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Whither Report Cards in B.C.

Monday, November 14, 2011 | Categories: Interview Panel, Past Episodes

school report web.jpg(Flickr: Flashy Soup Can)

The report card is loved, loathed, anticipated or dreaded. And in B.C. public schools it is a bargaining chip. Teachers waiting for a contract say they won't fill them out. The students are divided. With a Labour Relations deadline looming some say its time to scrap all Report Cards.

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Part Three of The Current

Whither Report Cards - Dorretta Wilson / Geoff Johnson

It's the time of year school children and their parents anticipate -- or dread. The report cards are coming home. In British Columbia , it's not what's in the report card envelope, but what isn't.

Teachers are without a contract. and hope to pressure the province by not filling in the cards. The BC Public School Employers Association wants the Labour Relations Board to force the teachers to fill in grades. We heard from Melanie Joy, Chair of the B.C. Public School Employers Association.

For it's part, the teachers union says students won't suffer without report cards. We heard from BC Teacher's Federation President Susan Lambert.

The Labour Relations Board has yet to rule on the issue. In the meantime most districts will send home report cards, but most will only offer information such as attendance. The exception is grade 12 students, who will get full report cards, they are needed to apply for scholarships and university entrance.

Broadcaster Jodi Martinson went to Killarney Secondary School in Vancouver and met with grade 9, 10 and 11 students to see what they think.

Some wonder whether this may be an opportunity -- a chance to trash report cards forever. Geoff Johnson is a former B.C. teacher and superintendent. He was in our Vancouver studio. And in Toronto, we were joined by Dorretta Wilson. She's executive director of the Society for Quality Education. They are both parents.

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