Report cards and parent teacher conferences

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I do have to agree with OP. The system could be better organized to provide feedback and I have found the last few years of ES conferences utterly useless. The teacher had no MAP test scores "ready" to provide (send me an email and I will email you the scores) and zero commentary on the report card difference between an ES and an I that was specific to my child. Just generically what those grades were suppose to represent. Why not have the teacher put some effort in and make this worth the time so I would not have to follow up later and also use up teachers time? Two straight years of conferences started out, "How do you think your child is doing?"---what a cop out!! But the good news is that the speed conferences in middle school have been great use of time and the teachers have been totally 100% prepared to talk about child's performance and areas of weakness.

Why is that a cop out?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Haven't you been seeing grades throughout the quarter? Nothing should be that shocking. Use the conference for the things you can't read on a report card...behavior, social questions, etc.

I agree -- there are plenty of things you can have a "meaningful conversation" with the teacher about, that don't require you having your child's report card.

But then if you get the report card and have a question, you do what? Ask for another appointment?

Exactly. It's not hard. I usually send an email about one week in advance with my questions so that she can answer what she wants over email and is then prepared to answer my other questions face to face. Also - if you are concerned that the teacher won't have the report card - just request that she have a copy for you.

Okay so you are saying since MCPS starts conferences before giving out report cards to parents and not all teachers have the report cards, that I (as a working parent) should have to schedule another conference once the report card comes in? right.....

Do the second conference via email if you can't get time off for face to face. My DC is in private. Final grades posted and she got a B in one class. I can't get off for the conference because I'm a teacher myself rtn and it conflicts with MCPS's scheduled conference days. I emailed the teacher last night explaining my situation. She emailed me back today with an answer aboutu the grade, two scanned work samples, and steps forward. I get to be a parent and do my job thanks to technology.

[Anonymous]

In my experience the ES teachers have always had the report card ready for the conference there by eliminating the signed envelope home. However, an eight minute conference can be eaten away by a teacher who wants to read you the report card. If anything you're better off without the actual document or at least you want to have some questions ready to steer the discussion away from a report card recitation. If once you've poured over the report card (which I definitely quit doing with the new grading system) you have a question in a specific category, an email exchange might be the most efficient approach anyway. After ES, Edline should have you fully informed and the conference is an opportunity to drill down on specific grades or assignments that seem to have been an issue or a time to discuss strategies for bringing up a semester grade, etc. Basically just a chance to clear the air as by that point student and teacher often have a very different explanation of events.

[Anonymous]

"an eight minute conference can be eaten away by a teacher who wants to read you the report card. If anything you're better off without the actual document or at least you want to have some questions ready to steer the discussion away from a report card recitation. If once you've poured over the report card (which I definitely quit doing with the new grading system) you have a question in a specific category, an email exchange might be the most efficient approach anyway."

I don't find DD's report card all that useful, but maybe it's because she's not struggling anywhere. Unless you think it's likely your DC might have an I or N somewhere though it seems like a waste of time to chew up the conference discussing it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Haven't you been seeing grades throughout the quarter? Nothing should be that shocking. Use the conference for the things you can't read on a report card...behavior, social questions, etc.

I agree -- there are plenty of things you can have a "meaningful conversation" with the teacher about, that don't require you having your child's report card.

But then if you get the report card and have a question, you do what? Ask for another appointment?

Exactly. It's not hard. I usually send an email about one week in advance with my questions so that she can answer what she wants over email and is then prepared to answer my other questions face to face. Also - if you are concerned that the teacher won't have the report card - just request that she have a copy for you.

Okay so you are saying since MCPS starts conferences before giving out report cards to parents and not all teachers have the report cards, that I (as a working parent) should have to schedule another conference once the report card comes in? right.....

of course, if you have a question about something. I'd probably just email though

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I do have to agree with OP. The system could be better organized to provide feedback and I have found the last few years of ES conferences utterly useless. The teacher had no MAP test scores "ready" to provide (send me an email and I will email you the scores) and zero commentary on the report card difference between an ES and an I that was specific to my child. Just generically what those grades were suppose to represent. Why not have the teacher put some effort in and make this worth the time so I would not have to follow up later and also use up teachers time? Two straight years of conferences started out, "How do you think your child is doing?"---what a cop out!! But the good news is that the speed conferences in middle school have been great use of time and the teachers have been totally 100% prepared to talk about child's performance and areas of weakness.

