I apologize, this should have been posted before today. I read up on this subject last year and now go in with my ammunition and guns ablazing! Just kidding!
Firstly, there were no surprises on the report card that we received last eve so my armor did not come with me to the meeting. What I do is set out my cell phone clock and let the teacher know that we share the 10 minutes allotted to us by the NYC Board of Education. I do not let the teacher control the 10 minutes.
I write out notes beforehand, I barely even glanced at them this evening, but the teacher knew I was paying attention and had my own agenda, not just hers. I think is is important to participate in this process and I learned from last years teacher that if you don’t stand up for yourself, you will not get any time to speak or ask a question. Participation is not encouraged, it could be because of the time constraints, I don’t know and I don’t care. I got out what I needed to say, my teacher did the same. I do not know how she gets through these as she talks so slow (which I did mention!) but that’s her affair. I walked away satisfied and even spoke to 3 out of the 5 special course teachers that the kids see: Art, Music, and Technology – those reports were glowing!
All in all, a good conference, the writing level expected seems absurd, but we’ll give it a shot. Meantime, you should read up on these conferences before you have them to make sure you are prepared to participate and stake your turf regarding the time frame!
Leave a Reply