username@email.com
username@email.com
In this lesson, we will discuss:
When meeting with parents, teachers should have a prepared list of strategies that parents may utilize to help their children. Most parents will meticulously follow the course of action that the teacher recommends. Therefore it is important to give them the best advice possible. The following strategies are useful and easily implemented by most parents.
This is an easy measure that all parents should be able to accomplish with only a modicum of effort. If the student and parents develop the habit of spending some time every evening reviewing class work from that day, it is difficult for the student to avoid doing the work or not to complete it to the best of their ability. Either way, the parent can identify areas that may need work and begin assisting their child at that time. It is best for this to become an established daily event as opposed to occurring once a week.
Students routinely have homework. Parents who are available and help their children give them an advantage over children whose parents choose not to implement this strategy. Parents who work with their children constitute the ideal form of education. In some circumstances the teacher may want to provide the parent with a daily form that indicates class work, homework, and student deportment. The following sample Student Daily Progress Form may be helpful. It can be modified to meet the needs of any teacher’s class.
Encourage the parents to arrange time daily to review class work and help with homework. Waiting until the end of the week compounds existing problems and may allow the child to postpone doing the work. An every-other-day or alternating day model does not establish the seamless intent of the curriculum. Students may feel that the concepts are isolated and not see the relation between them.
The lesson objectives are what the teacher expects the student to learn as a result of the instruction. If the students and their parents review these objectives and use them to study, their efforts are more focused. Each lesson should be governed by the contents of the objective(s) for that lesson, so that no assessment item will include materials not covered by an objective.
Do not place an item on an assessment that has not been covered in class by an objective and appropriate instruction. It is virtually impossible to defend this action in the presence of a parent and administrator.
When helping their child prepare for an exam or prepare for the next day’s class, parents are well advised to keep the objective sequence in mind. Sometimes it is helpful to organize students’ notebooks so they have a location dedicated to their lesson objectives. It is usually best to keep the objectives on the same page as the lesson notes or activity. The objectives can be recopied as a review activity so that all of the unit objectives for a given assessment are copied onto a single page, allowing the student a complete list for study purposes. This tactic benefits students and parents because it allows them to see the smooth flow of the curriculum and the timeline as detailed by the lesson objectives. It may be helpful to require the students to keep their objectives in the following format.
Date:
Class/Subject:
Lesson Objective(s):
In this format, the objectives are easy to read and study. They can also be reconstituted onto a single page without too much trouble.
Parents are often clueless about what their child is doing or how well their child is doing in school. Teachers often have to educate the parents before they can move forward with having the parents help to educate their child. A teacher must be able to describe the child’s situation in the class. For instance, is the child in real danger of failing or did they just miss one word on a 25 word spelling quiz? It is imperative to accurately convey the gravity of the situation. Teachers must be transparent, open, and honest at this point. If the student is in real trouble, the parent response is likely to be different than if the child simply needs to invest more effort in study.
Do not confuse parents. They are looking to you for the latest data and as a provider of possible solutions. Keep it simple. If possible, share everything in writing with the parents.
This is an expensive alternative for parents; however, a good tutor is worth the money. In most cases the tutor’s knowledge of the content and ability to recognize the child’s level and developmental status allows them to diagnose the situation and then move forward more rapidly and with greater efficiency.
An experienced tutor already knows the scope and sequence of the subject and probably knows the timeline established by the classroom teacher. The experienced tutor may also be familiar with the format of the exams, and can get the dates of the assessments from the student. When recommending and then working with a tutor, it is beneficial to provide the tutor with as much information as possible regarding the curriculum, how it is taught, and how it will be assessed in the classroom environment. In this way, the tutor can more accurately focus the preparation.
If expense or access is a problem, the teacher could help the parents find a peer tutor. This is a nice option for students because it allows them to work with a student in the school, and the fact that the service is free appeals to parents. The downside is that the students may spend their time talking about what they did last weekend instead of preparing for the lesson.
Most schools have a peer-teaching program in place. These programs usually consist of a child from an upper grade helping a child in a lower grade as part of a volunteer activity. It may also be a student within the same class who has mastered the material. In high schools, the National Honor Society normally provides peer tutors as a component of their charter. Other clubs and after-school programs that arrange peer tutors or mentors are common, so make sure to ask around your school.
Students can make great tutors because they are able to break the subject matter into student-sized pieces and present it in student vernacular. Also, certain students are more receptive to a peer tutor because they can move at a slower pace and are more comfortable asking questions. Furthermore, there is no classroom pressure when working with a peer. However, first make sure that the student doesn’t feel embarrassed about needing help. In that case, it may be better to hire a professional.
