When teachers and parents work together, it is a recipe for education success. But too often there can be divide between home and school, that is no good for you the parent, your child, or the teacher. A good parent-teacher relationship will contribute to a positive school experience for both you and your child. Here are 4 Easy Ways To Make A Better Parent-Teacher Relationship.
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As a parent you know all your child’s mannerisms. You help with homework, and you’re involved in your child’s social development.
If you’re a teacher, you play a similar role but you are the mentor in the classroom. You have educational goals you will know what’s needed for your students to succeed. You may also be more aware of the child’s social interactions in school, as parents may have a different perspective.
When the two worlds are divided, it could have a negative impact on your child or student’s education achievements. However, when teachers and parents work together as allies, it creates a positive learning atmosphere with little left to desire. After all, a child’s education is one of the most important aspects of his or her development.
#1. Communication Is Key
In order to develop the best educational experience for any student, it’s important to have an open line of communication. Teachers and parents need to keep those lines of communication open throughout the entire school year. And this communication needs to be a two way street.
Maintaining a positive ongoing line of communication between teachers and parents is not always easy. Life is busier than ever before, for both parties. Teachers and parents are balancing careers, personal lives, households, and trying to be a positive influence at the same time.
To build positive ongoing communication, approach your teacher and parent communication with synergy in mind.
Teachers and parents should meet at the beginning of every school year, and make a plan for touch points throughout the school year. Both should approach these meetings as working towards the same objective/goal (or problem-solving together), and how you can achieve success/resolution.
This allows both influences in a child’s life to review education, social behavior, and set new goals.
#2. Meet Issues Head-on
No student or child is perfect. There will always be issues, whether at home or in the classroom. When these issues arise, it is essential for teachers and parents to approach them head-on.
Developing a unified front to approach these issues will show the child and student that both parties care. This offers a larger support structure for the child while letting him or her know that what happens at home or at school is intertwined in a variety of ways.
#3. Be Objective
Issues in the classroom can widen the divide between teachers and parents in certain ways. More often than not, parents can feel that teachers are a bit unfair, or perhaps they are bringing their own personal experiences of school/teachers to these interactions.
Parents need to approach these issues with an objective point of view in order to develop a plan and successful solution for the child and student.
As a parent, if you feel your child is subject to unfair attention from his or her teacher, schedule a meeting with them. If you’re a teacher with an unruly student, take action and schedule a meeting with the parents.
The sooner the issue is addressed and emotions are cleared from the air, the faster the child can make positive changes, with the support of both parent and teacher.
#4. Use Technology to Enhance the Teacher/Parent Experience
The technology available to people in the digital era is increasingly making daily life easier. So why not use it to enhance the teacher/parent experience. This will bring the good, the bad, and well everything, to the front lines instantly.
Teachers and parents can share social media information and email addresses to stay connected. Teachers can send out short email updates about their students each week. Parents can also do the same, allowing each party to stay in touch and involved in a powerful way.
A child’s education is invaluable, and how a child achieves has much to do with how teachers and parents work together. Communication, employing technology, and staying objective when issues arise are all essential elements to a child and student’s education success and experience.
Over to you! Have you any further suggestions for teachers and parents to work together? Let us know in the comments below.