Are Your Children Receiving "Incompletes" on Their Report Cards?

Ever since my days in middle school, I've been seeing this method to be sure students understand their assignments and I've been suggesting it to parents after I graduated. It requires work and effort by the student, teacher and parent in order for it to be successful.

What this method ensures:

1: Students are copying assignments down correctly.
2: Students are understanding what is expected of them before they return to class.
3: What needs to be taken home in order to complete these assignments.
4: That their teachers acknowledge their understanding of the assignments and have copied it correctly.
5: That parents see that the child understands what is expected of them and teachers are vouching for this.

What are parents, teachers and students doing? I'll step you through the process:

1: purchase an assignment book for your child, one that is slightly larger than those with the coil across the top so there's plenty of room to write
2: before leaving class, your child copies the assignments given to them by their teachers
3: before leaving class, your child asks their teacher to initial next to the assignment to prove they have copied it down correctly and understand what is expected of them and, if there's no homework, the child writes that down and the teacher initials next to it
4: when it comes time to do homework after school, look at your child's assignment book and go through each assignment with them.
5: be sure you child has all the materials necessary to complete their assignments
6: after each assignment is completed, add your initials

Is this really worth it? Does it really matter in the long run?

This process does seem daunting, but I've seen it used in numerous classes with 100% success. Not only were these students doing everything there were supposed, to do, parent involvement increased (which always benefits the student) and grade point averages increased. Arguments about having no homework or not knowing about upcoming tests ended. It also teaches the child time management because they'll need to make sure they're not late for their next class or late for their bus if they're talking to teachers about their assignments after school.

What if the teachers won't go for this idea?

Yes, there were teachers that didn't want to be bothered with this method, but they soon realized that it was their job to have involvement with both parent and child. Yes, there were parents who didn't want to be bothered with this method, but they soon realized it would benefit their children's education if they did. Start by having a parent and teacher conference so you can fully explain your idea, solve any problems that are already in existence and open up the lines of communication. If you come across teachers that are completely objectionable to this plan, take it a step further and speak to the vice principal or principal for additional help.