School Conferences

 It is to my understanding that school conferences in the U.S. are only held a few times a year. When I was a student I only remember having them once or twice a year. But at CVIS it is a completely different story. They hold conferences once every 2 months, for a total of 5 conferences a year. Even though it is a lot of work for the teachers, I love that the school prioritizes communication and relationships with students and their families.

My first week at CVIS was conference time. Kathy thought it would be good for all of us to sit in on at least a few conferences to experience what it is like. I sat in on two conferences. Although it was a good experience, I felt awkward being at a conference for students I had just met and had never had the opportunity to teach.

Last week was the next round of conferences. This time I attended all of the 5^th and 6^th grade conferences. I was much more comfortable attending them since I have gotten to know the students during my time spent student teaching in their classrooms. I also had a lot to contribute since I have been in charge of small groups and have taught lessons and units in both grades.

All of the students portfolios.

Ready for conferences!

The conferences work differently in each teaching team. Jen and Joel are considered a teaching team since they share the same students, the 5^th and 6^th graders. During their conferences Jen and Joel take turns going over the students’ report cards. The students are also supposed to attend the conferences, although, sometimes they don’t. When students are present Jen has them participate in the conference in some way. This bimester she had each student write down 2 goals for the upcoming bimester, and identify something they did well and something they can improve on. I like the idea of having at least partially student-led conferences. I think this approach is more meaningful for students because they are actively involved in the evaluation process. In my experience with Jen, students are for the most part aware of their strengths and weaknesses and very honest, so there is no reason not to include them. Overall, I was very impressed with students’ reflections and goals, and in most cases I couldn’t have put it better myself!

This student set realistic goals and acknowledged

that he can improve in ESL by not working as

"fast" and "spending more time" on projects.

Although I’ve been speaking a lot about my observations during conferences, I was also able to participate and contribute a lot. Because I designed the 6^th grade science unit this bimester, I went over that part of the report card. I also spoke with some of the 5^th graders parents about math since I was in charge of leading a math group. At first I was kind of nervous, but quickly realized that I have gotten to know these students really well and have a lot to contribute in terms of observations and insights. Overall, this experience gave me confidence for the many conferences that lay ahead in my future.

Another interesting aspect of the conferences at CVIS is language. Parents come in speaking English, Spanish, and sometimes both. When parents only spoke Spanish, Jen was able to communicate with them. However, Joel was not able to do the same with parents that only spoke English. In those cases, I translated back and forth for Joel and the parents. The experience made me think about how this issue is addressed in the U.S. There are so many students who speak English as a second language, and I wonder what that means for their parent-teacher conferences. How will I communicate with my students’ parents if they speak a language unfamiliar to me, like Hmong? Does the school provide a translator? Or does the student have to attend and act as a translator? It is very fascinating and an important thing for me to start thinking about.

I also realized how much work goes into preparing for conferences. Teachers spend days grading and putting together report cards. In class, teachers also provide time for students to put together work to showcase. Jen helped students organize their work into portfolios, which is a collection of work that tracks their progress throughout the year. Even though it was a lot of work, I think it will be worth it at the end of the year.