Northwestern Lehigh middle school pilots student-led conferences, plans districtwide rollout

Northwestern Lehigh School District officials described results from a pilot of student-led conferences at the middle school and proposed expanding the practice to all grade levels with conferences moved to January.

At a school board meeting, seventh-grade teacher Catherine Krager summarized the pilot led by “Team Roar,” saying the approach shifts the conference model so “the student takes the lead, presenting their work, guiding discussion about progress and grades with their parents and teachers, and the teacher serves as the facilitators.” Krager and other staff described the goal as building student skills in self-advocacy, accountability and communication.

The pilot began with goal-setting in September and culminated in November conferences. Students set three goals — academic, personal and social-emotional — using SMART criteria (specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, timely). Krager described classroom supports and a range of presentation formats the students used: “Some students created slides … some scripted; others used bullet points or a checklist,” she said.

Why it matters: District staff told the board the model is intended to develop communication and goal-setting skills that teachers said students were lacking.…