Why do student led conferences

After the conference, students: Discuss the benefits of the conference. Work on the next steps to improve learning. Parents participate as active listeners and as advocates for their child. Familiarize themselves with the conference process.

Prepare a list of questions for discussion. During the conference, parents: Provide encouragement, praise, and reinforcement. Assist their child in identifying strengths and learning goals. Work with their child and teachers to determine the next steps for learning. After the conference, parents: Participate in the conference evaluation. Continue to review new goals and the next steps for learning with their child.

Teachers help students prepare for the conference. Before the conference, teachers: Guide students in the collection of work samples and review of learning goals. It allows students to voice their own strengths and weaknesses. They choose what to share to showcase things they learned, need to work on, and are proud of. By making decisions about their learning, students take a greater investment in the process. Students are part of the conversation.

By giving a child the opportunity to express him or herself as part of the learning team, we are letting the child know you are important. You have value. You need to own your own learning and scaffold your own thinking to grow. These are invaluable life skills! Students are accountable for their own success. Student-led conferences send a message to individual learners that they are in charge of their own success.

The adults surrounding them will support and guide them, but ultimately the child drives his or her own decision-making process. Usually, teachers provide some sort of script to keep students on track and ease their nerves. And kids come to conferences armed with data binders or portfolios to show off their work. Aimee McKenney, a first-grade teacher at Startzville Elementary School in Canyon Lake, Texas, helps students create agendas with visual cues so that they can confidently guide their parents through their progress on letter sounds, sight words, and math facts.

As children get older, the data can get slightly more complex. They may refer to bar graphs illustrating their averages on unit assessments and benchmark exams, for example. Teachers often find the conferences relaxing or, at least, a break for their vocal chords , but there is prep work involved to help students understand their progress, organize work, and prepare presentations. There is much value in helping kids better understand which skills they have and which they need to work on, and the prep process can build real-world skills as well.

Depending on their age and what the conference will cover, kids can prepare by doing the following:. The prep work often helps kids be more reflective about their academic progress and their roles in the school, says Kryssie Pratt, a third-grade teacher at the New Albany 2—8 Learning Facility in Ohio. One of my students said the thing she was most proud of was that she is excited to come to school every day.

Even if they struggled academically, they were able to think about what they did that was amazing this year. In addition to the prep work required to pull off student-led conferences, there are other challenges teachers may face.

Some students have a tough time being articulate in front of an audience, even if the audience is just their parents.

Rickey says some kids have teared up out of nervousness. These conferences can provide powerful opportunities for students to advocate for their own learning. Though the format may vary, these conferences differ from traditional conferences in that they place students at the helm of teacher-supported discussions with parents about student progress and learning. SLCs also often present opportunities for students to prepare, reflect on, and discuss evidence of their learning and growth by way of student portfolios.

Whether you already hold student-led conferences or want to make a change, this list of practical resources includes examples, guides, and specific tools that will help you prepare for or improve these meetings:. Student-Led Conferences From Scholastic : You'll find a number of resources in this blog post by middle grades educator John DePasquale, including a protocol to share with families prior to conferences.