The comes a point in parenthood when you realize that you care about what other people think of your children.  Right after they’re born, you don’t really care.  Babies are cute, and people who think otherwise are just plain weird.  Besides, they can’t really do any harm – they just smile and wiggle and do a whole bunch of other things that you have to clean up (but that generally comes out in the wash).

As they age, though, and start spending more time away from you and in the care of others, there becomes a need to protect their reputation.  Not out of a narcissistic feeling that they are a mini-you, but out of a sense that others are involved in their lives to help them, and they can’t help them unless they really understand who they are.  And your children are good, among other things, or at least pretty close to it, and they should be encouraged properly to succeed.

My sense is that this is the source of parental concerns about the contents of student records, which I discussed in a previous post with respect to public schools.  The rules and issues surrounding student records and independent schools are similar.  Sections 9 and 10 of the Independent School Act (British Columbia) provide as follows:

  • Section 9: Every authority (e.g. company or society at the core of the school) that operates an independent school must establish and maintain a record for every student registered with that authority and must establish written procedures for storing, retrieving and using student records.  As well, each authority must ensure that information in each student record is kept confidential, although they may be ordered to allow access to a person providing support services.
  • Section 10: If a student is enrolled in more than one independent school, then the authority operating each independent school with records in respect of that student must provide the other with access to those student records.

More specifically, the contents of the student record that must be established and maintained by each authority are set out in Inspector’s Order 1.07 (Ministry of Education).  The items listed in the Order are nearly identical to those applicable to public schools.

One independent school principal I spoke with mentioned that each year he has parents of at least one child who is currently on their way to a different school complaining about the contents of their child’s student records.  Generally, the grievance follows a breakdown in the relationship between the school, the parents and the child, where the child exhibits some behavioral challenges, the school feels overwhelmed or unprepared, and the parents blame the school for fabricating issues or failing to properly address them.  The parents then want to insure the child’s new school is not tainted with any information generated or passed along by the old school with respect to the child’s behavior, so they insist certain documents are removed.  Occasionally, parents lie about their child’s previous school to prevent records from being transferred properly.

I have also seen situations in which schools simply do a horrible job at maintaining student records, and teachers and administrators fail to appreciate the importance of a student record in a child’s education, particularly in terms of the impact of shoddy records on subsequent educators.  Each of us leans one way or the other when we evaluate certain events; for example, a fight involving a child with a history of fighting in their student record may inevitably lead an educator to see that child as the source of the fight. 

Parents need to recognize the important role played by student records and to respect their integrity, and educators must understand the impact poorly maintained student records can have on a child.

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