Foothills Digital School Assessment, Evaluation, and Reporting of Student Learning 2023-2024

Foothills Digital School Communication Plan and Summative Dates

The purpose of assessment and reporting is to guide and communicate learning. Procedures used to evaluate student achievement are designed so that they are:

• fair, just and equitable;
• motivate students;
• instill confidence in students’ abilities to learn and to succeed;
• and test a variety of skills and levels of understanding.

General information on assessment, evaluation and reporting of student learning is made available to parents through Parent/Teacher Conferences/Interviews; Classroom, Curriculum and School Newsletters; Learner Profiles; Social Media platforms; and School/Division websites.

In accordance with Administrative Procedure 360, “Teachers must incorporate a variety of formative and summative assessments to inform and direct their practice for the purpose of improving, evaluating, and reporting student learning.” We have 2 reporting periods where students will receive learner profiles.  Ongoing communication of your child’s learning will progress as the reporting period occurs.  Furthermore, assessment, grade, mark, and evaluation are defined as:

• Assessment: the process of collecting evidence of student learning. This is an ongoing process throughout the reporting terms.
• Grade: a summary statement of student achievement based on the learning outcomes, indicated as a number or category.
• Grades are based on summative assessments (assessment of learning) such as Learner Profiles.
• Mark: a number or category assigned to any learning task that may be used to determine a grade.
• Evaluation: is the process of judging student achievement based on the Alberta Curriculum and Programs of Studies curriculum standards.

Our School Wide Opportunities for Communication for 2023-2024 are as follows:

Please recognize that curricular newsletters, event calendars, and informational items are circulated on a timely basis to keep families informed but are not considered assessment indicators regarding your child’s academic growth.

*For Students who have an Individualized Learning Plans (ILP) ILPs are reported out in the same time frame as the Learner Profile. Therefore, the ILP reviews throughout the year align with the Learner Profiles and will come home at the same time. There are opportunities throughout the year to meet to develop and sign the ILP’s and have discussions with teachers, Learning Coach, and Administration.

Staff Ongoing Communication 

It is most important that we communicate with our parents in an efficient and timely manner. Communication is key to developing healthy relationships with our students and their families and ultimately allows parents to be knowledgeable about student progress and any developing issues. Most of the teacher communication is done via email. Teachers generally send out parent communications regarding class information once per month. 

The type of communication would highlight the following information: 

An introduction of the teacher, what is taught, course outlines, general expectations, how you can reach the teacher, and what other mediums allow parents to get information regarding their student. Other information that would be communicated can include but is not limited to: 

1. Ongoing timely communications 
2. Homework 
3. Quizzes/exams 
4. Project timelines 
5. Units of study, breakdown of each unit 
6. Unit timelines 
7. Field trips 
8. Reminders of upcoming meetings or events 
9. Good news items 
10. Communications regarding issues/concerns 
11. Communication regarding attendance 

Parents are always welcome to contact teachers via phone or email and can come in and meet with a teacher at any time that has been scheduled outside of instructional time. Parents and students can also set up meetings with our Academic Counsellor to discuss career pathways, post-secondary requirements, and graduation requirements. 

For more information regarding the Foothills School Division System of Reporting, please follow the link below to access information on the divisional web pages.

For more information, please go to: https://bit.ly/FSD-Reporting