4 TIPS FOR A VIRTUAL PARENT CONFERENCE
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Depending on when the school year started for you, you are probably thinking about parent conferences right about now. If so, and you are trying to figure out how to navigate a virtual parent conference, I have a few tips to share!
Send questions ahead of time.
To maximize your time together, send questions to the parents in advance. This will allow time for them to fully process and provide thoughtful responses. Consider some of the following questions:
-How capable is your child to complete assignments on his/her own? Consider a rating of 1-10.
-How is your child doing from a social/emotional perspective? Consider a rating of 1-10.
-What are you finding is your child’s academic strength?
-What are you finding has been challenging academically for your child?
-What, if anything, can we do to better support your child?
Have pertinent details/questions on a slide.
Just as you might prepare a page to share with parents on their child’s progress, you can do the same on a slide. This helps guide the conversation and keep it on point in your limited time together.
Listen and gather information from the parents.
Given that most, if not all, of the parents you are conferencing with have children working virtually, they probably have tremendous insight to share as they have worked alongside their child. The virtual environment most effective when there is true collaboration between students, parents, and teachers. So, remember that the information that parents share can be extremely valuable as you look at how to best support that child and grow them as a learner. This may feel like a bit of role reversal with the parents providing the majority of the insights into their learner instead of you.
Talk about assessments and their role.
This is also a potential time to share the importance of assessment. I hear almost daily from teachers their frustration with parents doing their child’s work. Take this opportunity to explain the function of assessment and how it informs your instruction and next steps to meet the needs of their child. So, if they are doing the work for the child, believing they are helping, they might be willing to step back with this new understanding. Another tip to try in this realm is to begin labeling any work for virtual students as independent or with help so parents clearly know their role. This can all be introduced during the conference so any questions can be addressed.
Parent conferences can be an incredibly valuable resource if we plan ahead and use our time efficiently. I hope these few tips will help as you explore the world of virtual parent conferences.
Best wishes!
:) Brandy