June 16th, 2015

Dear Parent/Guardian:

We are writing with an important update on the final report card. At this point in the year, you would normally receive your child’s report card. We know how important the report card is to parents and to students. It is a reflection of the work done throughout the year, and the marks, learning skills and teacher comments are valued.

Currently, public elementary teachers across Ontario are taking part in strike action. This action includes not completing a full report card, including comments, and not inputting student marks electronically for the purpose of producing report cards. With over 40,000 elementary students in our school board, we rely on teachers to provide a complete report card including comments.  We also rely on teacher professional judgement to ensure the integrity and accuracy of the report card.

Unfortunately, as a result of this strike action and after exploring every possible option, the Waterloo Region District School Board is not able to provide parents, guardians and students with the Term 2 Elementary Provincial Report Card. Instead, students will receive a “letter of placement.” It will include information about the grade placement for your child for the 2015-2016 school year and other information including attendance. This letter will be sent home by Monday, June 22, 2015 and will be part of your child’s Ontario Student Record (OSR) as per Ministry requirements.

Elementary teachers are skilled professionals who keep families informed about the progress of their children throughout the school year. As always, if you have any questions, we encourage you to contact your child’s teacher during the week of June 22nd to discuss your child’s progress this school year.

We understand that this information is disappointing—we share that disappointment.

Thank you for your understanding.

John Bryant
Director of Education

Kathleen Woodcock
Chairperson of the Board

Frequently Asked Questions about elementary report cards