How would you react if your child got this report card?

[da Tao]

So I have been teaching at a private learning institute... holding small classes of 1-4 students and delivering the provincial cirriculum.

This is a Korean-ran outfit, where they hire teachers of every ethnicity... their main clientale are clearly over-zealous Korean parents sending their kids here for the summer to PRE-LEARN stuff and keep them out of trouble, like dating white ppl! hahahahahahaha. (My contract says I can't tutor my students AND ANY KOREANS in my own time on the side. Like... am I supposed to ask? And what happens if they are 1/2 Koreans?)

So I have written some report cards and I am just thinking... I hope I don't get them grounded or their asses whupped. Cause... ya know, I am writing these reports with progressive parents in mind.

Actual reports to follow, names have been changed to protect all asses involved.

[da Tao]

Grade 11 Physics. I have four students...

The 3rd/4th student.

COURSE SUMMARY

This Grade 11 Physics course cover the following topics:
ï Forces and Newtonís Laws of Motion, Gravity and Friction.
ï Uniform Motion, Uniformly Accelerated Motion
ï Work and Energy, Heat and Power
ï Vibrations and Waves, Sound Waves
ï Properties of Light, Lenses
ï Electricity
The student is expected to be able to understand and solve questions using the equations as well as to explain the related phenomena clearly in plain English.

OVERALL ACHIEVEMENT

"Jessica" is a bright student possessing the talent to do well in this course; therefore it is regrettable that her insufficient efforts and attitude caused her to fall short of the goal. She is able to do well on quizzes covering narrow topics (eg. Lights and Sound), but has difficulty dealing with inter-related concepts (displacement, velocity, acceleration, energy). In my experience, this is due to her over-reliance on the textbook. Her narrow focus on passing the quizzes means that she didnít take the time to absorb the material to understand its true meanings.

While her work is very clean and her answers clear, "Jessica" is not yet ready for self-directed learning. For her to be successful in her highschool course, she will have to practice frequently ñ preferably with a coach to provide on-the-spot guidance. She would benefit from private tutoring if she plans to study physics.

Overall, I am confident that "Jessica" has the ability to do well, especially in a school environment where she has the time to practice more questions and learn from her friends. She should not be discouraged by the results here.

RECOMMENDATION ON THE FURTHER STUDY

As explained above, Jessica needs to focus her efforts in order to succeed. She has very good problem-solving form, she just need to absorb the physical meanings. Perhaps a healthy, balanced mix of activities would help her to focus on learning when she is supposed to be learning.

The best student.

OVERALL ACHIEVEMENT

(Quizzes ~95% Final ~70%)

"Jae" is an exceptionally bright student and he has proven time and again that he learns at a pace that outstrips his peers. His attitude is generally good, he has a sense of humour and I enjoy having him in the class; however he can be disruptive at times.

His academic achievement is high and I have no doubt that he will do well in his highschool course ñ however, in order to do EVEN better he must develop the habit of writing out all the steps and units to avoid careless mistakes. Fixing this weakness will make the difference between Jae getting an 80s and a 90s, as he has been told repeatedly throughout the course.

And while he does well with quizzes, it is clear from the exam that he has not mastered the material to a point where he can forego studying. To succeed, itís important to be both confident and conscientious. Overall he should be congratulated for a job well done! It is only because he has such a high potential that his weaknesses are stressed here.

RECOMMENDATION ON THE FURTHER STUDY

As explained above, he will have no problem with the credit course in school ñ a class with challenging questions should broaden his horizons. As he enter his last summer holiday next year, I recommend Jae to seek a unique experience (beyond academics) to grow as a person and to make him a more attractive applicant to universities.

[Hater Depot]

Personally, I would be thrilled to receive such a detailed report as it would show the teachers cared a lot about my kid, and it could help the kid study better.

"Her narrow focus on passing the quizzes means that she didnít take the time to absorb the material to understand its true meanings."

In my experience that is practically the definition of Korean education. :(

[xian]

You have a great ability to understand your students as individuals and then identify their areas of strength and weakness. The reports bring out your own ability in this area, and you give them guidance for improvement.

In that spirit, let me just quote a couple of passages where I see room for improvement:

"Jessica" is a bright student possessing the talent to do well in this course; therefore it is regrettable that her insufficient efforts and attitude caused her to fall short of the goal.

