Now Talk To Them: Foreign Education Differences

Imagine being raised in a country where the school system discourages parents from talking to teachers. What if that was your student's parent? Now talk to them. YOU: Your Child's First Teacher parent engagement program.

As you prepare for the 2015-2016 school year, think about your students’ parents. If any of them immigrated to the U.S., they might have a different idea than you do about how involved they should be in their children’s education.

According to a 2014 article published in The Hechinger Report:

Latino immigrants particularly tend to trust the public school system to provide their children with the education they need, beginning in kindergarten, according to advocates and studies. Their role is to keep their babies safe, clean, well-fed and loved –– an attitude that can lead to children being nurtured but starting school irreparably behind.

Use the beginning of the school year as an opportunity to talk with your students’ parents and align your goals, regardless of their cultural background.

Speak with school administrators about hosting a parent workshop before school starts or at the beginning of the year. The YOU Program offers parent workshops in Spanish and English and will teach parents the importance of parent engagement so that you start the school year on the same page.

Your students’ parents will know what is expected of them and learn how to take a more active role in their children’s education, which will help the students come to school prepared to learn and boost their chances of success.

Join the conversation about what we should be communicating to our students’ parents by using the #NowTalkToThem hashtag on Twitter.

3 Ways to Improve Communication Between Home and School

3 Ways to Improve Communication Between Home and School | This article serves as a tool to help Title I schools learn to better communicate with their students' parents.

Effective communication between home and school is critical to student achievement. But while educators send communication to parents in the forms of emails and letters in backpacks, parents may struggle with several issues, from feeling like they’re being talked at instead of engaging in a helpful conversation to having difficulty interpreting the message.

When we speak to parents at workshops, they frequently cite that educators talk in “edu-speak,” a language full of industry terms that people outside of the education field don’t understand. It’s difficult for the parents to translate this language into actions they can take with their children to help them succeed in school. They want to be engaged but need the right resources to know how to help their children.

With these factors working against effective communication, it’s no wonder that Title I schools struggle to close the achievement gap or maximize student success. As a fully bilingual parent engagement program, we have been successful in breaking down these communication barriers between educators and parents during our YOU Program workshops. Based on our experiences, here are some communication techniques that can benefit your school’s parents.  Continue reading →