"Parent Teacher Conferences" for Multilingual Families
Here are some considerations to explore as we prepare for parent-teacher conferences.
Language Access is a Civil Right: Ensure that families are invited to the meeting in their preferred language and that families also know that interpreters can and will be made available during the actual meeting. Sometimes this takes extra time to coordinate, so early communication is key. Linguistically diverse families may need to be scheduled for their conferences FIRST to accommodate interpreters' schedules prior to scheduling English-speaking families. Coach your colleagues and teammates to speak in chunks and pause for interpretation. Take a few minutes once everyone is around the table to discuss things like who to look at (should I be facing the interpreter when I speak, or to the family?) while speaking, and set those norms together with the family. Allow for extra time in the schedule to allow for meaningful (and not rushed) interpretation time.
What do we call these meetings? If we choose a name like a Goal Setting Meeting, or a Get to Know You Meeting, or a Celebration Meeting, it sets a completely different tone. Additionally, the term Parent (as in, Parent Teacher Conference) isn't always inclusive to all of the different families that we serve. Many students are being raised by a family member who is not a parent, or they are being cared for by a family friend, or they may currently be in foster care. Consider the purpose of the meeting and try giving it a new name!
Where does it take place? There's such power in having families and caregivers come into the school building and sitting down in the learning space that the student is in every day. However, we also must recognize that sometimes, it's difficult for a family member to get to the school due to transportation or childcare. We also must acknowledge that for some, there is a deep sense of mistrust of the school and of school personnel. We may not always understand the whole story or the whole context of those situations, but we can honor the feelings of those we serve. We might consider holding the meeting in a "neutral" space, like a coffee shop or a local library. If it's convenient, we may even offer this opportunity via Zoom or Google Meets. This takes a lot of the pressures of finding transportation, childcare, time, and the confidence to walk into a school building.
When does it take place? Are we offering various times throughout the week for families to accommodate work schedules? Offering a few before, after, or evening sessions may work best. HOWEVER, please acknowledge YOUR OWN TIME as well. That time is sacred and important as well, and it is not healthy to be in evening conferences for weeks on end. Consider spreading them out or accommodating the time via phone call/Zoom instead of staying at the school building late at night.
How do we set the stage? How do we lower the affective filter of the families we serve? Preparing families for this opportunity is important. They should know what to expect. Check out this template that you may choose to use. On this template, you will see a letter on the left side and commentary/rationale on the right. If this is a template you'd like to take and edit, feel free to go to FILE, MAKE A COPY, and edit so it best meets your needs!
What do we share? Consider the top 3 items to discuss/share, and try to stick to those. Perhaps you'd like to share specific goals you have for the student. Perhaps you wanted to use this opportunity to have the family meet the school social worker or librarian. You may have wanted to use this as an opportunity to share a few resources available in the community. Maybe you wanted to walk through how to get logged into the classroom Seesaw account. Try to stick to just a few pieces to share. You can always send home additional resources (like a community calendar with upcoming events, information on how to obtain a library card, important school phone numbers- don't assume they have them- as a mom, I lose things constantly no matter how hard I try!). For families of our multilingual learners, we must share how valuable their heritage language is. We must never "recommend" that families speak "more English" at home. This is highly inappropriate, offensive, and not our place. Instead, let's honor their multilingualism and encourage families to continuously engage in their heritage languages. Share what multilingual resources are available in the community. Share out which online resources have books/resources are available in their preferred languages.
What about Student-Led Conferences? Awesome! This is such a powerful way to empower students and show them that they're in the driver's seat! Check out the Teach Better Academy's latest course titled Finding Student Voice within Parent-Teacher Conferences led by Rae Hughart and Katie Miglin. Then, examine what the student will be sharing and how. If the student is designing content to share with their family, have them choose to do this in the language that makes the most sense- or perhaps translanguage between languages they know to best communicate with family members!
How do we want families to feel when they leave? Sometimes I leave an event feeling inspired and connected. Other times, I leave feeling stressed and overwhelmed. If I am battling an inherited, unchecked narrative in my school building where certain families are labeled as being "uninvolved" (which is another blog post for another day), then I want to ensure that the family has access to me and the school to share openly, ask questions, and get connected. We have to actively counter the narrative and dismantle any barriers or stressors. If families can walk out of our meeting feeling encouraged, it sets the tone for another opportunity to connect in a positive way.
How can we make this positive? I dress down for meetings. I want families to see the real me. I'll wear jeans, my favorite booties, and a fun top (usually bright pink). I don't want families to see me dressed as though I'm about to do a job interview or anchor the news station. I want them to see the real me. I will quietly play some fun music in the background. I will leave out crayons and paper for younger siblings who may need to come. I keep water bottles available, and perhaps a few granola bars. I invite families to take a selfie with me so that we can show their child in school the next day (my students ROARED when they saw that their teacher and their mom took a selfie together). I share pictures of my own family. With some moms, we let our conversations meander and talk about nail polish, how hard it is to get our kids out the door on time in the mornings, or an awards show on TV.
What to avoid? Because we don't want to overwhelm, we need to remember to keep this simple. Our time with the families we serve is quite precious. We want to leave them with a few key take-aways. Many are encouraged to discuss test scores at this initial meeting, and you can do that if it feels appropriate- however, sharing test scores does not always inspire. We can share scores without centering our whole conversations on them.
Did anyone order a sandwich? Do you know which one I'm talking about here? The compliment sandwich. No, no one ordered a compliment sandwich. This was an idea brought to me back in my undergrad days. Professors shared with me that this was the BEST way to share information with families. Provide a random compliment about the student, then share something hard/terrible/upsetting/negative, then follow it up with a (normally wildly unconnected) compliment. And voila! A compliment sandwich! The problem with this is that it is not genuine, and it is generally a sandwich of bologna (phoney bologna, if you will). We want to be direct with our successes and goals and just engage in a meaningful, authentic conversation.
Be real, and keep it real. The families we serve are our partners, always!
You may wish to read my top 7 tips for the first family event of the year.
You may also wish to read my Communication is not a Two-Way Street, It's a Highway Interchange post with free, printable templates for families.
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