Independent Study

Independent Study is an alternative instructional strategy whereby students work independently and generally at home, according to a written agreement, and under the supervision of a credentialed teacher(s). Parents and family members provide additional support for their student as needed. Students have to follow the curriculum given to them by the school district.

Pro's
http://www.growingupeasier.org/index.php?main_page=page&id=158&chapter=3



Con's

• Not possible to ask questions of instructor or to learn from questions asked by others learning the same topic
• Density of presentation may be high because content must be self-contained
• Individuals must be motivated enough to complete tutorial
• Frequently takes novices longer to learn via tutorial than via classroom setting

Lot's of information in the link under pro's

Parental Interaction

Studies show student achievement is higher when parental interaction is high.  Today, involved parents want more say in what happens in the classroom. They desire more information about their children's curriculum and occasionally real decision-making power. When interacting with parents it's quality not quantity.  Here are a few tips:

1. Make It Positive Research has shown that teachers communicate with parents most often when the child misbehaves. It is important to also let parents know what their child is doing well. This actually helps parents be more responsive to those areas where their child needs work. 
2. Make It Practical Give parents resources to understand the curriculum. Then be specific about where students are having trouble. Make specific suggestions about what parents can do to help their child overcome the difficulties they are having with schoolwork. 
3. Make It Personal Although there is not a lot of time to write personal messages for every student in your class, collaboration between parents and teachers is raised when parents read something personal about their own child. Try to include personalized messages to parents whenever possible.

Outside of contacting parents yourself, most of your interaction will come from open house night and conferences.  For Open House night,  you need to be sure to have all the expectations you have for students and everything in your curriculum for the year. What are you going to cover? What are you going to read? Cover it all as thoroughly as you can, and allow plenty of time for questions. 

Each school will have a different way to deal with conferences. Some have student lead, where the students show their parents how they are doing and talk about their strategies for continuing. They often  have to talk about their plan for high school and beyond. Some schools have parent/teacher conferences where they talk about the strategies for helping the student in that particular class.  I've also heard of arena conferences where teachers are in the lunchroom and it's a free for all. Parents can go and talk to which ever teacher they want. 

Here are some other strategies for parental interaction

1. Begin the year by explaining how and when you'll keep in touch with them. Let parents know that you value their questions and concerns and would never minimize them by responding "off the cuff" or "on the fly." Explain that in order to give them your undivided attention, you've set aside specific times to talk. It's important to decide when you want to take and return phone calls and emails and when you're available for school conferences, and to actually be available during those times. Post these times and procedures and send them home with your welcome letter or first newsletter. Earmarking office hours and sticking to them eliminates the need parents may feel to grab your ear in the parking lot or to monopolize your attention outside your classroom door before or after school.
    
2. Never feel pressured to make an important decision, evaluation, or assessment during a parent conference or conversation. Instead, be prepared to take some time to think and get back to the parent. For example, "You've made a great point, Mrs. Smith, and this is an important issue. I'd really like to give it some serious thought and get back to you on it." Then make it a point to tell the parent exactly when he or she can expect a response: "Let's schedule another meeting/phone conference for Friday. Does that work for you?" This allows you time to consider the issue, develop possible solutions, and consult with colleagues, administrators, or other professionals, if necessary.
    
3. Let parents know they can trust you. Be discrete: Avoid discussing students with other parents or engaging in any negative faculty-room talk. I also make this a rule for parent volunteers who spend time in the classroom. I tell parents that all of us have good days and bad days. If a volunteer witnesses a "bad day" — any negative or challenging behavior on the part of a student in the class — that particular situation remains in the classroom and confidential.
    
4. Assure parents that you will inform them immediately about any concerns you might have with regard to their child. Parents become extremely upset when the first sign of trouble comes in the form of a progress report halfway into the marking period or worse yet, on the report card itself. I always try to share even small concerns early on, rather than waiting and then dropping a bombshell.
    
5. When presenting a concern to parents, ALWAYS be ready to explain what strategies you've already used to address the issue and what new strategies you are considering. Parents don't want concerns dropped in their laps without at least a tentative action plan, which you'll adjust based on their input.

glencoe.com/sec/teachingtoday/educationupclose.phtml/5

http://www.scholastic.com/teachers/article/five-keys-successful-parent-teacher-communication

Student apathy and motivation

We all know those students who don't care. For whatever reason it seems like they just don't care about their work, grades, or education. There are many reasons why students don't want to try. Some have a bad home life, they are afraid to fail, experience peer pressure, have realized they can get through without really trying, ect... However there are many tricks in how we can motivate these students.

One way is to have high standards. If you believe it is possible for them to grow into it, students will respond and will help them view the world differently. It is critical for students need have someone in their life who holds you to high standards and believes they can achieve.  However, the high standard must be appropriate for the grade level, and you have to meet them at their level. You can't use a vocabulary above their grade level in a lecture. You can't talk to them like they are college students, because they aren't. You need to help them learn how to learn and retain the information. which leads into my next point: Making learning FUN!

There are many different ways to make learning fun. You can play games, and do different group activities. Having a different form of assessment that isn't a test. I had a project in high school that still stands out in my brain and every time we talk about assessment it pops up. I had a group project where we had to make a movie of Hamlet. We had to have 5 songs, 5 quotes, and had to be no more then 8 minuets, but we had full creative control. No two movies were the same, and It was fantastic and fun to film. In my placement class my master teacher had the students make a presentation about a story they just read, about how they would turn it into a movie. They had to have a plot summary, and what they would change in their movie, and what type of movie it would be. Some students got really into it and even found actors they would want to have play the characters. They seemed to really enjoy it.  

You can also add things to a lesson while you give it. If you notice your students spacing out not paying attention, come up with something to bring their attention back. Draw on something from the lesson and find a way to make it fun. If it's a lecture, crack a few jokes around the important information to help them remember. If the students are enjoying the lesson they have a tendency to remember more from it, and are more engaged.