ROCHELLE — Rochelle Township High School is implementing a new program providing a wider scope of feedback on student progress. Instead of reporting grades only, RTHS will make available Readiness Profiles; detailed individual information about students in relation to his or her post-high school career goal.
Readiness Profiles have been created to work like a Fitbit, that wireless activity tracker measuring the number of steps taken, your quality of sleep, and your heart rate. Principal Jason Harper said. “The Fitbit has taught us something valuable about the way we approach our lives on a daily basis. As we begin each day and fasten the Fitbit, we become aware of our daily goal.”
The front page of the Readiness Profile features a career goal and readiness snapshot based on each student’s stated career goal. These were generated either in conversation with a counselor or via student surveys.
Next is a College & Career Readiness snapshot giving students an idea which indicators should be met specific to their goal.

The academic knowledge & skills table shows the student’s academic progress by semester as well as courses that are key-indicators for success, an explanation of the course, and statistics on whether or not it will be helpful in achieving the stated goal.
The Academic Behaviors chart will help students identify soft skills which have a major impact on school performance and success after high school. Students can identify what their strengths and weaknesses are when it comes to organization, communication, problem solving, and self-reliance. Harper said this data reflects self-assessment as well as teacher input.
The back page of the Readiness Profile offers feedback on RTHS course offerings that can directly impact students after graduation. They appear specific to career interest. Some connect with college track (Dual Credit and Advanced Placement courses), others focus on career track opportunities (KEC and Work-Based Learning).

At the bottom students will find a checklist to use as they contemplate preparing for life beyond RTHS. “Please understand,” Harper said, “your career goal is by no means set in stone. As you go through school, your goals may change. If so, the courses you take need to correspond to your new goal.”

“This is a lot to take in,” Harper said. “To help you walk through the Readiness Profile, we have posted a sample, a letter of explanation, and a simple powerpoint presentation. You can access that info at the top of the Student and Parent tabs on our homepage: http://www.rths.edline.net.
“Finally, we invite you to join us Monday, February 13 for Readiness Profile Information Night. Every RTHS student and parent is invited from 7-7:30 pm in the Auditorium,” Harper said.
Refer to the Daily Announcements between now and February 13 for a closer look at Readiness Profiles.