Journal Entry

3/27/15
Yesterday at conferences I had an interesting experience. Both
parents of a student who has been failing class for the whole marking
period and turning few assignments in came into parent teacher
conferences. Since we have been writing a research essay over the past
few weeks their son had not turned in much work, but also the work
that he was turning in, did not fit with the type of essay we were
writing. Upon asking both parents about their son and trying to give
them ways that they could help him, the father began speaking as if he
were the writer of the essay. He said things like What I was trying to
do their was show that and I made sure that the citations were
correct when I found them. Both my mentor and I became very
skeptical of what he was saying. As he got more and more agitated that
we were telling him the essay either his son or him were writing was
not meeting our criteria. What my mentor and I tried to explain and
show in soft ways was that what his son had produced for the essay so
far was way off of what we were trying to do, and then we tried to show
a format for ways his son could improve. Still the father was steadfast
that the essay met the criteria and was a good essay. I dont know what
to make of this situation. I know the father wants his son to graduate,
but how can we reach this student more so he does what he needs to
do?