Parent/Teacher Meeting Preparations
- Published: 20 October 2022
As schools prepare for parent/teacher meetings, the Leadership Support Team had a number of calls for guidance on this issue. Building on the Planning Prompts in last week’s E-scéal, the following might be considered when making decisions about the structure of these meetings.
Sometimes difficult conversations take place during the course of parent/teacher meetings. Meetings are tiring for teachers, especially after a day’s work, parents may be anxious about their child’s progress or difficulties and while most meetings will not present any problems, there is always the possibility of tension. These are the situations where ‘what if’ conversations with staff prior to meetings could prove helpful in achieving a better outcome if one is prepared.
For the past few years, meetings have largely taken place virtually. Currently, face-to-face meetings are being facilitated. The preferred method is the first decision that you make with your staff. Many schools offer parents the option of face-to-face, online or phone conversation. No one size fits all and it depends on the school’s capacity and context.
Generally, the meetings take place over the course of a week with one particular day arranged to cover the majority of parents in a class. On this day, the school may close half an hour before the usual closing time. Circular 14/04 states: “In each school year there will be one formal parent/teacher meeting. This meeting will normally commence at 3.15 and will end at 5.45 pm unless otherwise agreed at local level between all relevant parties.” The existing commitment under to a two and a half hour parent teacher meeting outside of tuition time also remains. Croke Park hours may be used to extend the duration of this meeting or to provide for formal parent/teacher meetings on more than one afternoon/evening.
The conversation might include:
- Time for each meeting
- Areas to be covered during the course of the meeting
- The language used by the teacher in communicating bad news from the parents’ perspectives
- If follow up meetings are required
- If a parent(s) become upset or even aggressive
- Support teachers meeting with parents – together with C/T or separately
- The preparation needed by teachers for the meetings (especially for NQTs)
- Recording of areas of concern
- Follow up to meetings where necessary.
Teachers may find this resource ‘Parent/Teacher Meetings - Guidelines for Teachers’ useful in their preparation for parent/teacher meetings.
