Communication between teachers and parents is a crucial element in developing a successful learning community. A parent must be aware of what their child is doing in school and there should be a frequent, easy accessible means of communication. Back in the day there may have been a note sent home from the teacher every few months and a couple of parent teacher conferences a year. Too much time was allowed to pass, and no open window of communication existed. Flash forward to modern times, and technology has opened up a new frontier in parent, teacher and student communication. Teachers use websites, moodle, twitter, blogs, and e-mail to communicate with students and parents on a frequent basis. Technology has allowed parents to stay up to date on all upcoming projects and events, in a way that was never possible before.
When teachers and parents communicate more often the student wins. The more a teacher learns about a what a student is dealing with in their home life, the better equipped they will be to reach that student. A teacher needs to frequently inform a parent of the progress of a struggling student so that swift action can be taken in gains are not being made. The more a parent is aware of what is expected of their child, especially in the younger grades, the more likely the child will be to complete assignments and stay on task.
I believe that best way a teacher can communicate with parents is by creating a personal website that is updated on a daily basis. The website should list all important contact information, your teaching philosophy, upcoming projects, quizzes, tests and events. A teacher may also want to create a blog to share in greater detail the projects that the students are working on. I also like the idea of sending out a weekly newsletter via e-mail to parents that details all that has occurred and what is upcoming. LetterPop is a great site to use to make such a newsletter. Engrade, which I described in my last post, is also a great tool for teachers to use to communication and share grades with both parents and students.
The members of Team TechSavy and I created a 21st Century Classroom Parent newsletter using LetterPop. Each of us took a different subject: math, science, social studies, English and described how we would be communicating throughout the year and what technologies that we would be using. We collaborated to create a curriculum that incorporated technology and that offered a strong means for communication. It was a great experience working with my peers to complete this project. We talked about how important it is for a teacher to have a frequently updated website and a blog. We all agreed on how important communicating with parents is. Here is the link to our newsletter: Team TechSavy's 21st Century Classroom Communication Parent Newsletter. Check it out and make your own!
Are you doing your part to bridge the teacher parent gap? Or are there uninformed parents lurking around?
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