Guide to Interpreting the Report Card Royal Oak School The ...

Guide to Interpreting the Report Card
Royal Oak School
The purpose of the report card is to provide information about the academic, social, physical
development, achievement and educational needs of each child and inform parents of their
child’s progress in relation to the Program of Studies. (AR 3062)
The Program of Studies is a large document that defines all of the learner outcomes from
Kindergarten to Grade 12. Within the Program of Studies are specific curriculums for each
grade and subject. The learner expectations are the same for all students in the province of
Alberta.
Teachers use multiple forms of assessment to gather information about student learning in
order to assign a mark on the report card, such as examining work samples, student
reflections and self-assessments, observations, anecdotal records,
rubrics, exemplars, interviews and tests.
Academic Achievement Indicators – Scale of 1 to 5
Academic Achievement Indicators
5 Excellent achievement of grade level learner expectations
(Understands and applies new concepts in a wide variety of learning
situations. Consistently uses required skills and strategies effectively.)
4 Very good achievement of grade level learner expecations
(Understands and applies new concepts to most learning situations.
Frequently uses required skills and strategies effectively.)
3 Satisfactory achievement of grade level learner expectations
(Understands and applies new concepts to specific learning situations.
Uses most required skills and strategies appropriately.)
2 Improvement needed in meeting grade level learner expectations
(Requires repeated instrucation to understand and apply new concepts
in learning situations. Needs much support to use required skills and
strategies.
1 Not yet meeting grade level learner expectations
(Unable to understand and/or apply new concepts in learning
situations. Has great difficulty using skills and strategies.)
A “3” means that the student is able to understand most new grade level concepts
and skills and apply them in a variety of contexts; it does not mean that he or she is
achieving only 50% of the outcomes in the curriculum. As the year progresses, the
learner expectations also increase. Therefore, for example, a student that maintains the
same “3” mark in math all year is showing growth because the mark indicates they are
continuing to meet the new challenges that have been presented most of the time
independently. A student’s level of achievement is determined by comparing their current
work to the learner expectations identified in the Program of Studies. The mark on the
report card is not always reflective of how hard a student is trying.

Citizenship, Personal Development, Character Summative Indicators of Success
The assessment for the first two reporting periods consists only of strength-based comments
that offer examples of how the student demonstrates citizenship, personal development and
character in and through their learning. In June, the student receives a comment for each of
these areas and a summative indicator of success (EX – Exemplary Strengths, EV – Evident
Strengths, EM – Emerging Strengths).
General Indicators
IPP – Students on an Individual Program Plan may receive this indicator instead of a
numerical indicator. Refer to the IPP for information about the student’s progress.
ELC – Students in Grade 1 with emerging literacy skills may receive the Emergent
Literacy Checklist on the first term report card. A “Y” indicates the skills that have
been accomplished. If the box is blank, it means the student has not yet achieved that
skill.
ESL Proficiency Levels
Only students that have been identified as English Language Learners will receive this
additional section of the report card. Teachers will describe each student’s level of English
proficiency with an indicator (i.e. LP3) and a written comment. Attached to the report card is
a description of each of these levels.
Curriculum and Learning Plan
The curriculum and learning plan is a retrospective description of the learning tasks and
investigations that have occurred during the last term. Teachers will often refer to a big
inquiry question or umbrella statement that they are using to connect the big ideas from the
curriculum to the real world.
Personalized Learning Comments
Each student will receive a short narrative paragraph that describes how they learned within
the framework of the inquiry. The comments provide a snapshot of their learning in the
classroom and may include how they are being supported at school to build on their skills and
address their individual needs and strengths.
Subject Specific Comments
At times, a specific comment may be added under the subject heading when there is a need
that must be addressed.
Music and Physical Education
The specialists will include a curriculum and learning plan under their subject area. Each
student will receive a comment for music and physical education once each school year.
Student-Teacher-Parent Conferences
The participation of students in conferences is valuable and strongly encouraged. The
conferences are an opportunity to discuss and exchange information about programming and
student progress. Students may share work samples and/or participate in learning tasks to
support a parent’s understanding of their child’s achievement.