By Emma Bender, News Editor
Open house is an annual event at Penn-Trafford High School where parents of students in the school get to travel through their child’s classes in order to see what a typical day looks like for their child. They also get to meet the teachers that their children have during each school day.
This year, open house took place on Tuesday, Sept. 13 at PTHS, beginning at 6:30 p.m.. The event lasted two hours until 8:30 p.m., giving parents a shortened taste of the typical day.
Many parents of students attend, but in what ways does open house actually benefit the parents of high school students? Similarly, how does the event effect teacher’s methods of conveying information to their students throughout the rest of the school year?
P-T parent Heather Tarbuck attended the open house, and stated that open house allows her to “gain knowledge about [her daughter’s] classes…and understand her classes and environment.” Tarbuck also said that she believes that the current open house program is good the way it is.
“It’s short, and it’s sweet, but it’s just long enough for me to gather a synopsis of the classes and teachers,” Tarbuck said.
P-T parent Karen Dupree had similar views on the topic.
“I like meeting the kids teachers, so when they talk about what happened in their classes, I know who they are talking about.” Dupree said, and added that she thinks the open house is very effective.
Open house is not just oriented towards the parents of students attending P-T, but also towards the staff and teachers.
Gifted program teacher Christina Wukich said she benefits from this night because she can “develop relationships and make connections… and collaborate and generate ideas together for the rest of the year.” Wukich also commented on how she can integrate the feedback from parents into her curriculum.
While many agree that the end result of open house is productive, hours of work and preparation goes into making it successful.
“I’ve created brochures, I put out some articles and pictures of events we’ve done in the past, and I set out a parent sign in sheet,” Wukich said.
Throughout the two hours of the event, parents went to their child’s classes from first period to eighth period. While there, they listened to their child’s teachers explain their curriculum, and for some, go over teaching methods.
During their child’s study hall, parents were given the opportunity to enjoy refreshments in the cafeteria such as a variety of cookies and bottled water. Parents could also visit the school coffee shop and communicate with other parents in a more relaxed environment than during classes, similar to how students are permitted during the school day.
Walking away from this experience, parents have said in agreement that they have gained a better understanding of what goes on while their child is at school each day.