THE HEART OF THE CONVERSATION

This coming week marks our Parent–Teacher Week, with the key evening of conversations taking place on Tuesday 9th September. By legislation, schools are required to provide two formal opportunities each year for parents and teachers to meet. Yet, to think of this week as a mere compliance exercise is to miss the deeper invitation.

Educational research has long affirmed that a child’s learning flourishes most when home and school are not simply parallel tracks, but woven together. Studies show that parental engagement is one of the strongest predictors of student achievement and wellbeing—not only through helping with homework, but through open, respectful dialogue with teachers about the child’s growth, strengths, and struggles. These interviews are not about ticking boxes or reporting scores. They are sacred moments where the key adults in a child’s life come together to share stories, hopes, and insights in service of that child’s unfolding potential.

In the words of Richard Rohr, transformation comes when we approach life not with control, but with surrender—when we “want to do what we have to do.” So too with these interviews. The invitation is to come with open hearts, to speak honestly, to listen deeply, and to hold vulnerability as a strength, not a weakness. For parents, this means resisting the urge to defend or compare, and instead leaning into curiosity: What am I being invited to see about my child? For teachers, it means stepping beyond assessment data to truly honour the child as a whole person: learner, dreamer, struggler, and gift.

If we allow it, these conversations can become more than check-ins on progress; they can be moments of shared humanity. When parents and teachers sit together, they are not two sides of a table, but two allies standing side by side, gazing upon the same child with love, wisdom, and hope. That, in the end, is the true purpose of the Parent–Teacher Interview.

Thank you to all parents and teachers for carving out time for the heart of the conversation this week.

Mr Casimir Douglas

Thursday 4th September, 2025