARIETTA - If members of the public support the standards-based report cards, they are keeping silent. After last week’s contentious school board meeting in which members Holli Cash & Lynnda Crowder-Eagle told angry parents that there were plenty of people in favor of the alternative cards, the Journal requested any such e-mail evidence through an Open Records Request. “I have a lot of parents who feel it’s a good thing,” Cash said at the meeting. Crowder-Eagle told the crowd, “I’ve had just as many e-mails from those who like it, who understand it, & that’s the key word is ‘understand.’“ This week, Crowder-Eagle said that she had misspoken & that she meant to say she had many conversations regarding the cards. She apologized for the error. The alternative report card, now used in kindergarten, first & second grades, uses numbers in place of traditional letter grades: “1” does not meet standards; “2” indicates progress toward standards; & “3” indicates standards are met. The Journal received copies of about 20 emails, which were overwhelmingly in opposition, either to the cards themselves or expanding their use to the third grade. The school board will decide on the expansion in May. A sampling: Read full article at mdjonline.com
April 29, 2009 Dog in the Fight? By Joe Kirby MDJ Columnist Should members of a new committee tasked with making a recommendation to the Cobb school board for or against use of the “3-2-1” Standards-Based Report Cards consist of those who do not have children in the county’s schools? Folks who, to quote school board member David Banks of east Cobb, “don’t have a dog in the fight”? Read full article at mdjonline.com
April 29, 2009 Banks defends new report cards By Jon Gillooly jgillooly@mdjonline.com MARIETTA - Several parents who attended a PTA meeting Tuesday at Davis Elementary School said Cobb School board member David Banks came armed with what amounted to a single talking point regarding the 1, 2, 3 report card. Banks told parents a day in advance that he would attend to discuss their concerns on the report card that Superintendent Fred Sanderson wants to implement for the third grade next year. It is already used in kindergarten through second grade. During the 3½ hour meeting, Banks continued to repeat that Sanderson’s standards-based report card contained more information than the current report card does - & that is why it should be adopted. The 40 or so parents balked at this answer. “More information does not necessarily mean better information,” said Davis mom Christy Kown. The new report card uses numbers in place of traditional letter grades: “1” does not meet standards; “2” indicates progress toward standards; “3” indicates standards are met. In response to parental outcry that meeting standards is insufficient, the district is proposing adding a “3+,” which would indicate exceeds standards. Advocates of the new report card say it gives parents more information about how their children are mastering the state mandated curriculum called the Georgia Performance Standards. Critics say it’s just another fad that requires more work for teachers & dilutes student achievement. Parents told Banks Tuesday they wanted a report card that offered a 100% grading scale, so they could know if their child scored a 95% or a 75%. They said their children receiving a 1, 2 or 3 is meaningless. Read full article at mdjonline.com
April 28, 2009 School board outcome proved grass-roots work By JoEllen Smith More Opinions contributor Something occurred recently that makes me realize an exciting trend is on the horizon. The citizens of Cobb gathered together twice in grass-roots efforts, & in large numbers, to peacefully protest that their opinions were not being respected by their elected representatives. First there was the “tea party” in the Marietta Square. Next there was the exceptional turnout at the latest Cobb County School Board meeting, which was like nothing seen in a while. Normally a lethargic event, this last school board meeting was truly inspirational. These residents of Cobb were protesting the so-called “1-2-3 Report Cards.” Some wore color-coordinated shirts, some had creative name tags, many carried protest signs & all were passionate. The board members responded. Some positively, some less so. But they listened. And in the end, the people won Round 1. It proves what I have always believed & experienced: Grass-roots participation gets results. Board Member Lynnda Crowder-Eagle dismissed the audience as “a special interest” group & asked them to lower their signs. Ms. Crowder-Eagle, I respectfully disagree. I was not among the protestors, having not fully made up my mind on this issue yet. However, being a well-known grass-roots activist in Cobb, I seem to be on everyone’s e-mail distribution list. JoEllen Smith is a housewife & education activist in east Cobb. Read full article at mdjonline.com
April 28, 2009 Report card committee to meet May 4 By Jon Gillooly jgillooly@mdjonline.com MARIETTA - A 16-member citizens committee will be formed to recommend whether the Cobb School District should adopt Superintendent Fred Sanderson’s proposed standards-based report card for the third grade. The cards are currently used in kindergarten through second grade. The committee’s members, who will be appointed this week by the seven school board members & Sanderson, will meet for the first time May 4 at 5 p.m. Board members & Sanderson each get 2 appointments, just as they do with the board’s Facilities & Technology Review Committee, which examines the district’s Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax program. The decision to create the citizens committee was made by a school board committee chaired by Alison Bartlett with members David Morgan & David Banks. The 3 met for an hour & a half Monday night with Associate Superintendent Dr. Steve Constantino & Assistant Superintendent Rob Benson to discuss how they would reach a recommendation to the full board on whether to implement the controversial third-grade report card. The board created the 3-member committee at board Chairman Dr. John Abraham’s request after parents turned out in mass at Thursday’s meeting to protest Sanderson’s recommendation. Banks encouraged Bartlett & Morgan not to appoint teachers or parents with children in grades kindergarten to second because he said they would come with biases. Read full article at mdjonline.com
