A parent asked recently why we do student-led conferences when they do not have an opportunity to do them while in middle-school or high school. I'm confident that teachers in the upper grades would see the value in this however logistically it would challenging with all of the various classes a student takes in a given semester. Some high schools do demand a portfolio be created as criteria for graduation. I would make the argument that the self-driven collection would be a student-led evaluation/conference.
The meetings will run for 20 minutes. The students will create goals, specific areas they feel most confident in and areas that they want to focus their attention on growing. Parents and myself with have an opportunity to change or modify goals and engage in a great conversation.
I am using Google spreadsheet for parents to select a time for the student and his or her family to attend the conference. If the spot is open, then you place the student's name in the column that says."student name." Please do not write over someone else's name and please let me know if your family can not make the meeting. I created 41 spots for 28 students, with some early morning, some into the later evening and some after school ends. If you still can not find a time that works, please reach out to me and I can try to accommodate you. Also, you are free to bring younger siblings. They may hop onto a Chromebook, read a book or wait outside on the classroom bench.
On some rare occasions, parents have a hard time typing their name onto the Google sheet (especially with the popular iPhones). Therefore I strongly suggest using a desktop or laptop to view the link.
To protect student/family privacy, the link will come in a separate email from this posting.
I am enthusiastically waiting to meet every family!
Kind regards,
Mr. Hubbard
