School Report Card Time

Mid-year report cards are due out this week according to our school calendar.  It seems like an appropriate time to issue my own report on how our kids are faring in their first year attending school in the USA.  I have avoided this topic up till now for several reasons.  Number one, I have feared that any post that I write about schooling will be too negative.  Number two, I realize part of the negativity is due to the messy period of transition that we continue to experience.  Number three, I can't help but imagine the reactions from the different sectors in my readership.

What might those reactions be, you ask?  I can't be certain of course, but my guess is that my homeschooling friends will think:  Just pull those kids out of school and teach them at home.  That will solve your problems.  My public school friends might suggest:  Their anxieties and frustrations would be lessened at the local public school (our kids all attend a Christian school).  My Australian friends will say:  You never should have left Melbourne in the first place!  

I have spent too many hours explaining and justifying our choices in an internal conversation that never comes to an end.  Today, finally, I have typed up some of my thoughts into a post that describes the experiences of our kids as they attend school in America for the first time  (a Caveat section comes at the end).  It groups our observations and comparisons into six categories.

1.  An Increased Preoccupation with Grades

R and I noticed a greater emphasis on grades in America right off the bat with our first back-to-school information session for our two elementary aged kids.  We settled into our chairs expecting to hear about the books our children would be reading and the topics they would be covering in science and social studies.  Instead, we listened to lengthy explanations of how grades would be calculated for each subject area.  

Surely at the primary levels content is more important than a letter grade.  We went home disappointed.  As I thought about it more, I concluded that the teachers probably did this in response to the angst of American parents over the academic achievement of their kids.  The next day I attended an orientation session for my ninth grade son.  Again, the emphasis was on how each teacher planned to assign grades.  One administrator casually mentioned that he expected parents would check the website where students' grades were posted several times a day.  

Our experience in Australian primary schools was that there were no grades issued before high school.  Teachers did issue detailed report cards, and placed students on a continuum to demonstrate their development, but there were no letter grades.  The purpose of testing was for the benefit of the teacher to know best how to teach.  When one of our kids, for example, struggled with learning math facts and required extra practice outside of school, I was notified in a private conference.  At the high school level, our students began to receive grades for their work, but report cards contained up to five letter grades per subject, accompanied by detailed paragraphs describing strengths and weaknesses.  The emphasis was on the development of the student rather than one final grade calculation.

How has this difference affected our kids?  There is no doubt in my mind that the emphasis on grades has increased the anxiety levels experienced by our daughters.  The younger one absorbed the message that her marks in sixth grade would have a direct impact on whether or not she would be able to go to college.  I have spent hours trying to convince her otherwise.  As for the boys, we figure the extra pressure hasn't been all bad for the older one.  But for our youngest, who was seven when he began second grade, we can see absolutely no benefit in him worrying about how many points he misses on each test and quiz.  Yes, he should strive to do his best.  We want for him to fully engage his mind with the material he is learning, and to make progress.  We don't think he needs to be graded in order for this to happen. (Note, not all local elementary schools assign grades in the early years).

2.  Less Opportunity for Physical Activity

With mandatory sport at many schools, hour long lunch periods that involve playing outdoors, and more minutes devoted to recess periods, most Australian school kids stay active.  Americans who relocate to Australia occasionally find that their kids will lose weight just by going to school.  My boys sorely miss the extra physical activity.  They find it very difficult to spend so much time sitting at desks (almost an extra hour per day compared to their Australian schools).  Our older son has requested (and received) permission to stand up at the back of his mathematics classroom, which is helpful, but longer recess periods would be even better.  The girls found it harder to make friends initially since there was very little time to interact with their new classmates.

(Here's a link to a Washington Post article about the connection between movement and learning.  It argues for hour long recess periods, every day, among other things.)

3.  Greater security and police presence in American schools.

I don't think any of my kids ever saw a policeman on their school campuses in Melbourne.  They are regular visitors to American schools, something our kids all noticed immediately, and I doubt that will change anytime soon.  My cousin tells me that during basketball games at her daughters' school, there are four armed security guards, one in each corner of the gymnasium.  In addition, most American students are locked into their buildings during the day.  My older kids use a code to allow them to exit and enter buildings between classes.

4.  An Increased number of quizzes and tests.

Last Friday our high school son had seven quizzes and tests.  This is not unusual for him.  Both of our kids complained about the constant quizzing and testing in the first few weeks of the year.  Now they seem to have adjusted.  I can't help but think about the lost teaching time.  The increase in recent decades of mandated testing for public schools is a hotly debated topic.  I won't enter into that discussion except to say that it doesn't seem to be solving the problem of failing schools.

(Here's a NYT article about "rampant testing.")

5.  Increased homework levels.

I was warned by American expats in Melbourne that our kids would complain about more homework when they returned to the US, and it turns our their predictions were correct.  "More homework, but we learn less," concludes our daughter in all the wisdom of her sixteen years.  Truthfully, I don't think that the load is all that greater at the high school level, but it certainly has increased for our younger two.  My belief is that homework is unnecessary (and even harmful) in the primary years, except for parents and children reading out loud to each other.  I do understand why teachers assign it.  They cannot fit in everything that is currently required into the school day.  

6. School spirit is an important (and fun) aspect of many American high schools.

Cheerleaders, spirit week, Friday night football games and basketball games: This cultural difference has been a fun revelation for all of our kids.  More on that in an upcoming post.

Caveats

1.  The comparisons that I draw come primarily from the experience of three schools in Australia, and two in America.  

2.  I am a Spanish teacher by trade, and I homeschooled our oldest three kids for six years before we moved to Australia.  I have several biases, many of which are contradictory.  

3.  By far the majority of teachers that have worked with our kids (in both countries) are caring, gifted individuals committed to the growth and development of their students.  Any frustrations I express are directed against the system rather than against the individuals who strive to do their best within it.

 4. I have chosen to write about differences that as far as I can tell are broadly true within the two very different educational systems, but I recognize that schools vary widely and that exceptions will abound.

 

Comments

[susan]

Christie - I love reading your posts- we just moved back from living in melbourne and would agree with a lot of your observations here. But the one thing that's been different for us is that our kids are actually learning things here now. We were in public school in australia and we have a high schooler,middle and elementary - in the 2 years we were there they learned nothing new and came back 2 years behind. They loved the no homework and no tests and no grades there but they were very under challenged and now while hating all the homework love learning again - but your article is well written

[Christie]

Hi Susan, Thanks so much for sharing your thoughts and experiences. It's always fun for me to hear from readers. Our kids attended a Catholic school (the boys) and a Presbyterian school (the girls), but it seemed to me that the public schools near us were very good, at least at the primary level. No doubt some are better than others, just as happens here. I'm glad your kids are loving learning again.

[Crystal]

So good to hear your observations and thoughts. Well put as always.

[Shanda]

You brought up thoughtful and interesting points. I myself was convicted by what you wrote about being preoccupied with grades rather than content. And oh, as a mom with six children in school, how I wish there were longer recesses! It would make a world of difference in all the children, I'm sure.

[Pam]

Wow I must say the Australian schools sound wonderful, and we Americans could probably learn a lot from them!

[Christie]

It's true that I painted a good picture of them--some of that is probably due to the rose-colored glasses of nostalgia. But yes, I think there are things we could learn.