report cards to students in psychiatric hospitals?

Strengths, Weaknesses

 

We are not teaching the same curricula in any subject areas as schools within a district. Upon what would the numerical grades on report cards be based? With what other children could we compare a child’s achievement or progress in any content area? How do we know how much they gained if are not continuing to scaffold education based upon what he was studying before hospitalization? We have no baseline with which to measure progress. Furthermore is it fair to assign numeric grades based upon achievement in an in-patient facility? We teach psychiatrically impaired patients.  I think grading our kids, would be best if we stay with a therapeutic model. It would be more realistic and helpful to avoid numeric grades and benchmarks of achievement, but offer narratives or comments based upon interpersonal development, behavior, ability to stay on task, level of engagement, self control, attitude, and strengths and weaknesses.  After all, how could we pass or fail a psychiatric patient because he is not stable enough to be in school? Anyway, he/she is not studying the exact subject matter as his cohorts in public schools? Would we grade a dancer who had broken a bone in the same way we would grade a performer in perfect physical health?  I think if we stressed to guidance counselors that we are not a school district;  therefore, any grades we give are not transferable. We could instead send a report card