Carisbrook School will be running student led conferences for all students in the final week of this term. We will allocate you a time to come along and be part of this. This is a copy of the information that went home this week. Please fill in the note you received and return to school. Contact the office if you need another slip.

What is a student led conference?

A student led conference is a meeting run by the student for his or her parents, entirely focused on the student's recent learning. During the conference the student presents work in different curriculum areas, discussing the process of learning and the progress made to date.

Why have student led conferences?

From all the research we have read — developing students' ability to talk about their learning and their progress makes a difference! Professor John Hattie (formerly University of Auckland) recently published a revised list of the most effective influences on student achievement which identifies student self-reporting as the most significant indicator linked to raised student achievement. 

‘If the focus is to be kept on learning, and the ownership of the learning with the child, then the best person to talk about the learning is the learner’...‘Not only is the student the best person to tell their parents what they have learnt, but if we believe that students build their knowledge by communicating what they know, then providing an opportunity for the students to tell their family what they know can significantly assist with that learning.' Absolum, (2006)

Research also shows parental involvement in schools and classrooms has a positive impact on children’s learning (Bastiani; Epstein).

How do student led conferences work?

Conferences will last 15 minutes. You will be involved in looking at samples of learning, talking about goals and what your child, you and the teacher might do to support these goals, looking at work around the classroom.

What will I need to do to support my child?

Before the conference:

• Check your online booking time and change if it does not suit.

On the conference day:

• Come — with your child.
• Listen — your child will do most of the talking.
• S/he will discuss with you their current learning goals.

Your job:

• Prompt to support your child if necessary
• Enjoy the opportunity to see your child in his/her key learning environment.
• Celebrate your child's progress to date.

After the conference:

• Continue to celebrate your child's successes and support their goals.

Prompts to support your child

• What were you learning to do in this piece of work?
• What were the steps you went through to learn this
• What helped you to learn this?
• What do you need to learn next?
• What are you most proud of? Why?
• Tell me where you are in … reading/writing/numeracy
• Which area of learning do you find easiest? Why?
• Which area of learning do you find trickiest? Why?
• What could we do together to help you with this learning?

Important things to remember:

• Your child will run this conference—not you, not the teacher! Your child must be here.
• As part of their regular learning, all students have been putting considerable time and energy into preparing for this. If you cannot attend, please arrange for another significant adult in your child’s life to come to the conference.
• The conference is about learning—not behaviour or social issues. (If you or the teacher have concerns here, discussions should already have been held).
• Make arrangements for the care of any pre-schoolers in your family. It would be unfair to all students in the room to have any distractions as they share their learning.