April 27, 2009 Are ‘No-Fail’ Grading Systems Hurting or Helping Students? By Joshua Rhett Miller What’s a kid gotta do to get an “F” these days? At a growing number of middle schools & high schools across the country, students no longer receive failing marks when they fail. Instead, they get an “H” — for “held” — on their report cards, & they’re given a chance to rectify their poor performance without tanking the entire semester. Educators in schools from Costa Mesa, Calif., to Maynard, Mass., are also employing a policy known in school hallways as ZAP — or “Zeros Aren’t Permitted” — which gives students an opportunity to finish the homework they neglected to do on time. While administrators & teachers say the policies provide hope for underperforming students, critics say that lowering or altering education standards is not the answer. They point to case studies in Grand Rapids, Mich., where public high schools are using the “H” grading system this year &, according to reports, only 16% of first-semester “H” grades became passing grades in the second semester. Click here to see schools that implement some type of no-fail policy. Last week in Texas, state senators backed the elimination of “no-fail” grading by unanimously approving a measure that would prohibit school districts from forcing teachers to dole out minimum grades to failing pupils. The bill was introduced by Republican State Sen. Jane Nelson, who said the trend toward “no-fail” grading encourages manipulation of the education system. Read full article at: Fox News
April 26, 2009 Sue E. Lake / Letter to the Editor: Parents want more than ‘1, 2, 3’ report card Why don’t we look to all the elementary teachers for their input on the “new” report cards? These educators are the ones who are most knowledgeable about assessing academic achievement. They are the ones who have the best insight & the most experience into appraising student accomplishments. I know they are overworked & definitely underpaid, & have next to no free time. However, they could give outstanding insight into evaluating student success & how to most effectively communicate this to the parents. The classroom teachers are the ones who are involved in this every day, every hour & on a full time basis. Why do we leave them out when they are the most knowledgeable ones, & the ones most directly participating in this process? They are all such an excellent resource! (And not just a few of them at several designated schools in a directed & controlled environment.) It doesn’t take a Ph.D. to figure out that: “1” means you don’t get it, “2” means you’re working on getting it, & “3” means you’ve got it. To say that parents don’t understand these “new” report cards is just absurd! There isn’t that much to understand. Just because there is a lot of lingo & language included in them doesn’t make them that complicated. All most parents really want to see is that number or letter grade for each subject. A lot of parents don’t even look on the back & don’t even read all the elaborate explanations. The basic “1, 2, 3” grades might be fine for kindergarteners, but I think most teachers & parents want more than 1, 2, 3. And worst of all, do we not have any students or expect any students in the Cobb County School District to go beyond their grade-level expectations? And then, when they do, do we just ignore their higher level of achievements & overlook the fact that they have surpassed the standards? It looks like the Cobb County School Board wants to do just that. Read full article at mdjonline.com
March 31, 2009 New report cards get chairman's support By Jon Gillooly Marietta Daily Journal staff writer
MARIETTA - Cobb School Board Chairman Dr. John Abraham supports the alternative report card used in kindergarten, first and second grades that administrators want to also use in third grade for the coming academic year."I think it gives parents more information to engage a teacher in their child's development," Abraham said. Abraham attended a parent committee meeting at the district's central office Monday to discuss the alternative report card. Of the 14 people in attendance, only a handful were parents. The rest were school administrators and teachers. The new report cards use numbers in place of traditional letter grades. For example, "1" means does not meet standards; "2" indicates progress toward standards; and "3" indicates standards are met. Next year, students who exceed standards will get a "3+," said Amy Krause, the school district's director of curriculum and instruction. Read full article at mdjonline.com
January 22, 2009 APS Extends High School Rollout of SBG Written by the APS Communication Department Source: Aurora Public Schools website
January 8, 2009 Improving Cobb’s New Standards-Based Report Cards (word)
Marks from teachers, test scores vary widely.In many cases, ‘A’ student can get ‘F’ on state’s exam By HEATHER VOGELL The Atlanta Journal-Constitution February 08, 2009 Read full article AJC
January 11, 2009
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