What a day at parent teacher conferences! It’s always interesting to meet the parents of the students we get to see on a daily basis. With some, you can tell right away who they ‘belong’ to, others it’s sometimes a surprise. I find a lot of value in getting to touch base with the parents, not only so they know who I am (there are more often than not stories that make it home about my eccentric personality, quirky stories or my cat Boo) but more importantly, I can connect about their student. Many parents who came had no idea that we were working on the 20% project, or that their students had put themselves out to the internet world on their blogs. In some cases however, the parents were deeply involved in the process and had help edit their entries prior to the nerve wracking action of clicking “publish.” What a range of involvement. I know that in many cases, the student halts communication with a curt “I have no homework” or “school was fine” etc. etc. I’m sure I used the same teenage vernacular when I was in high school, but how things have changed.
In my opinion, parent involvement in student daily life is essential to student success. Granted, there is a necessary balance between the over-involved and the not involved, but there NEEDS to be connections made every day. I have worked hard in the past to involve parents whether through classroom newsletters, emails or the annual “bring your parent to school day.” I have had limited success with all of these attempts... often times its the “choir” showing up for rehearsal. In this day and age of connectivity, you’d think it would be easier to stay in touch with parents. However, I haven’t quite grasped my new “google site” where we are to put homework and communication. I tweet, but I’m not sure how many parents “follow” me, and I answer emails to the best of my ability. However, there still is that lack of connection between the classroom and the parents. I wonder, with my current class sizes of 40, would a “bring your parent to school day” be possible? How would I get more to attend? Why were only 20% of my students represented at parent teacher conferences? What else can I do to connect with parents? How can I ensure that ALL of my parents are reached and are engaged in the lives of their students with regard to my class? Is this question easy for me to ask since I do not have kids of my own? Am I expecting too much?
It's interesting that more parents aren't involved at the high school level. I had 90 - 100% attendance at preschool conferences at the international school here in Bratislava but I knew a few high school teachers in the school who had 1 or 2 parents show up. I wonder what why the parents lose interest in their child's education as they get in the higher classes?
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