Building and Maintaining Communication with Parents

Parent Involvement | Get Involved | Schools and Departments

adults The following information was taken from the New Jersey American Federation for Teachers:

The school-home connection is important to successful student learning, and communication is key to building and maintaining partnerships between the school staff and home. School staff—administrators, teachers and support staff—communicate daily with parents and caregivers. Making sure that communication is positive and accurate is a critically important work function for all staff

School staff and faculty are aware of whether or not their job entails formally communicating with parents. ALL staff members do interact formally and/or informally at least on a weekly basis.

Office employees are on the front lines with parents.
Food service workers answer questions about school lunch or breakfast.
Bus drivers encounter parents at the bus stop in the mornings and evenings.
Security personnel interact with parents in the course of their work keeping schools safe.
Paraprofessionals and community liaison workers communicate with parents in both formal and informal situations.
Custodians and maintenance workers meet and greet parents in the halls and on school grounds in the course of their workday.

Here are some tips for communicating successfully with parents and caregivers:

Never use profanity
Never use a threatening tone, posture or look
Never talk down to parents
Never lose your temper or composure
Never gossip about staff, faculty, or other students with parents
Speak clearly and concisely
Be specific
Be direct

Be polite
Be professional
Give parent(s) your undivided attention
Encourage parent’s communication verbally and nonverbally
Verify what you hear: Paraphrase
Clarify what you don’t understand
Ask questions
Validate parent’s feelings
Acknowledge their feelings

When asking parents questions use:

Closed-ended questions for yes- or no-answers.
Example: Does your child ride the school bus?

Open-ended questions to allow the parent to expand his or her response.
Example: What type of relationship did your child have with his last school bus driver?

Direct questions for specific information.
Example: Does your child have a food allergy?

Probing questions for additional information.
Example: Why is the after-school program important to you?

Hypothetical questions to explore a theoretical situation.
Example: If you could make changes, what would they be?

For more information about building and maintaining communication with parents, read: “How to Build Positive Relationships With Parents – No Matter What!"