Transcript Student Led Conferences - Prairie South School Division

Student Led Conferences
SCC Presentation
School-Home Communication
Formal
Informal
• Report Cards
• Parent-Teacher
Interviews
• Newsletters
• Radio/TV
• Website
• Phone calls to and
from
• Notes to and from
• Email
• Meet the teacher
night
• Community contact
• On-line grade
reports
• Interim reports
Why are we doing this?
• To help students become responsible
• To empower students to have a voice
• To increase students’ reasoning ability
• To connect school with real life
experiences
• To provide hope for students who struggle
• To challenge students to improve
(Sources: Davies, Making Classroom Assessment Work; Stiggins et al, Classroom Assessment for
Student Learning; Gregory, Cameron & Davies, Conferencing and Reporting; Bailiey & Gusky,
Implementing Student Led Conferences)
Characteristics of Student Led Conferences
• Meaningful student involvement
• Focus on achievement through
portfolios and goal setting
• Plan for improved learning
How are they different from P-T interviews?
Parent Teacher Interviews
• Led by teacher
• Private (one on one)
• Parent anxiety
Student Led Conferences
• Led by student
• Depending on style, not private
• Decreased parent anxiety
• Marks, attitude, effort,
behaviour, attendance
• Focus on academic
achievement
• Sometimes a plan for growth
• Time restricted
• Compartmental
• Always a plan for growth
• More time given to conference
• Holistic
• Done to the student
• Parent/teacher collaboration
• Done for and by the student
• Parent/teacher/student
collaboration
Advantages and Disadvantages of
Student Led Conferences
Advantages
Disadvantages
• Students become self-aware of
learning
• Student takes ownership for
learning and reporting
• Student becomes aware of
where growth is needed
• Students become responsible for
their learning
• Relaxed atmosphere
• Parents hear about progress
directly from the student
• Increased parent participation
• Real life skills are practicd
• Not the time for private
discussions
• Involves a lot of student
preparation
• Little individual contact with
parents
• Parents not showing up
• Requires practice and
planning
What should parents expect at the conference?
• Set agenda
• Student “in charge” of issues
• Reflection on past goals
• Assessment of student performance
from a portfolio of work
• Plan to achieve future goals
What is expected of parents?
• Be aware of your child’s goals
• Monitor the child’s at-home work as
you always have
• Be prepared for a longer “interview”
• Discuss any issues relating to
behaviour, attendance, homework
completion or diligence as they arise.
• Attend the interview with your child
and encourage him/her in their role
• Provide feedback to the teacher
What is expected of teachers?
• Organize and structure the conference
• Prepare the students for their roles
• Collect and organize portfolios
• Communicate with parents
• Prepare documentation for feedback
and reporting
• To be available at all times during the
interview
What is expected of students?
• To set goals to share with the parents
• To choose work samples from their
portfolios and reflect on them
• To practice their role before the
interview
• To be prepared to answer questions
• To be honest and open with both
parents and teacher
Possible barriers to success
• Breakdown in communication
• Need to discuss non-academic issues
• Logistical problems
• Need to see “all the teachers”
• Dysfunctional home situations
• Others?
What can parents expect?
• Receive information from the teacher
-student goal-setting
-conference structure
-conference invitation
• Attend the interview with the child
• Complete a feedback sheet after the
interview
More information? www.prairiesouth.ca