School Report & Feedback – How much is enough?
The Current State
It’s obvious that all parents want their children to succeed in life and be happy. Consequently, it makes sense that a child’s education is a pivotal aspect in the likelihood of this success. For parents, being provided with an adequate level of information is vital to help them react and support their child’s success. For years, schools have provided feedback to students and parents in the form of a semesterly school report. Over time, this school report has taken many forms and has become a document that enshrines the school’s culture and values, along with information on how a student has performed.
What Research Tells Us
Contrary to this current paradigm, research has shown us that students are best served with timely feedback, which clearly articulates the goal students were trying to reach and the gap between their performance and that goal (Hattie, 2007). Therefore, it is hard to accept that the current school report cycle meets this need. Similarly, there is a clear disconnect between what has become the normal cycle for a school report and where research shows the best outcome for students. Schools are often reluctant to change this important document for fear they will disenfranchise parents about the school and their children’s education. This whitepaper seeks to understand the attitudes of today’s parents regarding feedback they receive from schools (including the school report) and what their preferred modes and frequency of feedback are.
In the first part of our four-part whitepaper series, we surveyed more than 1,000 parents in order to:
Assess the current K-12 landscape and define what’s important to the parents
Unpack the importance of feedback, the channels, the frequency and the use of that feedback
Evaluate the value parents put on their child’s education
Establish the level of parental and family support in student coaching
Understand better what impacts student performance
Define the impact of curriculum planning and the balance of social engagement and traditional curriculum
How does your school currently provide feedback and through which channels?
To find out how Edumate can help your school provide timely and effective feedback, please get in touch.