Emphasis added. "Attitude" has become such a negative connotative catch-all that I avoid using it in any evaluation. It's usually more effective to describe the issue in detail without using that word, as once "attitude" is used, it tends to eclipse specific constructive suggestions.

Fixing this weakness will make the difference between Jae getting an 80s and a 90s, as he has been told repeatedly throughout the course.

This is trouble. Isn't there a less antagonistic way of saying this? Or is it even necessary? It sounds like you are just trying to distance yourself from responsibility rather than offer constructive criticism.

Overall he should be congratulated for a job well done! It is only because he has such a high potential that his weaknesses are stressed here.

This helps--it shows a love and purpose that reminds the students and parents that this is constructive criticism.

Remember, assessment has at least three main functions:
1) Evaluation
2) Motivation
3) Further Education

IMHO, they are listed in reverse order of importance.

As it is, parts of your assessment read like you value them in the opposite order.

Anyway, it sounds like you are a great teacher. Please challenge yourself to grow into your potential--the type of teacher than others dream of being.

[da Tao]

Dang, Xian, those are gold! Thank you very much.

"Jessica" is a bright student possessing the talent to do well in this course; therefore it is regrettable that her insufficient efforts and attitude caused her to fall short of the goal.

Emphasis added. "Attitude" has become such a negative connotative catch-all that I avoid using it in any evaluation. It's usually more effective to describe the issue in detail without using that word, as once "attitude" is used, it tends to eclipse specific constructive suggestions.

Her exact problem is that she is forced to come here, so she is looking to do as little work as possible, even if it means she won't get the material. Then she whines and pleads, and making excuses when I asked her to put the answer from homework on the board. (of course, others are like that, but that she is the most active in whining and that disrupts the class - even though I find that funny)

What I really want to write down is that "yes, in life you will find yourself in situations that you don't like, but since you are there, might as well make the best of it and try to get out of it next time."

(edited to add: Ok, ok... I think I got the phrase... "She adds life to the class, and I admire her spirit. However an important lesson for her to learn is that she should make the best of whatever situation she is in ñ regardless if she found it ideal or not in the first place. If she can do this, she will be very successful in life.")

Fixing this weakness will make the difference between Jae getting an 80s and a 90s, as he has been told repeatedly throughout the course.

This is trouble. Isn't there a less antagonistic way of saying this? Or is it even necessary? It sounds like you are just trying to distance yourself from responsibility rather than offer constructive criticism.

there is, I was going to write "as he is well aware." I guess I can tone it down... it is antagonistic. I don't like to nag. (edited to add: I guess the thing is that he is a bit cocky because he is smart, but at the same time he knows this is not for marks so he makes a point NOT to show his work)

Remember, assessment has at least three main functions:
1) Evaluation
2) Motivation
3) Further Education

IMHO, they are listed in reverse order of importance.

As it is, parts of your assessment read like you value them in the opposite order.

Anyway, it sounds like you are a great teacher. Please challenge yourself to grow into your potential--the type of teacher than others dream of being.

I think you are right, I never had a good balance of the priorities... when I was small in HK all I get was Evaluation. And when I am in Canada I did very well so I get computerized statements like - "pleasure to have in class" so I get some Motivation. Now here in their examples it seems I already have went above and beyond the "caring" part.

like for my only gr 12 physics students I wrote:
As explained above, she will have no problem with the credit course in school. Although some more study on relativity will certainly be useful for her. I recommend reading the colourful and easy to understand book Time and Space by John Gribbin as a start.
But in the case of "Jessica" she didn't the original course well, so there isn't much further education things I can say other than "try harder". I know she CAN do well, just that this private summer school is not the place. What should I do to shift the priority to further education?

I want to close by thanking you for the encouragement Xian! It has been really helpful. (It's just sad you know that most of them decided not to study.)

[nskripchun]

Good stuff, da Tao.

I lke how your reports are sum of not only the student's knowledge and test performance, but also your evaluation of the student's ability to think critically and apply that knowledge. It's also good that you comment on the process at which they arrive at their answers, as their "academic habits" (read: studying, practicing, asking questions, etc.).

[da Tao]

Good stuff, da Tao.

