Assessment & Reporting
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Understanding Assessment & Reporting
Foothills School Division is committed to research-based, ongoing quality assessment, evaluation, and reporting practices for the purpose of optimal student learning. Assessments guide teachers in adjusting instruction, monitoring student progress, providing effective feedback, and assessing student learning. The main purpose of assessment is to improve student learning. Parents play an important role in their child's education; when parents, students and educators work together, students are successful!
What is Assessment?
Assessment is the process of gathering information about what a student knows, understands, and can do, in relation to learning outcomes. All assessments are criterion-referenced, meaning student performances are not compared to one another, student performances are compared to the learner outcomes as set by the Ministry of Education in the Alberta Programs of Study (grade 7 -12) and Alberta Curriculum (grade K to 6).
Multiple Modes of Assessment
Teachers gather a collection of evidence that includes more than products such as essays and written exams. A well-rounded collection of evidence includes observing students while they demonstrate skills or engaging them in conversation to reveal their understanding, in addition to product-based evidence of learning. This is called triangulating evidence.
What is Reporting?
Reporting is the process used to communicate achievement, progress, engagement, and behaviour. The FSD System of Reporting includes daily monitoring to check the progress of student learning against learning outcomes and success criteria and documenting learning through a collection of evidence. The purpose of this is to ensure parents have timely information about students' areas of strength, growth, and next steps in learning.
Reporting Periods and Learner Profiles
The FSD annual reporting schedule for kindergarten to grade 12 includes:
- Two reporting periods
- Two Learner Conferences
- Two Learner Profiles
Foothills School Division System of Reporting
Monitoring Learning
Teachers check the progress of learning against learning outcomes and success criteria DAILY through a variety of strategies: Observation, questioning, reflection, discussing learning with peers and teachers, and well-considered feedback to feed-forward for next steps in learning.
Document Learning
Teachers collect evidence of learning. Documentation can be physical or digital and can be displayed or recorded in a variety of media forms. Documentation of learning is shared with families to make learning visible and apparent. It reveals insights into learning and identifies areas of success, areas for growth, and next steps for students.
Meet the Teacher Conferences
Each family has an opportunity for individual time with the teacher to establish open communication, learn about the child, share learning goals, and develop a partnership approach to the year of learning.
Progress Updates
Teachers will communicate about individual student progress to provide feedback. Parents will receive information on the progress of learning outcomes covered to date. Teachers may communicate through various formats including email, phone calls, portfolios, teacher-created progress reports etc.
Learner Conferences
Each family will receive an opportunity to review examples of student work that demonstrate areas of success, growth, and next steps.
Learner Profiles
Learner Profiles are published to share a level of achievement describing a student’s progress toward, and achievement of, grade-level outcomes.
Gradebook Updates
Parents will receive monthly emails reminding them to log in to their Edsembli account to stay updated on their child's learning progress. Parents are encouraged to log in regularly to keep up-to-date on student progress.
Grade Levels of Achievement
How are Grade Levels Determined?
Grades K - 8: Levels of Achievement are the scores teachers in kindergarten through to grade 8 use to indicate a student's level of performance, in relation to the grade level outcomes in the Alberta Curriculum. This is a 5-point system.
| Level 1 | Level 2 | Level 3 | Level 4 | Level 5 |
Student is not yet demonstrating knowledge and skills as outlined in the Alberta Curriculum. | Student is demonstrating partial knowledge and skills and is approaching an understanding of the concepts as outlined in the Alberta Curriculum. | Student is demonstrating satisfactory knowledge and skills and is developing an understanding with general application of the concepts as outlined in the Alberta Curriculum.
| Student is demonstrating substantial knowledge and skills and shows comprehensive understanding with relevant application of the concepts as outlined in the Alberta Curriculum. | Student is demonstrating extensive knowledge and skills and shows a depth of understanding with thorough application of the concepts as outlined in the Alberta Curriculum |
Grades 9 to 12: Grades are expressed by percentage. Teachers will also provide descriptive, written feedback for the purpose of improving learning. Percentage grades are calculated based on predetermined weightings found in the course outline.