Why is that a cop out?

Must be a teacher's response. But you will swear you aren't....

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I do have to agree with OP. The system could be better organized to provide feedback and I have found the last few years of ES conferences utterly useless. The teacher had no MAP test scores "ready" to provide (send me an email and I will email you the scores) and zero commentary on the report card difference between an ES and an I that was specific to my child. Just generically what those grades were suppose to represent. Why not have the teacher put some effort in and make this worth the time so I would not have to follow up later and also use up teachers time? Two straight years of conferences started out, "How do you think your child is doing?"---what a cop out!! But the good news is that the speed conferences in middle school have been great use of time and the teachers have been totally 100% prepared to talk about child's performance and areas of weakness.

Why is that a cop out?

Must be a teacher's response. But you will swear you aren't....

You're right, I am going to say that I am not a teacher because, in fact, I am not a teacher.

However, if I were a teacher, and I were having a conference with a parent, I would want to know how the parent thought their child was doing. Why would a teacher not want to know this? Why is it a cop-out? Please explain.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Haven't you been seeing grades throughout the quarter? Nothing should be that shocking. Use the conference for the things you can't read on a report card...behavior, social questions, etc.

I agree -- there are plenty of things you can have a "meaningful conversation" with the teacher about, that don't require you having your child's report card.

I am not the OP, but I have never seen anything other than the report card come home indicating a grade in my child's 4 years of ES in MCPS. No papers, tests, sheets, etc. that have any type of grade/indicator on them. This year nothing at all comes home. There are no marks in the homework journal indicating that the teacher ever looked at it. Nada. Just not the way its done at our school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Haven't you been seeing grades throughout the quarter? Nothing should be that shocking. Use the conference for the things you can't read on a report card...behavior, social questions, etc.

I agree -- there are plenty of things you can have a "meaningful conversation" with the teacher about, that don't require you having your child's report card.

I am not the OP, but I have never seen anything other than the report card come home indicating a grade in my child's 4 years of ES in MCPS. No papers, tests, sheets, etc. that have any type of grade/indicator on them. This year nothing at all comes home. There are no marks in the homework journal indicating that the teacher ever looked at it. Nada. Just not the way its done at our school.

That's really unusual. I have experience as a parent in four different MCPS ES and in all of them my kids brought home work. For two of them, there is a Thursday folder that's sent home that has the week's work and parents have to sign each week.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

But then if you get the report card and have a question, you do what? Ask for another appointment?

Exactly. It's not hard. I usually send an email about one week in advance with my questions so that she can answer what she wants over email and is then prepared to answer my other questions face to face. Also - if you are concerned that the teacher won't have the report card - just request that she have a copy for you.

Okay so you are saying since MCPS starts conferences before giving out report cards to parents and not all teachers have the report cards, that I (as a working parent) should have to schedule another conference once the report card comes in? right.....

I'm not the PP you're responding to, but no, I don't think that the PP is saying that. What I think the PP is saying: IF the teacher does not have the report card at the conference, AND IF you have questions about the report card once you receive it, THEN you can contact the teacher about those questions. If you can't do an in-person meeting, than there are other options.

So the system is flawed

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Haven't you been seeing grades throughout the quarter? Nothing should be that shocking. Use the conference for the things you can't read on a report card...behavior, social questions, etc.

I agree -- there are plenty of things you can have a "meaningful conversation" with the teacher about, that don't require you having your child's report card.

I am not the OP, but I have never seen anything other than the report card come home indicating a grade in my child's 4 years of ES in MCPS. No papers, tests, sheets, etc. that have any type of grade/indicator on them. This year nothing at all comes home. There are no marks in the homework journal indicating that the teacher ever looked at it. Nada. Just not the way its done at our school.

My child is now in 2nd and we too have never received anything home. Nothing

[Anonymous]

It must depend on the school but at ours they print out a copy of the report card to give you at the conference.