New standards-based report cards that were five years in the making are generating many complaints among public elementary school teachers, and the teachers union today will ask the Department of Education to halt their implementation.

Most elementary schools are using the cards for the first time this fall, and teachers say the cards take too long to prepare — up to 45 minutes each — and the five layers of forms make it difficult to produce the necessary copies, says Roger Taka-bayashi, president of the Hawai'i State Teachers Association.

In a press conference scheduled for this morning by the HSTA, the union will ask the DOE to make improvements to the cards before they are adopted throughout the school system.

Takabayashi said the teachers like standards-based education, which the new cards are intended to reflect.

"A lot say it makes sense," he said. "But it's just the process of actually turning out the report cards and all the time it's taking."

An HSTA statement announcing today's intended action noted that "the standards-based report card in its current form requires far too much time for teachers to fill out, is confusing to parents and does not in all cases accurately reflect a student's status.

"The time spent filling out the new report cards is taking teachers away from lesson prep and other important teaching and classroom-related activities," the HSTA statement said.

But Kathy Kawaguchi, Department of Education assistant superintendent for the Office of Curriculum, Instruction and Student Support, said the DOE is not going to pull back on its rollout of the new report cards for elementary schools. However, she said the department will provide money and assistance to help schools deal with the paper problem.

Kawaguchi said the department does apologize about the problems with the paper, nothing that "it's difficult (to copy) through the five layers."

"We acknowledge the fact that the teacher comment page is a problem and that's why we've identified ways they can write that," she said.

"The third page is where teachers write comments if they choose, and we're saying write on the original paper, and then we'll send out monies to the schools for paper and toner and to get clerical support to run off that comment page and put it together with the other two pages.

"When we ordered the papers we weren't aware it would be that difficult," she added. "As a result we have noted the need to improve that and we will make certain that next year those things will be addressed because we have to reprint."

TEACHERS' COMPLAINTS

Takabayashi also said teachers from some of the 10 schools that tested the new report cards have complained that their recommendations were ignored.

"Our teachers are telling us (the department) is not listening to the recommendations," he said. "It's not the grading, it's the amount of time — about 45 minutes per child — to use the forms. When they get really fast it's still 20 minutes (per card.)"

The report cards have been piloted for the past two years. Creation of the cards began three years earlier, with input from focus groups that included parents, curriculum specialists and teachers, education officials have said. Experts also were consulted, although there were few examples of standards-based report cards to use as templates.

The DOE said the new cards were needed to align its reporting of student progress with new standards-based education under the mandates of the federal No Child Left Behind Act. The new cards attempt to show a student's progress rather than just allotting a grade. As such, the A's, B's and C's that have been the longtime standard are now M's (meets proficiency), N's (approaching proficiency) and U's (well below proficiency.)

Parents and students have said they find the cards hard to get used to in the beginning. But those at the pilot schools that have seen the cards several times say the new cards offer additional detail and force parents to look at how their child is really performing.

ELECTRONIC FORMATS

Only elementary schools are using the new report cards. Secondary schools are not slated to begin using them until 2007, but she said that date may be pushed back another year or two "depending on how we can address all of the issues."

Eventually the department intends to move to an electronic report card format, Kawaguchi said. This year 41 of the approximately 166 elementary schools used an electronic format and found it much easier. Next year 80 will using electronic report card production, then 120 the following year until all are using it.

"Within the next three years the intent was to have everyone on board with computers," Kawaguchi said. "The limiting factor is there's not enough monies to get everyone computers at one time."

ABOUT THE REPORT CARDS

Usage: The new standards-based report cards are being implemented in the state's 166 elementary schools this fall. Plans call for them to be in secondary schools in fall 2007.

Development: They have been five years in the making — three years in consultation and design, followed by two years of use in a pilot program at 10 elementary schools.

Grades: The cards no longer use the traditional A, B, C grades. Instead they use M's (meets with excellence or meets proficiency), N (approaching proficiency) and U's (well below proficiency).

Why the switch? Education officials have said the change is necessary because the traditional grades and report cards are insufficient to keep pace with standards-based teaching.

Reach Beverly Creamer at bcreamer@honoluluadvertiser.com.