Within the broad spectrum of strategies associated with formative assessment is the goal of helping students become independent learners who share responsibility for their own progress. Students at all grade levels can and should learn to assess their own work and the work of their peers. One powerful strategy for helping students become independent learners is student-led conferences in which the students lead the conference with the parents. In a student-led conference, students facilitate a discussion of their work, often organized in a portfolio collection, and share with parents goals they have set for their future learning.

This presentation will address the following questions about student-led conferences:
* What are the benefits of student-led conferences? For students? For parents? For teachers?
* What is an effective model for student-led conferences?
* What does a student-led conference look like?
* How do teachers and students prepare for student-led conferences?
* How are showcase portfolios used during a student-led conference?
* How can the teacher evaluate the effectiveness of student-led conferences?

Workshop participants will receive a packet of tools that can be used to begin the process of student-led conferences in their schools.

Registration for Student-led Conferences (held at Grover Cleveland Middle School in West Caldwell) is closed.