Today was my first conference at Roseville, and my first cafeteria conference since my first or second year of teaching. At Forest Lake, our conferences were held in our classrooms. After tonight, I am pondering which type of conference is more effective: cafeteria-style or in classroom conferences.

The biggest perk of staying in our classrooms is that we get to use the time to work when we are not visiting with parents. Sure, I got a few papers graded here and there while I was in the gymnasium this evening, but without my materials and my computer, planning or organizing isn’t really doable. When there is downtime in my classroom, I can straighten up, arrange papers, set up my classroom, or work on my computer.

Cafeteria-style conferences offer some benefits as well; mainly that everyone is in one general space and finding teachers is relatively simple for families. The attendance is easier to monitor when we are all together, and lines are more visible and seem to keep parents moving more quickly than when I had them in my room. Finding administrators or translators is also easier when everyone is together.

However, there are some significant downsides to cafeteria-style conferences, most importantly, the distractions. The noise level in the gymnasium was not extreme, but I definitely had trouble listening and understanding some of the more soft-spoken parents. I felt bad having to have a dad repeat himself numerous times during the conference in order to follow what he was saying. I am relatively easily distracted by movement and sound – for example, if someone walks by in my line of sight, it draws my eyes. When someone is humming or whistling, I can’t focus on what I’m doing, especially at night after my medication has worn off. I’m sure this poses a problem for parents as well.

None of this is to say that classroom conferences are necessarily better, although they are definitely less distracted. When conferences are scattered around the school, parents spend a lot of time walking around looking for the correct room. At Forest Lake, this was somewhat mitigated by National Honors Society and Student Council students helping people get where they needed to go, but high schools are big places and they are not necessarily easy to navigate. This could be more difficult with translators and cultural liaisons as well, since families are going to conferences in so many different places.

As a parent, I prefer going to classrooms, but that’s because I like to be in the space where my children spend large chunks of their day. I also struggle with staying focused when there are so many people in one room. Finally, I like to be able to see my children’s materials and books. It helps me understand and visualize what they go through, and I feel like I can be more candid because it is more private.

As a teacher, I also prefer classroom conferences because they are more private (sometimes it’s awkward to be discussing poor grades or negative behaviors in a place where others may overhear the conversation). I also like being able to show parents the materials we are using and the space where their child spends an hour of their day. If there is a specific assignment, I can give it to the parent if I am in my room, but I cannot carry everything from my room to the gymnasium for a cafeteria-style conference.

On a totally unrelated note: today was a tough day to follow through with this writing commitment. I was at school for 12 hours, interacting with huge numbers of people most of that time. I am proud of myself for keeping up with this for 18 days, even when I’m tired and just want to go to bed. 🙂