I lke how your reports are sum of not only the student's knowledge and test performance, but also your evaluation of the student's ability to think critically and apply that knowledge. It's also good that you comment on the process at which they arrive at their answers, as their "academic habits" (read: studying, practicing, asking questions, etc.).

Thanks nskripchun, I only hope that my boss won't ask me to change the report cards.... I am sort of telling them NOT to sign up next summer.

Here are two more from the same class.

OVERALL ACHIEVEMENT

"Andrew" is a polite young fellow and someone with decent amount of abilities. Having joined the class late, he tries to catch up through hard work in the class but he needed continue the hard work at home as well to do better.

My impression is that instead of focusing on what the physical laws mean, "Andrew" hopes that he will find a question that is similar to one that he has seen before. This style might work for lower grades where the questions are similar ñ but is very ineffective problem solving for physics when questions can be asked in many different ways.

While "Andrew" has a pleasant attitude, I feel that he would benefit himself if he asks more questions when he is unsure of things and speak up if he sees something that he can help improve instead of just sitting there and accepting things. This applies to learning in school, but also life in general.

Overall, I am confident that "Andrew" has the ability to do well, especially in a school environment where he has the time to practice more questions and learn from his friends. He should not be discouraged by the results here.

RECOMMENDATION FOR FURTHER STUDY

As I have mentioned above, "Andrew" has the ability to do well in his credit course. It is important that he focuses his efforts and take initiative in learning. He will also benefit from a Grade 12 Physics course next year. But as he enter his last summer holiday next year, I also recommend Andrew to seek a unique experience (beyond academics) to grow as a person and to make him a more attractive applicant to universities.


And the best one...

OVERALL ACHIEVEMENT

I am very pleased with "Daniel"ís achievement in this course; he clearly puts in the effort necessary and has the ability to grasp the concepts taught. While he may not be the first one to understand the material, he is proactive and asks questions until he is satisfied ñ in this regard I consider him a superior student as shown by having the best exam results.

"Daniel" is a conscientious student and takes care when solving problems. The only thing I can recommend is that he should avoid getting frustrated by hard questions or the time ñ if he can control this by staying calm he should be able to focus better on answering the questions.

"Daniel" will have no problem with the credit course in his highschool; I feel the best way for him to gain mastery over the material would be to help others ñ this will improve his scientific communication skills.

RECOMMENDATION FOR FURTHER STUDY

As I have mentioned above, "Daniel" should do well in his credit course. He can enroll in the Grade 12 Physics course next year. But as he enter his last summer holiday next year, I also recommend "Daniel" to seek a unique experience (beyond academics) to grow as a person and to make him a more attractive applicant to universities.

[LaiSteve66]

I wouldn't beat my kids for getting a report like that. I mean, every student has room for self-improvement. I would give my kid the feedback and let him/her decide on their own if they want to improve.

On a side note, I won't put my kids under uber-academic stress. I'll sort of use a "hands off" approach like my dad did to me.

[Kuroyama]

I gotta say Jae is my man.

That orginal report came straight outta one of my old cards! "Talented, gifted, strong ability, blah, blah, needs stronger effort, can be disruptive in class".

Yeah, I took a beating or two behind that. Hook him up! With luck he wont slack like I did.

[da Tao]

Haha good stuff Kuro, good stuff. Jae is like 11th grade so I guess (and hope) he ain't getting no ass-whuppings at this age. (Unless it is something dope like getting the pastor's daughter knocked up... then DAMN! Ok that come out of nowhere.) As for disruption, I wonder if these kids are like that in day school where they aren't with just Korean anymore... would they be as outspoken?

His email is something a phonetic play on something like caucasian-phobia.... I laughed when I saw it... I hope the kid is not being picked on by white kids.

Most importantly I wonder if their parents got the hint and let them do something cool next summer instead. Poor kids.

[DONKEY]

Final ~70% ?? wtf?? grounded.

[Hater Depot]

My contract says I can't tutor my students AND ANY KOREANS in my own time on the side. Like... am I supposed to ask? And what happens if they are 1/2 Koreans?

Oh. Your contract is just re-stating the law. Your visa is not only tied to one employer, but to one workplace as well. To do work at any other site, whether for the same employer or not, is a visa violation and can get you deported and your employer fined.