How do teachers feel about using web gradebooks to communicate with parents about student progress?

Question

Is it about communicating with parents? Or about the technology? Or do teachers believe that parents care? or do they believe that parents don't care?

Answer 1

I am a teacher and I love the idea of web gradebooks. I haven't had the opportunity to use it yet because I have been off work for a year or two, but I plan on using it and class newsletters to communicate with both the parents and students better.

Answer 2

I am a teacher, and we have a web gradebook. I find that students use it more often than parents. I have had quite a few students bring in missing work because "it said on gradespeed that I was missing this." I have also had phone calls from parents when they noticed their child's grade had slipped. It helps everyone stay informed. I have almost 140 students, so I can't send out personal notes every week about each student's progress, but I can update my gradebook and then let parents and students check for themselves. At my school, we are supposed to update gradebooks at least once a week (by Monday at 9:00 AM). That way there is time for students to correct any problems with missing work before report cards go home.

Answer 3

I've never heard of that...I don't think most parents would be comfortable (nor should they) discussing their concerns in front of all of the child's classmates' parents. At the middle and high school level, we do not schedule times for parent teacher conferences...there is not enough time to schedule a meeting with each parent when you have 100+ students that you teach. We have 2 half days and a 3 hour evening time where all of the teachers sit in assigned spots in the cafeteria and library and parents come in, pick up report cards, and go talk to whichever teachers they would like. There are always a couple of teachers who have a line all three sessions and others who might see 3 parents the entire 3 days. I don't mind this set-up as a teacher or as a parent...it definitely makes more sense than what you are describing. What you are describing is more like our meet the teacher/open house night...

Answer 4

As a parent and future teacher I think that they are wonderful. Some parents aren't able to speak with the teachers as often as they would like. This method keeps them in contact on the most important aspect- the child. Some kids do not tell their parents about how school is going or what grades they make until it is too late. This allows the parents to see what they need to work on to benefit the children. I think as a teacher, it is your responsibility to bridge the gap between home and school and if it means working a few extra hours a week putting grades into the computer, then so be it.

Answer 5

As a teacher, I feel that using the web to communicate with parents is a huge time saver. I wish that more parents would take advantage of the technology. As a parent of a high school student, it is very convenient to stay in touch with teachers and stay on top of the progress and struggles of my own son. He may not like how accessible I am to his teachers, but he also knows that he won't get away with slacking off.

Answer 6

Love it!! It is a wonderful tool. Most of the programs are very easy to use and grades can be put in fairly quickly. My students loved knowing their grades and felt like they had control, especially regarding missing assignments. We also had positive feedback from the parents. We were required to have our grades updated every Friday afternoon, so that parents could check grades for the weekend. They all loved it!
I didn't realize how great it was, though, until my daughter began attending a middle school that has almost NO communication with the home. While my daughter is a good student, I still would like to be able to look at her grades and we could both see how she is doing.

Answer 7

I teach at the college level and do not interact with the parents of my students, unless the student is under 18 and is still in high school. I use an online grade book and have found that students like to be in control of their grades. I post their grades for all assignments, labs, test, quizzes, research papers, etc. Students know when things are due and use the online grade book to assist in balancing their time in order to complete the assignments on time. Also, I can email the class all at once or post a notice if I need to miss a class or to remind them to turn something in.
I have noticed that the more a student reviews their grade, the better they do in the class and this also increases teh number of questions they will ask in class.

Answer 8

I'm not a teacher or a parent, but where i went to school, they had this. It helped myself know how i was doing in certain classes. I just wish that all of the teachers updated more frequently. It helped me get missing papers in, and see what i missed when i was gone...