The kids who NEED parent teacher conferences don't show up to parent teacher conferences, and the ones who do show up never really needed them in the first place. This is about 90% of the cases. They are still incredibly useful for those 10% leftover cases where a student is struggling and a parent cares
Different system and different country, but at our son's school, every child gets two parent-teacher conferences a year (one at the start of the year and one at the end). There is an online booking system, you go in and book a slot. They only go for ten minutes. The only way you don't get one is if the parents choose not to book one.
And that's nothing new, I remember the same thing when I was a kid. The only thing that is new is online booking.
If our son's school can do this, why can't this one? Incompetence? Underfunding?
Actually we don't book the meeting because they have a different system for students on IEPs. If your child has an IEP, you don't book the normal meeting, the school contacts you to arrange a different one. That's because they bring a lot more staff to IEP student meetings than the regular parent-teacher meetings.