Interacting with Parents

I would like to share here the experience of a Parent interaction with the Parents of a Class IV child last week. The concern was regarding the observations made by the teachers in their child's progress review. Parents felt there was a gap in the observations recorded in the last term and this term. The areas where the child had demonstrated strengths in the last term were now recorded as meeting age level requirements. Parents felt that if the teachers had observed any gaps in the child's progress,this should have been communicated to them much in advance.

While I do agree that in their past meetings with the Parents the teachers should have shared some of their observations....... like the child losing interest in reading as compared to earlier or having to be encouraged more frequently to work cooperatively in a group situation. However, as a teacher I would do so by sharing the strategies being used by me in the Class and how the Parents could support the same at home. At the same time goals for each term vary and the assessment of a child's progress would be guided by them. Also children show different patterns in their learning curve, as they move ahead. I would not really be very worried about a slight variation in the child's progress. Each term will also see children grow physically and emotionally. As long as the gaps have been observed by a sensitive teacher and she is working to fill them,the concern is taken care of.

Sometimes the variation in the observations is also due to the fact that if the teacher handling the Class in this term is different,there will be some amount of subjectivity.