Standards based report card: teachers' perception on the development, transition, and implementation

Unrestricted The implementation of the standards based report card signifies one of the ways in which standards based education is being addressed in public schools throughout the country. The purpose of this qualitative case study was to investigate teachers perceptions of the effectiveness of the standards based report card in K-5 public schools. The research question which guided this work was, What are the major successes and challenges facing teachers who are implementing the standards based report card ? Within the umbrella of this research question, sub-questions were developed to gain deeper insight into the challenges facing teachers in transitioning from a letter grade system to a standards based system as well as theirperception towards the implementation of the standards based report card.; I selected one K-5 school in Southern California for my study. The school district was selected because they implemented the standards based report card district wide at the K-5 elementary school level in 2004. The school was also selected because of their marked increase in Academic Performance Index (API) since the inception of the standards based report card in 2004 as well as their recognition as a California Distinguished School in 2006 and a Title I Academic Achievement School. Interviews were conducted with teachers as well as the school principal.; After a detailed analysis of the data collected from this study, the following thematic underpinnings were identified within each sub-question:a) What issues arise through the transition process from a traditional grade reporting system to a standards based grading system?1. Changes in Scoring Practices2. Parents: Communication, Understanding, Perceptionb) How do educators perceive the standards based report card has impacted teaching and learning?1. Teachers' Understanding of the Purpose Behind the Implementation of the Standards Based Report Card2. Teachers' Perceptions as to the Effectiveness of the Standards Based Report Card3. Student Motivationc) How does the standards based report card impact and transform daily assessment in the classroom?1. Articulation and Alignment2. Changes in Teaching Methodology3. Students Preparedness for California Standardized Tests; Based on my findings, the support for the standards based report card was a prominent theme, despite the challenges in scoring, consistency, and communication. Furthermore, most of the teachers believed that the standards based report card was the logical and necessary next step in aligning state standards to student achievement. My suggestions for future research include a large scale analysis of the impact the standards based report card has had on student achievement on a district wide level, in addition to further studies on the development and implementation of hybrid report cards, which contain a combination of both letter grades and standards based scores at the elementary and middle school level.