Evaluating Your Student’s Midyear Progress During the COVID School Year

In a typical school year, it’s smart for parents to use the midyear report card as a chance to “take a pulse” on their children’s learning progress. This year, says Eileen Huntington of Huntington Learning Center, it’s more important than ever that parents pay close attention to their children’s grades since the start of the year.

“We’re still in the middle of the coronavirus pandemic, and it remains to be seen how students will be impacted long term by the spring 2020 school shutdowns and the remote/hybrid nature of school this year,” says Huntington. “But now that we’re in a new year and new semester, parents should take the time to evaluate where their children stand in school and make adjustments if needed for the rest of the year.” 

Here are a few tips for parents on how to best approach this midyear check-in:

• Take note of progress. Even though many students might be off course currently, there are still grade-level standards that teachers are striving to help students meet. Use your child’s report card and other metrics offered by your school to make sure your child is progressing as he or she should. Make note of places where your child is struggling or behind and talk with teachers about expectations.
• Ask the teacher about higher-level thinking skills. This year, many students are learning on their own more than normal and building their independence. This has pros and cons, but definitely means children have opportunities to strengthen those critical-thinking and problem-solving skills. Take note of how your child approaches homework and asynchronous learning. Talk with teachers about their perspectives too.
• Pay attention to study skills. Never before have study skills taken on greater importance than right now. Low grades could point to knowledge gaps, but they could also indicate problems with organization, time management, focus and neatness. If your child’s at-home days are unproductive and heavy on procrastination, study skills development should become a higher priority.

The best thing to do right now, says Huntington, is have Huntington complete an academic evaluation of your child. “Academic evaluations are a great way to get a baseline of where students are in school as compared to where they should be,” Huntington explains. “During this school year, even good students might need help because they’ve fallen behind or aren’t accustomed to this method of learning. The evaluation pinpoints strengths and weaknesses and helps Huntington’s tutoring team develop a personalized plan to help each student achieve his or her goals.”

If you suspect or know based on grades and other benchmarks that your child is struggling, call Huntington at 1-800 CAN LEARN.