Revised Report Cards

How grades came to be…

The traditional grading scale was first used in 1792 by a tutor in England to help him sort through “good” and “bad” students quickly. He was inspired by the way factories were creating a checklist of whether or not the workers were running the assembly line correctly and the product was making “the grade”. The practice quickly became the favorite way of determining if students “met the standard” as teachers began to structure classrooms using factories and industry as their model of productivity.

Today, we value far more than the ability to memorize and follow simple directions. Learning is about a deeper understanding of content, problem-solving, inquiry and innovation. Instruction today is focused on coaching students with specific feedback and intentional supports to reach these rigorous learning expectations.

Why we want to revise our early learning report cards:

Like teachers, parents need accurate and meaningful information, about their child’s strengths and opportunities for growth. In an effort to provide parents a communication tool which gives specific information concerning what students should know, understand, and be able to do, the elementary report card is linked to our Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS) standards and highlights the essential learning goals in each content area for that grade level. As we work to guarantee high levels of learning for all students, we will use a proficiency scale to measure and report what students are learning. Research shows that when teachers, students, and parents have a clear understanding of what the learning target is then student achievement greatly increases. The Tomball ISD PK, Kinder and 1st-grade report card revisions will serve as a better tool to help us partner with our parents to reach these goals.

Revised Report Card Video Overview

Revised Report Card Video Overview (Spanish)

Informational Flyers
RRC FAQs

Informational Flyers

RRC FAQs

Q: What do the grayed out/shaded areas on report cards mean?

A: Shaded areas indicate the topic has either not yet been introduced, not quite ready for formal assessment, or the expectation was specific to that grading period.

Q: If there is an area in which my child did not meet a level 3 for the nine weeks, should I be concerned?

A: There are multiple standards within each learning strand and students are required to master each standard to meet the target. Students who are mastering most, but not all, standards are still on the right track. Teachers continue to work individually or in small groups with students who need additional help meeting the target. Your child’s teachers will also be communicating where your student is in the learning progression throughout the grading period in a variety of ways. We want to make sure you are as informed as possible.

Q: Will a revised report card with the proficiency scale be implemented in the higher grade levels, too?

At this time, our revised early learning report card will be utilized for Pre-Kindergarten, Kindergarten and First grades. However, we are always working with our teachers, parents and students to improve how we communicate learning with our Tomball ISD families.

Q: Is a 3 on the revised report card the same as a B in traditional grading?

A: There is no correlation between traditional letter or percentage numerical grading and the levels of proficiency on our early learning report card. A “3” means the student has shown mastery of that particular skill. It’s a celebration of learning! The goal of our TEKS-based, proficiency level grading is for students to reach outlined targets by the end of the school year.

Q: My first grader has been identified as a GT student. How will he be impacted by the new report card?

A: This new reporting tool will not affect the current GT program for your child. Students qualify for the GT program the same way they have in the past. Students who progress ahead of targets are still offered various extension activities to enhance their knowledge and skills. In fact, our teams work very closely with our GT Specialists on each campus to help develop rich extension opportunities for every child, regardless of program, to dive deeper into more complex learning.

Q: Is Tomball the only district changing report cards for Kindergarteners and 1st graders?

A: Tomball is one of many districts around the state of Texas that are refining the way they track and report learning. In fact, many districts in our area are implementing this very specific reporting tool at the elementary level. Most of these districts utilize a proficiency TEKS-based report card as a better way of reporting exactly where students are in the learning. We are excited to be able to provide this information for our Tomball families, as well.