Why Is It Important for Special Ed Teachers to Have a Strong Relationship With Families

29 Aug Establishing healthy parent-teacher relationships for early learning success

By Susan K. Sheridan, Ph.D.
Principal Investigator, Early Learning Network Lead
Manager, Nebraska Center for Research on Children, Youth, Families & Schools,
University of Nebraska-Lincoln

It's inevitable. Labor Day marks the transition between 2 seasons: the end of summer and the back-to-school season. The beginning of a new school yr brings new teachers, new classmates, new opportunities and new relationships.

While the relationships your child forms with peers are important, you may be surprised that the most significant human relationship, in terms of your kid's schoolhouse success and development, is the i you lot form with his or her instructor.

Your relationship with your kid's teacher can be an important factor in how well he or she gets along at school and at home. For many children, the most significant adults in their lives on a day-to-day basis are immediate family members and caregivers (primarily parents), and their teacher. These are the adults with whom they spend the most time, who make virtually of the decisions regarding how they spend their fourth dimension and who provide guidance and direction, through their actions and their words, on most aspects of their lives.

Isn't it logical that how these adults collaborate, relate and communicate, both with each other and with the educatee, impacts his or her experiences and learning? Let'due south explore this further.

Fortunately, we know a lot most the "why" and "how" of healthy relationships between parents and their children's teachers. Through the Early Learning Network, collaborating enquiry teams beyond the U.S. are doing inquiry to hone in on what types of parent engagement practices really matter for young children — not only at one bespeak in time, such as kindergarten, but throughout their early on school years, from preschool to tertiary class.

"Research shows that abode support for early learning complements learning at school," said Christina Weiland, assistant professor at the Academy of Michigan and co-principal investigator on ELN's MDRC team studying Boston Public Schools' P-3 programs. "Playing math games, reading with children and asking children open-ended questions equally they play are examples of fun, unproblematic ways to build critical foundational skills both at domicile and schoolhouse. The network is because many factors of import in the early on years, including alignment of home and schoolhouse learning opportunities."

Why are healthy parent-teacher relationships of import?

Positive connections between parents and teachers have been shown to improve children's academic achievement, social competencies and emotional well-being. When parents and teachers work equally partners, children do better in school and at home.

Enquiry shows that when a partnership approach betwixt parents and teachers is evident, children's work habits, attitudes near school and grades improve. They demonstrate better social skills, fewer behavioral problems and a greater ability to adapt to situations and get forth. And parents and teachers benefit, too. When working together every bit partners, information technology's been found that parents and teachers communicate more effectively, develop stronger relationships with 1 another and develop skills to support children's behaviors and learning.

"Building partnerships between families and schools is an effective strategy to accost opportunity gaps, especially for those who have been historically underserved," said Iheoma Iruka, co-chief investigator of ELN'due south University of Nebraska-Lincoln squad and chief research innovation officeholder and director of the Heart for Early Pedagogy Research & Evaluation at HighScope Educational Research Foundation. "Strong partnerships support children's learning and ability to develop lifelong skills and networks, while too strengthening parents' capacity to be engaged in their kid'south school feel."

The Three C'south: How to class a effective parent-teacher partnership

Partnerships are virtually powerful when they include three principal components, represented equally the "3 C'south": communication, consistency and collaboration.

Communication

The starting time is communication betwixt habitation and school. Like whatever human relationship in life, communication between you and your child's teacher is primal.

• • Communicate with your child'south teacher early on and throughout the schoolhouse year. Start by letting him/her know that you desire to play your office in your child's education.

• • Talk over with your child'southward teacher the best ways to communicate. This can be as simple as sending notes to school with your child, leaving a vocalization bulletin for the teacher, emailing of import information or other methods unique to your state of affairs.

• • The all-time kind of communication is open, clear, effective and timely. Frequent, ii-way communication is of import to stay apprised of what is happening at school, and to let your teacher know of import things well-nigh your child. Home-schoolhouse notes are especially effective.

• Attend meetings with questions and observations near your kid's efforts and behaviors, non just their grades and achievements. Let your kid's teacher know about your child's strengths and challenges, likes and dislikes, and what you hope he or she accomplishes during the school year.

Consistency

The 2nd component of an effective partnership is consistency. This involves opportunities and experiences you lot provide at abode to back up your kid'due south learning.

• • Inquire well-nigh and suggest ways you can work with your child at home to encourage their learning for a successful school year. Creating routines for homework, such as establishing a time and quiet place, is important. Providing learning materials, reading with your kid, and encouraging healthy habits for eating and physical activity all contribute to their success in schoolhouse.

• Talk about methods for ensuring that you and the teacher are "on the same folio" when it comes to plans and expectations. This kind of partnership sends a consistent message to your child and lets him know that yous and his instructor together support his learning.

Collaboration

The third component of partnering is collaboration. Collaboration will be easier if advice is frequent, and yous consistently create opportunities for your child's learning. A collaborative, cooperative partnership focuses on specific, positive strategies to help your kid achieve to the best of his or her potential. Planning and problem-solving are forms of collaboration, and will be especially important when your kid needs extra support to reach a goal.

• • Brand an endeavor to understand teachers' goals and expectations for your child, and let teachers know about your goals. Communicate about how y'all can be a partner to help your child achieve them. If yous have concerns, respectfully enquire about modifications that are aligned with your child'south strengths and challenges.

• Plan and problem-solve around bug that may arise. If the human relationship and advice channels are developed early, information technology volition be much easier to address challenges if they appear. Collaborative planning with your child's teacher involves acknowledging the need to piece of work together to address a business organisation, staying focused on finding a solution (not placing arraign), making plans that involve back up and responsibility at both domicile and school, following through on plans and checking back to brand certain progress is being fabricated.

Attain out early and ofttimes

A new school twelvemonth is the perfect time to reach out to your child'south instructor and brainstorm establishing a positive, collaborative relationship that will have a remarkable bear upon on your child's learning and development.

These evidence-based practices volition go a long way in helping yous piece of work together to ensure your child has the support he or she needs to be successful at school, at home and in the hereafter.

We look frontward to sharing more research findings regarding parent-teacher relationships and other early learning topics as they emerge from the Early Learning Network's nationwide studies.

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Source: https://earlylearningnetwork.unl.edu/2018/08/29/parent-teacher-relationships/#:~:text=Why%20are%20healthy%20parent%2Dteacher,in%20school%20and%20at%20home.

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