EDUCATORS SAY PARENTS SHOULD MAKE BEST OF UPCOMING CONFERENCES

Educators anticipate opportunities to foster closer parental contact and improved student performance during parent-teacher conferences at area schools over the next two weeks.

Many school districts have designated conference days at the end of the first quarter of the school year. Educators said holding conferences in the autumn has proven more beneficial to students than in the spring, when fewer parents participate.

Each conference lasts from 10 to 25 minutes and allows teachers to speak directly with parents about their child's academic and social performance in the classroom. Teachers said they hope the conferences encourage parents to become active in their child's development.

"You've got to have some type of contact with the parents so they can know how their child is doing, not only academically, but also concerning their behavior," said Christina Green, a mathematics teacher at the Cape Girardeau Alternative Education Center. "Sometimes in the heat of getting everything done, you don't always get to call parents when something good is happening or even if something bad is happening. So I think it's nice to have a day designated especially for that."

Green said she will be open and honest with her students' parents and hopes they ask a lot of questions. "I hope they do put me on the spot because to me that lets me know that they are really interested in what's going on in the classroom," she said.

Frank Ellis, principal of Alma Schrader Elementary School, said the most important aspect of the conferences at any level is honesty and openness. Teachers have to be willing to tell the truth whether it's good or bad, he said. They also need to be prepared to offer solutions.

"There's really no sugar coating when it comes to parent-teacher conferences," he said. "You have to be forthright and up front, whether you're talking about behavior or academics. "The one thing I'm expressing to my teachers is, if a child is having difficulty I want them to be prepared to say what they are doing to help the child do better."

The setting will usually differ between elementary and secondary conferences. Administrators said elementary-school conferences usually involve one teacher and a student portfolio demonstrating what that student has done in the classroom. Secondary students have numerous teachers, so parents may choose to talk to one or several teachers.

Scott City superintendent Roger Tatum said classroom teachers at elementary schools usually have more opportunities to communicate with parents throughout the year because they have more group activities that require parental support. Although secondary students are older and more independent, parental involvement is equally important at that level, he said.

It's the nature of elementary students that they do have closer contact with the parents," Tatum said. "Our secondary teachers have developed a good follow-up system that I think demonstrates the importance of contact at that level, too. That's critical because these conferences are a time to increase communication more than anything else."

When parents express an interest in a child's school activities, the child generally improves his performance, the educators said.

"It's statistically relevant that a child will be successful in school if their parents show an interest in their education," said Ellis. "We have a lot of participation at our level at most events, so I anticipate we'll have many parents participating in the conferences; I expect to have 95 percent of parents coming to our conferences."

Green said "We have weekly (student) evaluations, which is a little different from other schools. I'm not getting a high response from parents on the evaluations, so I'm iffy about the kind of involvement we'll get from parents during the conferences.

"You want 100 percent participation for things like this, but realistically you know that's not going to happen. I just want the parents to be as involved as possible because I know they'll have a stronger effect on their kids than I will."

QUESTIONS PARENTS SHOULD ASK TEACHERS

-- How do you help children develop a sense of responsibility and self-discipline?

-- How do you help children work on conflict-resolution skills?

-- Do you involve children in group discussions about social issues and about what they are learning?

-- Do you use portfolios to document children's work?

-- What are your goals for my child in reading and how will you help him achieve the goals?

-- Does my child participate in discussions about what she reads in school?

-- Can you show me samples of my child's writing from the beginning of the year and now?

-- What are your goals for my child as a writer this year and how will you help achieve these goals?

-- How will I know if my child is making progress in math and what are your goals for my child in math?

-- What will the class be studying in social studies this year?

-- Can you show me examples of my child's work in social studies?

-- What science topics will the class be studying this year?

-- What opportunities will there be for first-hand research?

-- What are my child's strengths and interests in school?

-- Are there areas that need strengthening?

-- What are your expectations for how much time my child should spend on different kinds of homework?

-- How is homework reviewed in school? Do you review it or is there a peer review system?

-- How can I help my child?