Sunday, September 29, 2013

"When Are You Coming to Visit?" by Elizabeth Schlessman


"When Are You Coming to Visit?" by Elizabeth Schlessman was in Rethinking Schools from the Winter of 2012-2013 issue. The article speaks about a teacher who took on the heavy task of conducting home visits with her students. The visits are short, 10-15 minutes, and are meant to make the family feel comfortable, and for the teacher to learn something about the student and their home life. Through her visits, Schlessman learned more than she could have ever learned about her students from just classroom interaction. This was especially important for her and her interactions with students because many of them were bilingual, or in some cases even tri-lingual. She also got to have great interactions with parents, which sometimes never happens. Or if it does, can often be in a negative light. For me, parent-teacher conferences are a source of anxiety, rather than a time to form relationships with parents. 

"Social justice curriculum is grounded in students' lives. Yet what are our students lives? How do we know them? How can we push beyond our own unspoken norms and assumptions-for me, white and middle class-to see and listen and learn and create space to understand the lives of students?" This quote, I think, ties into exactly what we have been talking about in class for the last few weeks. If we, as educators, can truly see our students, all facets of them, then I think we will be able to truly teach them as whole individuals, and not just as a student in my class, because they are so much more than that. I try and see my students outside of the classroom as much as possible. I am constantly going to games, and events after school so that I can see them in other places other than the desk in front of me. I also realize that this is easier for me because I do not have a family of my own to take care of yet. I do not have to rush home and make dinner, or pick up someone from a bus stop. I can only imagine how difficult it is to attend extracurriculars for the students that you teach during the day and then also take care of biological children. 

Schlessman goes on to talk about how interactions with families are often agenda driven. She writes, "Whether families come to school for a game night, a young authors celebration, or 10-minute conference slots, school-based family interactions are filled with agendas, information, and activities." The reasoning for home visits would be to go against this notion of agenda driven interactions. The San Juan Unified School District has begun to do home visits, and have found that the relationships formed between parents and teachers are priceless. They allow students to feel comfortable in their own homes, and allow for personal dialogue between teachers and parents. 

I wish that there was an opportunity for me to visit the homes of my students. At the high school level, I feel as though this could be impossible. I simply have too many students. But, this is when parental involvement starts to wain because they feel like students should be responsible for their own work.Also, where would this fit into the busy lives of other teachers? Many teachers are already stretched to the brim. Schlessman says at the end of her article that "Home visits taught me humility. They taught me to wonder." I think parental involvement is really the key to many of our students success. There is so much research to support this idea. The National Coalition for Parent Involvement in Education is an organization that is working to promote just that. 


7 comments:

  1. Hi Allie, I love this post. I think home visits are such a great idea, and would give us teachers a lot of insight into what our students' lives are like beyond the classroom. I enjoy seeing them outside of the classroom too, but like you said it's difficult to keep up with everything. I like your quote "I can only imagine how difficult it is to attend extracurriculars for the students that you teach during the day and then also take care of biological children." I think about this all the time. I have a dog and it's difficult enough getting home to her to let her outside. I don't know how I could ever be a mother and a teacher, I just don't think I'd have the energy or the motivation for all of it. One teacher I work with says that teaching "will take as much out of you as you allow it to." For now I'm OK devoting every waking minute to prepping, grading, and taking classes, but I cannot imagine doing this for many years to come. At some point I think I will want my life back. At some point I may have children of my own. At some point, there is a line between how much we hope to accomplish and all of the fantastic things we plan, and just surviving from day to day and taking care of ourselves and our families.

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  2. I wonder if this would work in an advisory model in the high school... you may not be able to visit all but maybe those in a small advisory section?

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  3. Allie, our new superintendent is encouraging more interaction with families through the use of social media such as Twitter and Facebook...not the same as a home visit, which I'm pretty sure would be frowned upon, but also a nice glimpse into the lives of the young people we work with. The home visit is a great idea, but also very awkward, and in my opinion (even though I'm nosey and concerned), maybe overstepping our bounds? It almost seems like being a social worker (breaching the family's privacy?) but also a nice way to get to know the families. Good for you for attending as many activities as possible!

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  4. Allie, I totally agree with you that parent involvement is very critical to student achievement. I also agree with you that it would be a wonderful yet daunting task to visit my students at home. My wife is fortunate enough to do the home visits at her school and although they are wonderful and provide a lot (A LOT) in the form of a relationship with the students it is also a very high anxiety event.
    There is still anxiety form the teachers simply because of going to someones house that you have never been to. Then there is the parent who probably spends time that she/he does not have to "clean" the house for what is now a special guest. The system like any has its own quirky things that perhaps will always exist ... I still agree with you that I would like the opportunity. I think it would be interesting to try Dr. Bogad's idea of doing it with an advisory class, but I wanted to give you a perspective that you may not have considered.

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  5. Excellent article Allie, We do home visits at my school. During August we send a letter out to all new students coming in. We go out in teams. We have been doing this for four or five years and have had positive results. It is nice to meet parents in a different setting other than school.

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  6. I would agree that it is very important to understand the whole student and only then can we really teach them. By going to visit our students outside the realm of the classroom it will help us connect with our students so we can help them grow as learners. Parent events such as open houses and/or parent night can help us connect with the school community.

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  7. Our school had Open House tonight - I always enjoy meeting my students' families/guardians and wish more would come to the school. Maybe the answer is to go to them. In fact, many years ago I tried that route and I felt the experience was a bit awkward. While all the families were welcoming, I felt that they were too welcoming - perhaps that's also a cultural lesson. Now I would worry about being intrusive, most likely because that's how I would react. Also, I find that our school is such an extension of the kids' homes as it is....some of them seem to never leave the building. Regardless, I respect those teachers who literally go that extra mile; I wonder if I'd do that, too.

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