Why the 2023 Reporting Policy Matters for Schools
British Columbia’s K-12 Student Reporting Policy, effective July 1, 2023, modernizes how schools communicate learning to students and families. The updated Communicating Student Learning Guidelines (August 2023) clarify expectations for reporting, strengthen inclusive practices for students with disabilities and diverse abilities, and reinforce a province-wide focus on learning rather than simply marks.
For school leaders and educators, the policy is more than a compliance requirement. It is an opportunity to improve family engagement, strengthen student ownership of learning, and ensure reporting is meaningful, timely, and equitable.
At TinyEYE, we work with schools every day to support students’ communication and learning needs through online therapy services. Clear reporting practices help multidisciplinary teams (teachers, administrators, clinicians, and families) align around shared goals and consistent support strategies.
The Big Idea: Curriculum, Assessment, and Reporting Work as a System
The guidelines emphasize an interconnected relationship:
Curriculum sets the learning standards (what students should know and be able to do).
Classroom assessment gathers evidence of learning in relation to those standards.
Reporting communicates where the student is now and what comes next—clearly and accessibly.
This approach supports deeper learning and encourages responsive instruction: teachers use assessment evidence to adjust teaching, and students use feedback to set goals and improve over time.
What Families Should Expect Each Year: Learning Updates and a Summary of Learning
The format requirements are consistent across K-12. Students receive a minimum of five communications of learning each school year:
Four Learning Updates
Two written Learning Updates (digital or print)
Two informal Learning Updates (for example: conferences, calls, emails, portfolio entries, virtual meetings)
One written Summary of Learning at the end of the school year
Schools and districts determine the schedule locally, but the guidelines stress a key operational point: families should be told early in the year when updates will occur and what formats will be used.
Grades K-9: Understanding the Provincial Proficiency Scale
In Grades K-9, reporting uses the Provincial Proficiency Scale:
Emerging: initial understanding; not yet consistent
Developing: partial understanding; growing consistency
Proficient: complete understanding of expected learning (the primary goal)
Extending: sophisticated understanding with greater depth and complexity (not a “bonus” for more work)
Two important clarifications from the guidelines help reduce confusion:
Emerging and Developing are not the same as failing. They describe a learner’s current stage in relation to learning standards.
Students do not have to start at Emerging at the beginning of the year. Learners may enter a unit already Proficient in some areas, and the focus then becomes deepening learning.
Grades 10-12: Letter Grades, Percentages, and the Graduation Status Update
In Grades 10-12, schools continue to report using letter grades and percentages aligned to provincial definitions (for example, A = 86–100, B = 73–85, and so on). The guidelines also emphasize that descriptive feedback is still essential—because grades alone do not explain strengths, next steps, or how families can help.
A major addition in Grades 10-12 is the graduation status update, included with the final written communication of the year. Its purpose is to ensure students and families can plan proactively and address gaps early. It includes:
Graduation requirements and the student’s program pathway
Progress toward meeting requirements (including cross-enrolled courses)
Completion status of provincial assessments
The guidelines also clarify that the graduation status update is not a transcript; it is a snapshot based on school records.
Gathering Evidence of Learning: More Than Tests
The policy encourages robust, balanced assessment practices. Evidence of learning can come from many sources, including:
Observations (what a student does in real time)
Conversations (interviews, conferences, two-way dialogue)
Products (projects, written work, multimedia, performances, portfolios)
This “triangulated” approach is especially valuable for inclusive education because it creates multiple pathways for students to demonstrate learning.
Inclusive Assessment and Reporting: Key Clarifications for Diverse Learners
The guidelines are explicit: assessment and reporting are for all students—including English language learners, French language learners, students with disabilities and diverse abilities (with or without an IEP), adult learners, and students in online learning programs.
Universal, Targeted, and Specific Supports
The document distinguishes between different levels of assessment supports:
Universal supports (available to all students): clear learning intentions, multiple formats (audio/video/print), graphic organizers, assistive technology, extended time, breaks, alternative demonstration formats, and more.
Targeted supports (for some students): adapted assessments, chunking, multiple attempts, alternate response types, first-language supports where possible.
Specific supports (rare; typically for students with complex needs): assessment aligned to individualized IEP goals, functional and place-based demonstrations of learning, repetitive practice against the same goals.
A practical reporting takeaway: universal and targeted supports do not need to be listed on report cards. However, documenting successful supports in an IEP, transition document, or learning plan may help continuity across years and staff changes.
A Critical Equity Point: Supports Do Not Lower the Standard
One of the most important clarifications is this: a student with an IEP or learning plan should not automatically receive Emerging/Developing (or lower letter grades) simply because they use supports. If, with supports, the student demonstrates learning in relation to the learning standards, then reporting should reflect that demonstrated learning.
When Reporting Is Based on IEP Goals (Not Curriculum Standards)
In rare cases, a student may be taught alongside peers but evaluated primarily on individualized IEP goals (often connected to a School Completion Certificate pathway). In those cases:
Reports must include written comments describing what the student can do and what comes next.
If a proficiency indicator or letter grade is used, the written Learning Update and Summary of Learning must note that the reporting is based on IEP goals, not curriculum learning standards.
Descriptive Feedback: The “So What?” That Makes Reporting Useful
The guidelines repeatedly return to descriptive feedback because it is what makes reporting actionable for students and families. Effective descriptive feedback is:
Strengths-based (what the student can do now)
Aligned to learning standards (without copying standards into the comment)
Clear and concise (plain language, minimal jargon)
Forward-looking (specific next steps and strategies)
For school teams, this matters because clear feedback supports earlier intervention. When families understand what “future growth” looks like, they can reinforce strategies at home—and specialists (including speech-language pathologists and occupational therapists) can align supports to classroom expectations.
Separating Academics from Habits: Attendance and Engagement Are Reported Differently
The policy draws a firm line: academic proficiency is reported in relation to learning standards (or IEP goals), while learning habits and engagement are communicated separately through descriptive feedback and other communication channels.
Attendance must be communicated (an auto-generated number can be sufficient).
Marks should not include percentages for participation, attendance, or behaviour.
Reporting is not a disciplinary tool. Concerns should be communicated early and informally when possible.
Operational Implications for Schools (and How Online Services Can Help)
Implementing the policy well requires consistency across classrooms and clarity across teams. Many schools find it helpful to standardize:
Common language for descriptive feedback
Processes for documenting informal Learning Updates
Approaches to inclusive assessment supports
Collaboration routines for students requiring targeted or specific supports
Because TinyEYE provides online therapy services to schools, we often see the strongest outcomes when reporting practices and intervention services reinforce each other. When teachers, families, and therapy providers share a clear picture of strengths and next steps, student support becomes more timely, coordinated, and measurable.
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