Written by: Isabelle Saunders

During the school week, a child will spend an equal amount of their day at school and at home. This leads, in many ways, to a dual tutelage of the child, a partnership of upbringing between teachers and parents. How important, then, is proper cooperation between these key figures in a child’s life?

Teachers and parents each have their own domain: consecutively, school and home/outside of school. It is essential to a flourishing academic life that the gap between the two domains is bridged in a healthy and productive way. During this season of long-distance learning, this bridge is more important than ever before.

This begs the question: how?

How parents can reach out

While parents may find themselves scratching their heads when asked by their child for help with homework, they’re still able to play an active role in their education.

Schedule a parent-teacher conference for a proactive method of head-on conversation. Ask teachers how you can get involved, be it helping your child get more sleep to improve attentiveness or quizzing them before tests. If a student is struggling, they are also encouraged to attend to provide personal input and talk through what would work best for them.
Talk to your child. Ask them what would edify them, taking into consideration their unique method of learning and working. Their points will give you a foundation on which to build your discussion with their teacher.
Help your child’s teacher set goals for them. It’s helpful for a student to have something concrete and attainable that they can work towards.
Engage multiple teachers. For students who have a different teacher for each subject, it’s a good idea to have them discuss how best to instruct your child. Say, for example, your child loves art class, but is less enthusiastic about math. Those two teachers will likely see different behavior and levels of engagement from your child, and the math teacher could discuss with the art teacher which techniques to use to best assist your child. Teachers learn from each other, just like parents.
How teachers can reach out

Don’t be afraid to contact a parent just for the sake of good news. Any parent loves to hear that their child is an asset to class discussions, or really gave it their all on a recent project. Sharing a student’s progress with their parents is an easy way to boost their confidence.
Regular feedback: when trying to help a student through a difficult patch in their studies, it’s crucial to update their parents. Tell them how they can meet their child where they are, and how they can help at home.
Talk to school administrators about hosting school events. Fun, easygoing activities at school can help foster positive relationships between staff and guardians. To adhere to social distancing rules, try hosting events over video conferencing or in the form of a drive-in.
Utilize multiple methods of contact. Communication isn’t a glove perfectly shaped to fit one way. Apart from face-to-face meetings, consider practices such as handwritten notes, emails, and phone calls.
Ask about a child’s personal interests. If you’re a math teacher who can’t seem to get through to a child, and their parents say they’re artistic, consider using visual or artistic teaching methods with that child as a form of personalization. A tailor-made education will always be more helpful than a “one size fits all” education.

Benefits

No child wants to see school as a tempest they have to weather, struggling to keep their head above the water. Especially in the wake of distance learning, many students feel that they’re in danger of being plowed over due to the subsequent lack of direct contact and all it entails. By exercising the strategies detailed above, educators and parents can work together to help students feel more engaged in their own academic life. In the end, the student doesn’t just memorize a bare concept of subjects they’ll forget after a test; they can fully grasp and understand the subject, further growing a well-rounded and truly useful education.

For more information on parent-teacher relationships, check out the links below:

https://www.readingrockets.org/article/building-parent-teacher-relationships

https://www.pbisrewards.com/blog/improving-parent-teacher-communication/