Do Parents Need to Interact Closely with Teachers?

There are two types of parents – those that consider no news as good news and those that want to be part of their child’s growth and development at school. Regardless to say those that do not want to interact much have higher rates of their children dropping out of school early or not getting good grades. Those that interact closely see a lot of benefit.

When there is effective as well as consistent interaction with teachers and parents, it results in a win-win situation all around. Earlier, the rule was that parents were only contacted when there was a crisis or when the child was not able to cope up. However, with changing times, there is a change in communication levels between the school and the parents. There is a closer partnership being forged and that helps not only the teachers and the parent, but more importantly, it helps the child a great deal.

Parents now consider themselves as consumers of the educational services and therefore they should be treated as such. They need to interact with the teachers and they want to be informed at all times as to the progress made by their child as well as the performance of the child. They also want their inputs taken into consideration as well as for the teachers to hear their opinions and to respond to by the teachers.

The communication between the school and the parents are instrumental as it helps the children to get better test scores as well as it helps them to get better grades. When there is an increase in communication between the teachers and the children, the attitude of the students starts to perk up. The children realize that no longer can they play truant and get away or no longer can they play one against the other. There are lower drop out rates and the high risk behavior of the students are minimized as well.

When there is an increased interaction, the morale of the teachers and staff increases and this helps to enhance the relationships between communities and the school. It also benefits the school as the parental support is increased for initiatives which the school takes, as well as the programs run by the school. This also sees that the school receives materials, goods and services as well. In addition to it, the opinion of the parents with regards the school improves.

When the school creates a partnership with the parents, they work towards a common goal and they work as partners – each having their own responsibilities and their own rights.

The parents when they interact with the school are informed of tips. They are also more attuned as to what will be required of the student during the rest of the year, how their ward has done as compared to the other students and more. The parents also get to inform the school authorities what they feel about different aspects and their views about different topics.

Therefore, interaction between teachers and parents is essential.