School’s out for the summer, which means it is that dreaded time of year — report card time.

The two oldest assure me they passed all their classes and have moved on to the next grade, but I don’t yet have proof. The report cards are supposed to be mailed, and we have not yet received them.

The two youngest, however, brought home their report cards on the last day of school. The last day was Maxine’s birthday, so it was a day or two before I actually inquired about report cards. I already knew how my kids were doing, but the report card said important things like who Justin’s teacher was going to be next year.

Justin found his report card and handed it to me. He’s a smart kid, but this report card stuff is new to him. He has been getting report cards for years, but they were multi-page things that made sense to someone, but it wasn’t me. For each subject area there would be about 10 to 15 goals the child should meet, and the grades were 1 (could do it), 2 (was in process of learning to do it, 3 (can’t do it) and 4 (not a chance in hell your kid will ever do it). OK, so 4 meant something else, but you get the basic idea. If Justin came homes with 1s and 2s, I was pretty happy and so was he. But 1s and 2s did NOT equal As and Bs, and that is where this numbering system fell. As a parent, I knew what it meant for Justin to be able to write an introduction, but I didn’t know how this skill equated with other skills listed. Was one more important than the other?

In mid year, Justin’s report card system switched from the weird numbered thing to a standard report card with As and Bs. On Justin’s first card, much to HIS shock, he received a C in one of the classes. It was still all 1s and 2s, but one of those somehow magically added up to a C.

It was also Maxine’s first year with a real letter-grade report card, and she was also a bit unclear about the system. It was sixth grade, she now had 7 different classes a day, and the work was a lot harder. She struggled in some of her classes, and she struggled to get organized.

Before sixth grade, school to Maxine was a place to socialize. She loved school, but the course work wasn’t that important. It was the chance to see and chat with her friends that was the important part of school. She rarely missed a day, and she could tell you the latest about so and so, but she wasn’t always quite up on her multiplication tables.

This year there was a change. It had a lot to do with the switch to the letter-grade system of report cards. One of her friends was a straight-A student, and this girl had been talking to Maxine a lot about grades. It seems this girl’s dad pays her $100 every time she brings home a straight-A report card. Her friend also stresses out about grades quite a bit.

When Maxine and I talked about grades and report cards, I told her I’d offer her the same deal. It was later extended to all of my kids. At the time the deal was made, Maxine was getting at most a D in a couple of her classes, and she was probably at C level in the rest.

The deal, and Maxine’s friend, changed the way Maxine looked at school. She began studying. She worked harder, and she started to see results. In the last month (or so) of school, her test scores increased, and she proudly reported her tests as the grades went higher and higher. Within the last week or so, Maxine even scored an A- on a test, and she was beaming!

When I asked for Maxine’s report card, however, she seemed a bit reluctant. She handed it to me with it all folded up, and as she handed it over, she said, “I’m sorry. I’ll do better next time.”

I was a bit shocked by her apology. I knew her report card wasn’t anything to apologize for, and as I opened it, I was pleasantly surprised. She had a couple of B+s and Bs, two C+ grades and a C. Her lowest grade was in her toughest class, and it was a C, which showed how much she had worked to improve it.

I told Maxine she had nothing to apologize for, and I was so proud of her grades AND her new attitude. She wants to learn now, and she wants to do well.

I don’t want Maxine to think I expect perfection, and I am glad she is focusing more on learning than socializing now, but I also don’t want her to end up like her friend who stresses so much about grades that when the school announced the all A honor roll at the end-of-the-year assembly, the teacher also added, “now if she can only do it without so much stress.”

I’m not sure the letter-grade report card is that much better than the numbered system. It seems as if student’s still forget what the letter-grade means. In my mind, and I do admit I changed my perspective when I became a teacher, a C grade means you are meeting the expectations of the course. You are doing just what is required of you. A B grade is slightly above a C, and an A grade is exceptional. A D grade means you aren’t meeting the course expectations, and an E means you are not getting the class at all.

It was clear that I look at grades differently when my oldest daughter started a new trimester and reported that she has “all As” just days later. I asked how she could have all As when the trimester just began, and she explained that everyone starts out with an A, and you go down from there. This is backwards thinking in my mind. Everyone starts out with 0 points and goes up from there. How far up you go depends on how much you work and comprehend the material. Everything over that 0 is earned by work.

And if you are working hard, there is NO reason for anyone to apologize. There are some lessons that just don’t fit in a letter-grade system.