Don't panic before the site visit

Philipp is a bright child. The ten-year-old loves reading, is imaginative and often overshoots the mark. At school, his behaviour is challenging for his teachers. He expresses himself spontaneously, without being overbearing, and bubbles over with his ideas without regard for the classroom situation or the rules.

But when it comes to reading a story in class, Philipp shows perseverance and concentration. However, when it comes to discussing the story together in a circle of chairs, he becomes inattentive and is often frustrated because he doesn't feel understood. In order to better understand Philipp's behaviour and be able to respond to him, Philipp's class teacher invites his parents to the school for an assessment.

Parents are often confronted with a school problem of their child whose supposed solution is initially out of their hands. On the one hand, there is the school difficulty, which can result in many measures: Visits to the doctor, appointments with the school psychology service, psychomotor therapy, etc.

On the other side are the parents with their fears and worries about not being enough for the child, not being able to help them well enough and not being able to protect them. Concerns that the child could end up in a kind of «clarification machine» can also unsettle mothers and fathers. It is therefore helpful for parents facing a school assessment to know a few things about this important instrument of educational assessment.

Good preparation is important

Unfortunately, there is no standardised procedure for the assessment interview throughout Switzerland; instead, there are different guidelines for each canton, although these are now based on certain standards. In Philipp's case, the interview is conducted by the class teacher. In cantons that have standardised forms for the school assessment interview, these are usually given to the parents by the teacher before the interview for preparation.

Parents can use the questionnaires to gather important information in advance.

Preparation for the assessment interview is of great importance for an efficient dialogue. The teacher cannot assess Philipp's homework situation or his behaviour in his free time with peers or in clubs. Parents can use the questionnaires to gather important information in advance and then share it with the teacher during the interview.

These forms often cover topics such as learning, language acquisition, maths, dealing with demands, communication, movement, independence, interaction with children and adults and leisure time. Parents are usually asked to indicate strengths or problems. Most forms also offer the opportunity to make comments. In the canton of Zurich, this form is entitled «Joint understanding and planning», which corresponds to the core task of the educational assessment: the effort involved in the school assessment is necessary in order to take Philipp's entire learning situation, including his environment, into account and thus provide him with the best possible support.

When Philipp has to prepare a small piece of research for a presentation on the computer, he shows perseverance, concentration and creativity. He often even helps weaker learners. In group work, on the other hand, it is a huge challenge for him to follow what the others are saying. He usually has lots of ideas, wants to share them immediately and implement them despite the opinions of others. This also leads to conflicts and hinders his learning and the learning of the group.

Philipp's parents describe that the homework situation is characterised by listlessness and distraction manoeuvres. The tasks are not tackled without the parents being present. Frequent arguments are the result. However, as soon as exercise and sport are involved, Philipp shows his best side. His club mates describe him as co-operative, reliable and focused.

Get the parents on board

So what to do? Philipp's teacher and parents decide together to refrain from further investigations by the school psychology service for the time being. Children's learning can be improved even without a diagnosis from psychologists and doctors. The point of the «educational assessment» is to get the parents on board and not to make a psychological or medical diagnosis.

The solutions must always be sought in environmental factors such as school or friendships as well as in the child itself.

Parents and teachers can record learning outcomes in detail with each other. Different points of view come into play. The solutions must always be sought in environmental factors such as school, lessons, homework situation, friendships as well as in the child, his inner necessities and needs. If you take a closer look at the interactions, you will notice the conditions under which Philipp is able to concentrate on his work. Educational measures should be aimed at helping him to learn to wait and see or not be distracted. In class, he needs support for open group situations.

The following is now jointly recorded in the school assessment meeting:

• To relieve the homework situation, for example, the teacher provides parents with a procedure from a well-researched training programme.
• For group situations, Philipp practises recording his learning partners' contributions and his own ideas in a notebook so that he can then introduce them when the opportunity arises.
• Philipp was often punished by not being allowed to go to football training if he hadn't done his homework. This is to be avoided for the next six months.

As soon as it becomes clear how school support, contact with peers, the homework situation and dealing with difficulties in the family can be managed and which support services can be utilised, the problem becomes more tangible and manageable. Parents then experience themselves as effective, as important support for the child. They realise that they are not powerless in the face of the problem or even have to feel ashamed.

In other words, the situation is significantly influenced by whether parents, together with the teacher, find a suitable solution for dealing with the child's new situation. If the measures are not sufficient, further clarification could be initiated with the school psychology service or other specialist centres.