How do you know whether your child is making appropriate academic progress in school?  The majority of parents rely on report cards. If your child gets a high grade in a subject, you celebrate and consider the issue resolved.

Here’s the problem with that approach: school report cards are the least accurate way to gauge your child’s proficiency in academic subjects. According to a report from the non-profit Learning Heroes, “We’re not helping parents in ways that we should be to make sure they have that complete, accurate picture of how their child is achieving.”

Why aren’t report cards an objective measure of your child’s progress? Because over the last decade grade inflation, especially in high school, has become rampant. That “A” your child brings home in math may not signify the progress you think it does. But parents don’t know this, which accounts for surveys that show 90 percent of parents believe their children are performing at grade-level even though only one-third of students graduate ready for colleges or careers. 

Here’s a reality-check from ACT’s CEO: “What we now know is that grade inflation is real. It is systemic, and it weakens the value of student transcripts as a measure of what students know and are able to do.”

Don’t blame teachers: they are under enormous pressure to inflate grades, in part to make their district look good and boost graduation rates. However, by exercising your parent power you can find out how your child is really doing in school.

Here’s how to do it.

Start with the opportunities presented during parent-teacher conferences. Often these meetings feel rushed; you may even see other parents waiting for their turn. So show up a few minutes early and prepare some questions. You might want to let your teacher know in advance that you have specific topics you want to cover; there’s nothing wrong with being proactive. (If you’re feeling timid, bring a friend; if your English isn’t great the district is required to provide you with a translator.) Of course, your questions don’t all have to be about academics: you can ask about your child’s behavior or friend group or whether the teacher has noticed any social-emotional problems. 

Your main take-away: don’t let the most recent report card take the place of a substantive discussion of academic progress. 

Beyond report cards

Instead, ask to see the results of a test given by many districts, often called “interim formative assessments,” low-stakes, computer-based, adaptive evaluations given two or three times a year that measure each student’s progress towards the goal areas in each learning standard. (If you don’t know if your district administers these tests, just ask; if your district isn’t gauging student learning objectively, that’s something that needs fixing!) The results on these tests are free from grade inflation and can give you accurate information about your child’s academic progress. The most common formative assessments used in New Jersey’s K-12 schools, primarily for reading and math, are NWEA’s MAP tests and Curriculum Associates’ iReady tests. 

Here’s an example of a MAP report (not the real name of a child). It looks intimidating but your child’s teacher can explain each category. Here you’ll be able to see how your child’s progress compares to others in his class and in relation to grade-level expectations. And remember you can always request an additional conference if you need more time to understand the report.  (You can also go here for instructions.)

Sure, your child can have an “off day” and not do well. But over the course of the year you’ll have an accurate window into academic progress. If you’re concerned, ask the teacher for monthly information in the form of an email or phone call—no need to wait for the next parent-teacher conference.

What do you do if you find out your child isn’t, for instance, reading at grade-level or is struggling with specific math goals? Ask your child’s teacher what resources are available to catch your child up and whether the school has eliminated the possibility of a learning disability. Sure, the COVID school closures wrought havoc on student learning. But each district in the United States has access to federal emergency funding to close learning gaps, and many have begun high-dosage tutoring programs, the most effective intervention for pandemic learning loss.

The State Department of Education is also working on a plan called the New Jersey Partnership for Student Success  that provides tutors for children who need more help than their school is providing. While recruitment of tutors has been slow, it’s worth asking about.

There is a second form of objective assessments because, by federal law, every state has to administer annual standardized tests. In New Jersey they are given in the spring and are called New Jersey Student Learning Assessments, or NJSLA. These tests, which measure student proficiency in math and reading, are given in grades 3-8 and once in high school. (Science tests are given in grades 3, 8, and 11.)The results are often not available for as long as six months but you have a right to see these as well. Students receive scores on a scale of 1-5, with five the highest (exceeds expectations) and one the lowest (does not meet expectations). Scores of 4 and 5 are considered “passing.” 

Here’s a sample of what the report looks like.

Your research doesn’t have to end here. NJSLA assessments are a form of accountability to the public and the federal government and the State Department of Education (DOE) must releases the scores—not by name of student but in the form of “subgroups.” Subgroups include African-American Students, Hispanic Students, White Students,  Asian Students, English Language Learners,  Students with Disabilities, etc.. These results allow you to gauge how well your school and district does in relation to other schools and districts.

Here’s how it works.

First, go to this link called “School Performance Reports.” This page lets you choose data for each school or district. Let’s say you live in Cherry Hill and your child attends Horace Mann Elementary School. You can find that school’s data by either clicking on “School” (the list is in alphabetical order) or on “District” Then click on the school’s name and you’ll see a long list of different sets of information, from demographics to test scores to school culture to teacher qualifications. Sure, it’s not your child specifically, but it’s a good way to compare your child’s NJSLA results with other students in the school.

Or perhaps you’re thinking about moving to another district. Your first stop to check school quality? The DOE’s School Performance Reports.

Remember, information is power and, as your child’s most important advocate, you need to have reliable data. If your child is struggling in school, what exactly is getting in his or her way? If your children come home with all A’s on their report cards, is that an accurate measure of their academic progress? 

The answers are there. All you have to do is look.