A number of students agreeing to work together on a regular basis form the fundamentals for organizing a study circle. Involved teachers help create these functional groups to assist students who may be struggling as well as those who wish to work ahead.
The teacher may select the students within the groups or they may form naturally. Time may be provided in class for the groups to meet. Students can further discuss problems and projects via phone, email, or after-school meetings at a time that is convenient for them. Parents can be alerted as to these educational activities so they can add their child to one of the groups. The simplest study circle uses the study-buddy method of pairing two students who work together and hold each other accountable for good results.
Functional study circles or help groups are often a very valuable resource for teachers. When properly functioning, the individuals in these groups interpret instruction and provide examples on their own level, serve as tutors, challenge each other, and extend the instruction and learning beyond the teacher and the classroom.
Teachers generally have a file cabinet or a storage room full of useful resources intended for struggling students. Common examples of such resources may include practice tests, worksheets, reading assignments, projects, and copies of the teacher’s notes. It may be helpful to provide parents with a primer on how to use each of the resources that are provided for them. Make sure that the resources presented to the parents are in line with the curriculum, instruction, and assessment material. It may prove beneficial to provide a timeline or a scope and sequence for the parents to reference.
Start collecting, borrowing, buying, and developing resources as soon as you decide to become a teacher. File them in such a way that you can get to them quickly and easily.
Some parents fail to set boundaries or priorities for their children. When this happens, students often do what they want to do, like play, before they begin any work. Whereas it is a good thing to play and have fun, it becomes a problem when the student never has the time or energy to complete homework assignments or study for a test. Vigilant parents help their children maintain a healthy balance between work and play—it is essential to do both. It is also helpful if the parents arrange for “quiet time” (6:00 to 8:00 pm) at home so their children have a pre-set time to complete their studies. Distractions like television should be kept to a minimum during quiet time.
Parents may overlook the other professionals involved with the education of their child. In some cases, the parents may not even know their child’s other teachers or guidance counselor(s). As the parents take stock of their child’s achievement, they should conference with each teacher and counselor involved with their child. They may find that a similar scenario exists between all the classes/subjects.
Guidance counselors are always useful to have at a conference, since they bring a different perspective and the parents see them as non-threatening. In certain instances, it may prove beneficial to also invite the appropriate administrator, especially if behavior problems are affecting the child’s achievement. The more information that the parent can receive, the better their ability to make judgments regarding the educational direction and support of their child, thereby working to produce a healthy, happy scholar.
Make sure that students are in the appropriate class and that prerequisites have been met. Furthermore, ascertain the next subject that the student should take and determine if there is a sequence that must be followed. Parents typically are not well-versed in the program of study. In some cases it might be easy, as in the second grade student who will next progress into third grade. In other cases it may be more difficult. For instance, if the child takes health instead of physical education during the odd days of a block schedule in fifth grade, you may have to consider whether it will prevent them from being able to schedule a foreign language for the full year in the sixth grade.
Learn the sequence of courses for students most likely to be in your classes. Teachers can serve as some of the best student advisors. Parents often look to teachers for assistance and professional advice.
Teachers must gain a perspective beyond their classroom. Most parents will appreciate a model that they can use to complete the long term planning projection for their child so that they can select courses from certain subjects and ensure that graduation requirements are fulfilled. Generally, the number of credits required for graduation is greater than the total required for particular subjects to allow students to select subjects that they like and still receive credit towards graduation. However, when in doubt, refer the parent to someone who is very familiar with the system.
Teachers and parents can use all of these strategies in a collaborative way. Select from among them the ones that best suit a given situation. Having parents as educational allies is infinitely better than having them as educational foes. Teacher-parent collaboration is an effective tool that may be used for students at all ages, academic levels, and developmental stages.
Support systems are typically intended for struggling students. It is also imperative to construct them for academically gifted students as well. Students who are strong academically may acquiesce to the mean and lose their academic advantage without a supportive infrastructure.
Collaboration between parents and teachers is positive and should be cultivated. However, there are also strategies that parents can employ on their own. These strategies work for all subjects and are under the direct control of the parent and are independent of the teacher. They are also quite helpful in implementing a holistic plan to foster student growth. You may wish to share some of the following tips with parents.
Teachers are required to report signs of abuse.
Parents who seek help with educating their child are among the greatest assets that a teacher can have at his or her disposal. Communicating effectively with them is a requirement for successful teaching.