The Median Sib

Oh joy!  Today is one of two Teacher-Parent Conference Days this week. I will arrive at school by 8:00 a.m., and I won’t be able to leave school until after 8:00 p.m.  Even if I were to do nothing but twiddle my thumbs from the time school is dismissed until 8:00, I’m still required to spend those 12 hours at my school today.  I don’t have any conferences planned, but I do have shelves and materials to organize, a meeting to attend, lessons to plan and paperwork to complete.  It’s such a stupid waste of time, though.  There is no way to be truly productive by sticking four hours of conference time after a full day of teaching.  Counting the time it takes to get ready and drive to and from school, the entire day will be gone. 

Teachers are required to do this every year, and so I know how I will feel by this evening, and it’s not a pretty sight.

Since I have only been out of the general education classroom for two years, I also know how the classroom teachers who are doing back-to-back parent conferences feel.  After the first few conferences, the parents and conversations start to blend together.   By the end of the evening, it’s difficult to remember what was said when and to whom.  I always kept meticulous notes, but still the conferences were a blur.  That’s wrong - not only for the teachers but for the parents and students as well.  It disrespects the time and efforts of everyone in working to do what’s best for the students.

I wonder about the intelligence and common sense of the out-of-touch administrators who come up with such requirements.