What drives engagement?

Student-led conferences build the kind of skills that serve children well for life. To prepare for the conferences, Parker kids reflect on what they have accomplished so far in the year, how they are doing, and what goals they have going forward - what challenges they want to set for themselves. Then they sit down with their parents and show them samples of their work, discussing how they rate themselves on things like cooperating with peers, or with organization.

Building this kind of thinking goes beyond the more passive scenario where only the teacher assesses.  It is empowering and motivating and it teaches students that how they perform is really up to their own initiative. 

"When students assess themselves, they hold themselves to a higher standard," asserts Daniel Pink in his latest book, To Sell Is Human.  Here is a great article about Pink's ideas, How Teachers Can Sell Love of Learning to Students. It speaks to what we are doing at Parker - finding ways to give students a keen drive to achieve.