Classroom Confidential -- Chapter 11

How did Schmidt's chapter 11 inform your thinking about communication?

This chapter was a great reminder about how much of an influence a child's home life has on his/her experience at school. This concept is something that I need to remember as I'm student teaching but also as I find my own job.

My cooperating teacher at Elim has illustrated this concept to me so far too. She works very well with her students' parents and has a system set up in which she can easily communicate with them. Each student in her class has a folder and/or a notebook which they bring both to school and home with them everyday. My teacher writes in the notebook everyday informing the parents about behaviors, eating patterns, bowel movements, achievements, etc. In the morning, as the students bring their folders back to class, my teacher looks in each one for any comments from the parents.

I love this method! It seems really effective and extremely important to the success in her classroom. My cooperating teacher also communicates with parents through email, if they prefer that method. For some, it's easier and they can receive the message much more quickly. Still other times, my teacher calls the parents on the phone in the back of the room. I have walked into the room countless times while my teacher is having a conversation with a parent on the phone.

I also found interesting Schmidt's ten essentials of effective communication found on page 236. Schmidt urges teachers' messages to be:
1. proactive
2. positive
3. frequent
4. clear
5. basic
6. attention grabbing
7. appealing
8. inclusive
9. timely
10. error-free

In this list, I particularly liked the one about writing frequent messages. Routines and schedules are not only important for students, but parents like them too. People generally like to know when to expect things. Establishing a routine for communicating with parents can be extremely helpful. It's then crucial to stick to that routine in order to convey to parents that their feedback and participation is required and valued.

Finally, I thought Schmidt's reminder about cross-cultural communication was really helpful as I start thinking more concretely about communication with parents. I also enjoy learning about cultures, so I found this part of the chapter interesting, too. And, while reading this, I thought about how relevant it is to my career. Whether or not I end up teaching in a different part of the country or the world, I am going to have students of various races. I need to know how to best communicate with those students and parents in order to serve the student as best as I can.

From reading chapter 11, how will you be better prepared for parent teacher conferences?

When I started reading this part of the chapter, I was struck by how overwhelming parent teacher conferences can be for both the teacher but also the parents involved. Similarly to IEP meetings (although I've yet to experience one -- I only have knowledge from various classes), in conferences with teachers, parents are often thrown acronyms along with tons of other information about which they have little understanding. I never really sat down to consider how a parent might feel upon entering a conference with a teacher. This chapter on parent-teacher communication was helpful in figuring out how to frame my future meetings to ensure that the students' needs are best met.

I liked Schmidt's suggestion of creating a conference information sheet to give to parents before their meeting. This sheet might include:

• greeting/looking forward to meeting with you
• goal of conferences
• your conference appointment (date/time/location/length of meeting)
• confirmation response tear-off
• Can my child come?
• How do I share results with my child afterward?

Along with various other pieces of information, these sheets would give parents a better idea of what to expect before ever entering the classroom.

Finally, I really appreciated Schmidt's list of things to consider and provide on the day of the conference. Some of my favorites are:

1. Signs to direct parents

2. Being prepared

3. Looking professional

4. Setting an agenda

5. Providing student strengths

I especially want to highlight that final item on the list because I strongly agree with it. Parent teacher conferences, along with providing parents with a realistic idea of where their students are at, should include many areas describing the strengths of the students. Parents want to hear good things about their kids. It's always important to inform parents about how their students are doing well.