source : the age
Teachers have been told to use plain language and not potentially ambiguous words such as “sound” when writing school reports under new guidelines from the NSW Department of Education.
The overhaul comes after research found parents believed school reports to be quite vague, jargon-filled and overly cautious. Teachers have said they feel restricted by protocols requiring them to use certain words.
“After listening to feedback from parents and teachers, the department has implemented changes to clearly provide the information that families have asked for about student progress,” a NSW Education Department spokeswoman said.
“New guidelines encourage teachers to use plain English to describe student achievement so parents and carers can better understand their child’s progress with clear, accessible language.”
In one example, teachers have been told to use the phrase “expected” rather than “sound” to describe the achievement of students who receive a C grade, in a bid to provide greater clarity. Comments must use clear, direct and simple language and they are told to avoid using syllabus-specific jargon.
New guidelines for primary schools state teachers are no longer required to provide comments for all key learning areas.
“Comments are mandatory only for English, mathematics and the general comment section. However, schools must still report on overall achievement and may choose to include effort for each key learning area,” the guidelines state.
Parents say they value the comments most of all when it comes to reading their child’s report.Credit: Getty Images
Australian Primary Principals Association president Angela Falkenberg said teachers went to great lengths to make sure the reports were easy to read.
She noted after introduction of A to E requirements more than a decade ago that report comments started to include references to achievement level descriptions contained in the Australian syllabus. But she said in other cases, some parents did not want anything written about their child “other than that their child is doing exemplary work”.
“Some parents are uncomfortable with their idea that their child is not exemplary. None of us are exemplary all the time,” she said.
The new guidelines also contain optional structures for teachers to rate how much effort a student puts into schoolwork ranging from low to high. Reporting on effort has been commonplace in some schools for many years and remains optional.
“Feedback from parents and carers indicates that they appreciate insights into their child’s effort,” the guidance notes.
Falkenberg said effort – whether the ability to stick with a tricky assignment or keep trying until a maths problem until it was complete – was sometimes a bigger indicator of success than IQ alone.
“All those things take perseverance and some of the concerns of educators, with parents who try to smooth the way for children is that they take away the opportunity to develop that persistence and grit,” she said.
Teachers have also been told “comments should avoid discussing behaviour unless it is directly relevant to areas of strength, development or commitment to learning.”
Teachers have also been told that they must write the reports themselves but may use an internal artificial intelligence chatbot to “support them”.
Australian Tutoring Association president Mohan Dhall warned against using artificial intelligence to assist with writing comments as it compromised a teacher’s ability to deeply reflect about student performance.
“If someone defaults to AI, they’re effectively saying, ‘I cannot myself articulate what I need to say about a child’, effectively undermining one of the most basic teaching standards, [which is] know your students and how they learn,” Dhall said.
In 2021, research by Catholic Schools NSW found many parents found teacher comments the most useful aspect of a report but wanted them to be clear and honest.
P and C Federation chief executive Gemma Quinn said parents have said reports could be difficult to interpret.
“Parents are far more likely to engage with and act on reports when they’re written in plain language and clearly reflect their child’s individual progress and areas for growth,” she said. “The move toward clearer, more accessible reporting will strengthen the partnership between families and schools.”
P and C Federation president Aresha Quaass said the changes were a big step forward in making school reports “more parent-friendly, more meaningful, and more supportive of genuine communication between families and schools”.
