Thank you all for coming to our parent “tea” on Friday. We had a chance to discuss a few different things of interest, but the focus was on Progress Reports and Assessment at ISR (Independent Schools of Riau).

At the meeting I announced that the progress report we have been using will give way to a new style of report in November. This is important because WASC (our accreditation agency) has asked us to make this change. It is also important because the school truly wants to find a way to communication accurately with you about your child’s progress. The new format will link our reporting to the current standards and will be directly related to your child’s progress through those standards. This “Standards Based” reporting is now the norm in the US. It is designed to let parents know how a child has progressed toward mastery with regard to the educational goals set by the standards. The most common mark we look forward to reporting is a mark that indicates that your child is “developing” with regard to the standards they have encountered in class. If most students are “developing” then our school is doing a good job of challenging students while moving them forward. When students master a standard it is time to move on to a more difficult level.  As students move forward, the target changes to a new and more challenging level.

If most students are “proficient” in their standards, there is a question as to whether they are learning and growing. If most students are emerging or have not been presented with a standard then we need to question “why?” We expect and hope that most students will be significantly challenged and will all have a few areas of mastery and a few areas where they are just starting out. Parents can expect to see the “developing” level reported instead of “proficiency” or “mastery.”

The school will continue to offer the nationally normed “MAP” tests which offer us a look at our children’s progress with regard to other children in the U.S. and in international schools.  We will also have student-led conferences in elementary where students do the most important thing of all, reflect and honestly report their progress.  The combination of these three types of assessment and reporting will give us a more accurate picture of your child’s progress so that you can make the best decisions possible regarding your child for the future.

Right now, Mr. Johnson is working with a team to pilot two possible standards based reporting models. Suzie Nileshwar has also agreed to be on this pilot team to provide a parent perspective. Stay tuned and enjoy your traditional format for Friday’s progress report. We will keep you posted.