Many schools are improving reporting practices, and student led learning conferences are one way of empowering the learner within a home school partnership.

1. LEARNING
CONFERENCES
A PRESENTATION BY MARTIN PRIOR

2. LEARNING CONFERENCES – WHAT?
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Student -led
Focussed on learning – accomplishments and goals
Parent, teacher and student all have input
Is useful for all students – P-6 and students with high
level needs

3. LEARNING CONFERENCES – WHY?
• Tangible demonstration of partnership between
school and home, parent and teacher
• Opportunity to further enhance strong, positive
relationships
• School supports family in educating the child
• Personalised learning with personalised support
• Learning is at the centre
• Learning happens at school and out of school

4. LEARNING CONFERENCES - CLARITY
• The young person and their learning is at the centre
• It’s a more formal part of an extended conversation
between family and teacher
• There must be plenty of other opportunities for
communication between parent and teacher
• The conference, in effect, is the young person’s
learning support group

5. LEARNING CONFERENCES PREPARATION
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A welcoming environment
Personalised agenda/template/key issues/notes
Time for preparation in class with the children
Work samples/portfolios available
Reflection by the young person, teacher (written)
Praise for the learner from teacher, parent
Questions from each person at the conference
Clarity about future

6. LEARNING CONFERENCES PREPARATION

7. LEARNING CONFERENCES –
PREPARATION WITH THE CHILDREN
• Preparation with children in days/weeks preceding
the learning conference
• Showcase learning
• Achievements/learning reflection
• Learning goals
• Support needed at school and at home
• Dreams and aspirations
• Agenda/running sheet
• Work samples/portfolio accessible

8. LEARNING CONFERENCES - BENEFITS
• School and home ‘on the same page’
• The young person knows that parent and teacher
are working together to support them
• School connectedness is enhanced
• It’s a component of personalising the learning
• Focus is on ‘learning’ rather than ‘schooling’

9. LEARNING CONFERENCES - BENEFITS
• Strengthens a parents engagement in their child’s
learning
• Assists the development of growing independence
and responsibility in learning
• Relationship between teacher and young person is
enhanced – all learning is relational
• Teacher understands more of the learner’s ‘story’

10. LEARNING CONFERENCES CONSIDERATIONS
• Supported with information for the parents and
families, and in class, especially as children grow
older
• Time – consider length of time available for the
conference
• The conference is a component of extended
conversation during the child’s time at school

11. LEARNING CONFERENCES – MY
EXPERIENCE
• Clarity around support parent and teacher share
• Stronger, more positive relationships – on many
levels
• Helped me get a better understanding of each
young person’s context – empathy
• Some young people need more ‘support’ than
others

12. LEARNING CONFERENCES – MY
EXPERIENCE
• More engagement in learning, particularly with
boys
• Parents were often enormously impressed, and
proud of their child’s achievements
• Calmer classroom
• Felt more like a partner in the young person’s
learning journey
• Young person grew in confidence and
understanding of themselves as a learner

13. Even though it’s called a parent-teacher conference, the
meeting is all about the student. Why should the central
person be excluded? Students do better in school when
they feel in charge and accountable for the quality of their
work…
Student –led conferences generally require more
preparation, especially by students. Essentially, the
responsibility for doing quality work is transferred from the
teacher to the student. Instead of being talked about,
students discuss and defend a portfolio of work that
demonstrates their progress
Anne Henderson, Beyond the Bake Sale