Ace Parent-Teacher Conference- Part 2

By: Tonya Mead, CFE, PI, MBA,MA Educational Psychology

This is a continuation of the 4 steps to ace the parent-teacher conference. Review Part 1, here.

Here are some home-based ideas to help improve improve your child’s academic performance.

* More supervision,
* More focused attention and one-on-one time,
* Increased or decreased involvement with other caretakers,
* Improved communication,
* Greater or less emphasis on school, academic performance, and grades,
* More periodic check ins (check in regularly rather than waiting until the end of the grading period to review academic progress),
* A change in the circle of friends, and/or
* Improved structure and regular routine at home.

As you work toward home-based activities,

5. Request an individual intervention plan from the school.
* Ask the teacher to reflect upon ways in which she might modify her teaching style.
* Could the teacher change the class seating arrangement (closer or further away from friends or nearer to the front)?
* To increase/decrease the times in which your son is called upon to answer questions before the class?
* Might the teacher take 5 minutes before or after the class to answer your child’s questions about the day’s lesson?
* To refrain from correction/over-correction of work before his/her peers?
* To increase the number of positive statements in class?
* To vary teaching methods to include visual, auditory and kinesthetic.
* Lower or raise his voice; or slow or speed the pace of instruction?

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Teachers and Parents as Partners
Remember, school personnel are your partners. Don’t dread the parent-teacher conference. Instead use it as an opportunity to put the teachers to task. It is your child’s birthright, for you to provide an abode for him, to guarantee that he is properly clothed, fed and to ensure his emotional well-being.  In the same vein, it is your right as a taxpayer and supporter of the public school system to expect that your child is properly educated in accordance with his individual strengths. It will not be given freely, you must fight for it.

Here is Part 3, if you’d like to learn more.

Tonya J. Mead, CFE, PI, MBA, MA, Certified K-12 Administrator and School Psychologist is author of Fraud in Education: Beyond the Wrong Answer and president of Shared Knowledge, LLC https://ishareknowledge.com