For parents of students in Loudoun County Public Schools, the day of “report card surprises” may be coming to an end.

The Clarity parent portal is a new web-based system that allows parents to effectively see teachers’ gradebook in real time. Teachers will load grades into the Clarity system, along with information on attendance and homework information.

“You can go inside a teacher’s grade book, almost in real time, to make sure your child is keeping up with assignments,” said Loudoun County Public Schools (LCPS) Director of Instructional Services Timothy Flynn. 

LCPS will roll out the Clarity system for grades 3-12 on Oct. 12 with K-2 expected to begin in January. Parents with the Loudoun Education Alliance of Parents (LEAP) received a sneak preview Sept. 12. 

Secure log-in information will be provided to parents.

The implementation of the Clarity system has required additional training for teachers – not just how to operate the program, but how to describe the purpose of assignments.

Teachers will be expected to become more descriptive regarding homework assignments and create a narrative regarding the assignment. So, rather than simply see a grade, parents can understand the assignment.

This reflects an ongoing movement in the school system to explain how the learning process works to both parents and students.  Teachers will also be able to make notes on certain assignments to explain where a student was having problems.

Parents are encouraged to contact their individual teacher or principal if they don’t believe they are receiving the right amount of information through Clarity.

For those parents worried about checking in often enough – or too much – the Clarity system also provides an e-mail alert system. For each class, parents can use the system to sign up for e-mail alerts that will contact them when a student’s overall grade falls below (or jumps above) a certain level, not unlike existing balance alerts many banks have with their checking accounts.

The Clarity system was piloted at Farmwell Station Middle School. Freyja Bergthorson, a Farmwell English teacher, told parents at LEAP that the system made it much easier to communicate with parents.

Bergthorson said that teachers at her school were disappointed when the pilot ended.

Answering a parent’s question about the somewhat intimidating prospect for kids of their parents being able to monitor their performance that closely, Bergthorson shared what she would tell a student,

“If you’re worried … do your job. I’m here to help you. Your parents can help you. This is not ‘Big Brother’ breathing down your neck.”

While the new program is a big leap forward, representatives from LCPS were quick to acknowledge that it requires a learning curve. Grading doesn’t occur instantaneously and reports and written assignments take longer to grade than assignments with a simple right or wrong answer.

A Clarity button is already part of the website for every school in Loudoun County in the upper right hand side of the web page. While the system isn’t live until Oct. 12, the Clarity “parent portal” already has an instructional video posted.