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Communicating W/Parents

Once upon a time, if a parent heard from an administrator, it was bad news. Is that still the case? And if not, what are the best methods of keeping communication open and active with modern parents?

Submitted by Dr. Scott Taylor on Sun, 11/20/2011 - 13:50.
Wouldn't it be great if school leaders sent home to parents regular "performance stories?" Instead of submitting the traditional progress reports and report cards, why not compile a "chapter" full of internal assessments (DIBELS, Measures of Academic Progress, etc.), yearly benchmarks, and standardized assessments?
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Submitted by bhicks on Mon, 10/31/2011 - 08:06.
We use a communication tips sheet for our faculty and staff. Email is used for "just the facts" information unless a conference plan includes other email updates between home and school. Phone calls are used for situations that need personalization but can be handled with just a conversation or to request a conference. All sensitive issues are discussed in face to face conferences. Email, if over-used, waters down communications and places all situations on the same level. In another school setting I was able to get the majority of our parents on board to set behavior expectations and to address effort and incomplete homework and class assignments when I asked them to come in and meet with myself, the student and the teacher with a team approach. It was always eye-opening when the parent heard our viewpoint and the students responses together. I believe the answer is to personalize conversations to yield the best results.
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Submitted by Dr. Scott Taylor on Mon, 11/14/2011 - 14:15.
How often do you distribute the communication tips sheet? Do you distribute this at the beginning of each year?
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Submitted by sperry70 on Mon, 11/14/2011 - 11:24.
This is one area where I have tried to also use e-mail as a fact tool. E-mail and other written forms of communication can be easily taken out of context. And we all know that this can be a major problem when trying to be positive and informative to parents. As a classroom teacher, I always would rather talk on the phone with a parent opposed to e-mailing them. It is also one of the easiest ways to head off any potential problems with students. If I had a problem with a student on a certain day, I made sure I called home before the student went home.
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Submitted by Dr. Scott Taylor on Mon, 10/31/2011 - 12:12.
I agree with your comment about email, which is I would like to see more school districts using student information systems (SISs) to report live streams of student progress information. Parents should be able to go online in an instant and identify their child's progress. This would also do away with the need for formal twice-per-year progress reports.
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