Educators: Conferences are helpful

Sometimes a conference is the only intervention
needed, one principal said.

By HAROLD GWIN

VINDICATOR EDUCATION WRITER

YOUNGSTOWN — Vince Colaluca believes that any parent-teacher conference involving a child’s education makes a positive difference.

The director of instruction for the Austintown schools has participated in conferences as both a teacher and a principal and has found times when such events have ironed out some issues that a child is facing, resulting in an improved educational effort and success.

Tuesday is the unofficial parent-teacher conference day in Ohio schools, and a lot of local parents will be visiting their children’s schools that evening to find out how their children are doing in the classroom.

Maria Pappas, principal at Youngstown’s Bunn Elementary, said her experience “has always been a positive intervention [on behalf of a pupil]. Sometimes, it’s the only intervention you need.”

Some districts require parents to call in advance to schedule a specific meeting time with a teacher. Others, like Youngstown, set aside a block of time and allow parents to come in at any point during that period.

The sessions in Youngstown can run anywhere from five to 30 minutes, said Dennis Mamone, a teacher at Hayes Middle School.

“The parents get a lot of input, positive and negative,” he said, adding that he prefers to open each conference with a positive comment about the child, which builds parental response.

“Sometimes the students have a revelation,” Mamone said, explaining that when they realize their parents have a genuine interest in their education, and there is parental involvement, good things happen.

Youngstown teachers also use the occasion to hand out the pupil’s regular report card at the conferences. The teachers already send home interim folders on each child every two weeks, said Marty Reschner, a third-grade teacher at West Elementary.

The sessions help build a bond between teacher and parents, said JoAnn Roch, a third-grade teacher at Kirkmere Elementary in Youngstown.

“We’re trying to work with you in the best interest of the child,” she said.

Teachers in Liberty give parents checklists, pupil grades, comments and even tips on things they can to do help their children achieve during the conferences, said Ellen King, a sixth-grader teacher at Guy Middle School.

Parents sign up for specific appointment times for 20-minute sessions at Liberty and should already have a good idea of where their child stands.

The district sends home achievement reports every two weeks, King said, and parents are given access to an online site that allows them to check pupil performance at any time.

Austintown also schedules the conferences by appointments that run 15 to 20 minutes, and parents can meet with individual teachers or with teaching teams, Colaluca said.

There is a growing national trend to have the pupil sit in on the conference, but that doesn’t appear to be a widely accepted practice here.

Teachers asked about it said they generally prefer to speak with the parents alone first, and then include the child, if the child is present.

Having the pupil involved from the start puts that child in a difficult position and can create a confrontational atmosphere, King said.

Some schools, like United Junior/Senior High School, help make the trip convenient for parents with younger children.

The school is offering baby-sitting by the Key Club during its conferences, which are done by appointment.

gwin@vindy.com