PT conferences

[Anonymous]

My DC complains that one of their teachers treats them harsher than the other students (singles them out for behavior that others don’t get in trouble for and yells at them), and lets a handful of students dominate discussions (they shout out answers without being called on, which makes it difficult for the other students to participate). Are these concerns reasonable to bring up in a P/T conference, or will I just make my DC’s life more miserable?

[Anonymous]

You can ask the teacher for guidance, by saying your child has found it difficult to participate in class and how the teacher recommends to address this.

You don't mention what "behavior" your kid is getting in trouble for, but there are ways to constructively manage discussions in ways that you can get information about how to improve your child's classroom experience.

Criticizing how the classroom teacher manages the class and saying "my kid says you let kid XYZ do X behavior" is rarely a recipe for a productive conversation.

[Anonymous]

Find out what the behavior is and whether everyone is doing it or just a handful of students. Sometimes, other kids have an accommodation for a behavior that is not generally allowed, but people look for confirmation bias. Out of 22 students, only Joey and I are out of our seats and walking around. The teacher only told me to sit down and Joey is still up so she must hate me. Meanwhile Joey’s IEP requires two stretch breaks and he’ll sit back down on his own or his teacher gives a discreet non-verbal signal that his break is over.

[Anonymous]

Fact check with other parents then bring it up. Do it in a non accusing way to get started.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Find out what the behavior is and whether everyone is doing it or just a handful of students. Sometimes, other kids have an accommodation for a behavior that is not generally allowed, but people look for confirmation bias. Out of 22 students, only Joey and I are out of our seats and walking around. The teacher only told me to sit down and Joey is still up so she must hate me. Meanwhile Joey’s IEP requires two stretch breaks and he’ll sit back down on his own or his teacher gives a discreet non-verbal signal that his break is over.

+1 Good point that all kids are not subject to exactly the same rules in a class. Focus on your own child OP, and the issues they're having in the classroom and how to solve them. Don't bring up second hand information from your kid when your kid may or may not be a reliable narrator.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Find out what the behavior is and whether everyone is doing it or just a handful of students. Sometimes, other kids have an accommodation for a behavior that is not generally allowed, but people look for confirmation bias. Out of 22 students, only Joey and I are out of our seats and walking around. The teacher only told me to sit down and Joey is still up so she must hate me. Meanwhile Joey’s IEP requires two stretch breaks and he’ll sit back down on his own or his teacher gives a discreet non-verbal signal that his break is over.

Joey needs to take stretch breaks in a way that’s not disruptive to the entire class.

[Anonymous]

Go and meet with the teacher. Start out by listening. See what the teacher has to say about your kid. Then push back if necessary.