On This Page

• Introduction
• A Good Relationship
• Your Rights As A Parent
• Parent-Teacher Interviews
• School Councils

Introduction

Learning is a partnership between you, your child, and your child's teacher. Together, you can create a lifelong love of learning. And you'll help your child to grow and succeed — not just in the classroom, but emotionally and socially as well.

Here are some ways you can make the most of your partnership with your child's teacher.

A Good Relationship

You and your child's teacher can create a positive relationship by taking every opportunity to meet and discuss your child’s progress. Those discussions will pave the way to better communication and help identify any problems before they become serious.

Teachers make the partnership work by letting you know what your child is learning in school and how your child is progressing, and by listening to your concerns.

Your Rights As A Parent

As parents, you have a right to know how your child is progressing and to expect early identification of any learning problems.

If you have any questions about your child’s education, don’t hesitate to contact your child’s teacher. You have the right to know:

• what is being taught and how it is taught
• what discipline methods are used in a class
• what will be evaluated and how
• what the teachers’ expectations are for their child, for academic achievement, and behaviour
• how the teacher will communicate with you and for what reasons you will be contacted
• the best methods to convey any concerns you have to the teacher or school

You also have the right to:

• meet with the teacher or school personnel within a reasonable time after making a request
• visit the classroom by appointment
• bring forward concerns or complaints and have them dealt with appropriately
• be kept informed of your child’s progress and any problems which develop

Parent-Teacher Interviews

One of the best ways to keep the learning partnership strong is to attend parent-teacher interviews and meet with your child’s teacher, face to face. To make the most of those interviews, check out these tips:

Before the conference with the teacher:

1. Make a list of any questions you want to ask.
2. Ask your child what they would like you to ask or tell their teacher.
3. Think about any specific information you will need to let the teacher know. This could include home or family changes the teacher needs to be sensitive to, health issues that affect your child, or recent family deaths or dramatic changes that have had an impact on your child.
4. Consider what special things you would like the teacher to know about your child.

During the interview:

Do your best to be on time for your interview. In order to fit everyone in, teachers have to stick to a fairly tight schedule during the interview hours. If you have to cancel your appointment, phone the school to let them know, and you can re-book for another meeting date.

1. Begin on a positive note. Mention something that your child enjoys about school or the particular classroom they are in.
2. Make sure that you check up on your child's social interactions at school as well as their academic progress. Ask the teacher how your child gets along with others and if there is anything in particular that you should know about their social and emotional progress. Also, ask about your child's work habits, behaviour, participation. and learning style.
3. Let the teacher know your child's interests, hobbies, strengths, and areas where they need extra encouragement.
4. Refer to your list of questions to make sure that you haven't left anything out.
5. Don't hesitate to make notes while the teacher is talking so that you will remember what they said once you get home.
6. Ask the teacher about the classroom rules and discipline, homework procedures, and overall expectations for students.
7. It can be easy to get angry or defensive if the teacher raises problems. But try not to. Talking together about problems is the best way to make sure they are addressed before they grow bigger and that your child has the support they need to make improvements. Ask questions, share ideas that have worked for you at home and be an active part of planning new ways to make things better.
8. Ask the teacher what is the most important thing you can do at home to support your child’s learning.
9. End the conference on a positive note.

After the conference:

When you get home from the conference:

1. Speak honestly with your child about the discussion you had with the teacher. Let them know both the positives and any problem areas that were discussed, as well as plans that you and the teacher made to help your child make improvements.
2. Start right away on any plans for improvement and be very consistent. This helps show your child that you consider them important and that everyone (parent, teacher and child) can work together to make positive changes. It also models for your child how to take on problems and turn them around.
3. If you have a partner or spouse who was unable to attend the conference, fill them in on the information as soon as possible.
4. Keep in regular contact with the teacher. As a matter of course, phone the teacher after two or three weeks as a follow-up to the meeting and to check up on how things are going.

Our thanks to the B.C. Teachers' Federation for preparing these tips!

Each school has a school council — a group that allows parents to provide advice in school decision making. School councils consult with parents and advise principals and school boards on a variety of issues that relate to student achievement and accountability to parents. Learn more about how school councils work, their role, and their membership, visit the School Councils page on this site.