My Child is an A student...

"My Child is an A student"...

Have you ever heard that statement? What exactly does that mean? 

When discussing Grades with parents, it is often in the context of negativity. There is the perception that their child has failed or that not all the possibilities of their child's ability has been considered. The question often asked is "Why did my Child get that grade?" which is often followed by the statement "Last year, they got a (higher) grade?" There is often disappointment and sometimes anger, when a child does not receive the same Grade or higher than on previous occasions. It is an understandable response, particularly if the child has been achieving at a higher level.

There are many ways that a teacher goes about assessing students. In the attempt to make the process simple and easy to understand, a student is given a grade which indicates their achievement for the term or semester with a grade. 

After some discussion with parents and teachers through this week, the thought occurred that the perceptions of Grades are viewed differently by the stakeholders involved in a student's education. In light of Parent- Teacher Interviews, it is helpful to know exactly what Grades are and what is considered when they are given to students. 

What is a Grade? 

The Board of Studies is the Government organisation that oversees education. They have set the following criteria for Grades for all schools to follow: 

The Common Grade Scale shown below can be used to report student achievement in both primary and junior secondary years in all NSW schools.

The Common Grade Scale describes performance at each of five grade levels.

A	The student has an extensive knowledge and understanding of the content and can readily apply this knowledge. In addition, the student has achieved a very high level of competence in the processes and skills and can apply these skills to new situations.
B	The student has a thorough knowledge and understanding of the content and a high level of competence in the processes and skills. In addition, the student is able to apply this knowledge and these skills to most situations.
C	The student has a sound knowledge and understanding of the main areas of content and has achieved an adequate level of competence in the processes and skills.
D	The student has a basic knowledge and understanding of the content and has achieved a limited level of competence in the processes and skills.
E	The student has an elementary knowledge and understanding in few areas of the content and has achieved very limited competence in some of the processes and skills.

The key words are "knowledge and understanding". Students demonstrate their knowledge of a subject by the understanding that they have. To achieve a higher grade, each student needs to be able to apply that understanding to a new situation. It is the knowledge and understanding that they demonstrate in completing an assessment task, coupled with the mastery of processes and skills that will determine the nature of their grade. 

What is the purpose of Grades?

The purpose of Grades is the attempt to give a consistent understanding of a child's achievement of a particular subject. There are many factors that can affect that Grade: 

• Change in Syllabus- there has been a significant change in Syllabus in the last few years. The outcomes that we were teaching have moved away from text- types formula to a more analytical and creative basis. 
• Change in Stage- In NSW our outcomes are grouped together in Stages for eg. Years 5 and 6 are Stage 3. The change in stage can often impact a child's grade. 
• Teacher expectations and purpose of lesson - all teacher's are unique and have different skill sets. There can be a wide variety of expectations that teachers have for their students. 
• The Student- a student's grade can be affected by their desire to achieve the processes, skills or the understanding that they have of a subject. 

The purpose of a Grade is to indicate a student's knowledge and understanding. It helps to show if they have mastered a certain set of skills or have been able to show competency in the way that they have processed information in the course of an assessment task. The assessment tasks are formed out of the outcomes that the Board of Studies have determined that students at a particular grade or stage level should be achieving. 

What does all this mean? 

There is sometimes the misconception that a student's skills set and knowledge of a subject remains consistent throughout all of their education. We set our children an impossible task if we perceive them to be the sum of their grade.It is also unhelpful to the process, when teachers are expected to grade based on previous ones. Grades are given based on the merits of each assessment task and the consideration of a students knowledge and understanding that they have demonstrated of concepts.  It means sometimes that they won't always achieve the same grade as on previous occasions. 

Our task as teachers is to help our student's to grow and on occasions to challenge our student's understanding and knowledge. Much time and thought is given when a child's grade is considered. They are the distillation of a lot of time that is spent observing and considering each child. 

It is time to consider to move away from thinking of Grades as being a position where a child is placed in the class and to move towards to how much are they understanding and growing as a student. 

My child is A student....