Redondo Beach Unified unveils streamlined elementary report card to simplify grades and comments

Redondo Beach Unified School District leaders on May 14 introduced a redesigned elementary report card that they say will make progress reporting clearer for parents and easier for teachers to use.

The superintendent’s office said the template was developed by a committee of teachers, site administrators and parent representatives and grounded in standards-based grading research. Lis Seil, executive director of educational services, told the board the committee began with stakeholder surveys, formed focus groups and met multiple times to establish a “true north” purpose statement for the report card.

Committee members described the major changes. The numeric rating scale will move from a four-point system to three levels (3 = consistently meets grade-level standards; 2 = partially meets; 1 = not meeting), with a slash mark for items not yet taught. The number of discrete ELA and math domains will be narrowed into five to six grouped domains to reduce fragmentation and make each grade more interpretable.

Teachers also recommended a consistent comment structure. "The comment section should have specific areas for parents to focus on — strengths, areas for growth and home learning activities," said a committee presenter. The behavior section will now be split into two categories: behaviors that promote respect and behaviors that promote learning, each rated on the same three-point scale but contextualized for grade-level expectations.

The new report card adds a distinct section for designated ELD reporting for English learners and will automatically populate dual-immersion information so teachers do not need to complete separate forms for immersion students.

Board members asked detailed operational questions during a follow-up Q&A. Committee members said the district will build the template in PowerSchool, prepare explanatory web materials for families, and run teacher professional development before the first use. "This first year will be a learn year," the committee said; the group plans to reconvene after implementation to make any necessary adjustments.

The district emphasized that teachers will still provide printed report cards at trimester checkpoints and narrative comments for families who want deeper context. Board members praised the committee’s in-house approach and called for clear parent-facing guides to accompany the first rollouts.

Next steps: the district will finalize the PowerSchool build and communication materials, offer teacher training, and share the guiding documents with families before the first reporting period under the new template.