Every communication, whether it's a “hello” in the school pick-up line, a challenging conversation about goals or an automated phone call is a precious opportunity to build a relationship with a family that can help a student succeed. And yet, in the rush of the school day, it's sometimes easy to overlook how to best craft our communications in ways that respect and engage our parents and caregivers.

Sometimes the language we use can be complicated and full of jargon and acronyms. Families may find the authoritative tone we use alienating, intimidating and even dismissive. And they can be overwhelmed by the amount of information we send home. Improving our communications and taking the time to provide communication training to our staff can eliminate barriers and allow us to fully engage with families as equal partners. And that can pay off in so many ways.

Effective School-Home Communication Helps Students Succeed

Years of research have shown that when families and educators work together, students succeed. It makes sense. Educators are experts in teaching, but families are experts when it comes to their children. And if we are going to help kids learn, we need the expertise of parents and caregivers at the table. We need to understand what’s going on in the lives of our students, particularly what they may be struggling with, so we can provide support.

And families need us, too. They need to know how their kids are doing academically, but also mentally and socially. They need and want to know what they can do to support learning at home so their children grow into successful, happy adults.  

Communicating effectively can build relationships that lead to powerful two-way exchanges of information between school and home. 

Effective School-Home Communication Helps Teacher Retention

We can sit around and hand-wring about it all we want. But one of the answers to the teacher shortage is simple and right in front of our faces: We need to partner with families. Here’s why… 

Teachers who partner with families:

• Have higher job satisfaction and a higher level of optimism about their jobs.*
• Find their students have fewer behavioral issues and better social skills, which makes teaching easier.*
• … and even report they have a lighter workload.**

And that’s where school-home communication comes in. If we can give teachers the skills they need to use their words to build relationships with families, our teachers will feel more understood, more heard, more supported, and… more likely to stay.

Providing communication training for teachers and staff also has a side benefit. It can help them communicate better with one another, so when they have “one of those days,” they can express how they feel to people who are trained to know how to listen. 

Effective School-Home Communication Helps Student Retention

Across the nation, the movement for school choice continues to grow. And if families have a choice of where to send their kids to school, we want them to choose us. 

The way we get them to do that has less to do with our social media posts, our marketing billboards, or our latest technology, and more to do with the way we treat them. It has to do with the way we use our words to build bridges, the way we create welcoming environments, and even the way we handle tough situations. All of these aspects of communication factor into how families feel about us, our school and our district.

If we communicate effectively, we can flourish in the increasingly competitive education environment. After all, no family will pull their students out of a school or a district where they feel they are respected, valued and included.

Effective School-Home Communication Prevents Issues 

Finally, there are some strong feelings floating around the world of education these days. Between school board meetings and legislative hearings, the headlines are full of stories of frustrated families. In many cases, they don’t understand the decisions we make, or they feel they don’t have a voice in those decisions. Effective communication can prevent issues and misunderstandings by establishing a foundation of trust and creating spaces for productive dialogue. 

When you look at all of the challenges to education right now, it feels like we are at a crossroads. But, words are powerful. And, if we can use them to make the most of every interaction we have with parents and caregivers, we can change not only education but maybe even the world. 

Patricia Weinzapfel works with educators across the nation providing professional development in school-home communication. She is the author of Closing the Loop, A Powerful and Practical Guide to School-Home Communication.