2. Problem: What is the best way to enhance, and encourage,
parent-teacher communication?
This is a significant problem because I believe parent-teacher communication is imperative in order to
promote a positive learning environment. Communication is a fundamental element of any
relationship. The parent-teacher relationship is one which requires effective dialogue to ensure that
a positive environment is developed between home and school. A functional relationship between
parents and teachers is needed in order to solve problems, and find the best solutions for students.
Although I do think this is an extremely important part of a teacher’s job, I was lacking in this area
during my practicums. I was hardly ever in touch with my student’s parents, and to be honest made
minimal effort to do so. This is something I definitely will be improving upon during my next practicum.
With the vast amount of emerging technology, there are many tools that could be used to address
this problem. The tools offer varying degrees of solutions, but many can be used creatively to
promote communications.
I chose to solve this problem with Weebly, a free, online, website creator. It is professional, efficient,
effective, and easy to navigate. The following slides will describe how I came to this conclusion.
3. Problem Solving Strategies
In order to find the most appropriate solution for this problem, I used to
following problem solving strategies:
Break the Problem into Sub Groups, Brainstorm, Work Backwards,
Visually Represent Problem, and Start With the Most In Depth
Approach.
These strategies really helped me discover what the problem areas were,
and what qualities I was looking for in a tool to effectively solve it.
4. Strategy #1 - Break into Sub
Groups
The following are areas that I feel cause difficulty concerning Parent-
Teacher Communication.
Keeping all parents continually informed and up-to-date - it is very time consuming
Different schedules of parents and teacher enhance problem
Need to be communicating not only negative comments, but also positive ones
Parents don’t have easy access to information about what happens in class, due dates,
class schedules, reminders, etc.
Encouraging 2 way communication between parents and teachers
Basically, keeping parents in the loop is the biggest problem. We need to help the parents
stay involved in their child’s education!
5. Strategy #2 - Brain Storm
The following is a list made up of all the ways I could think of to solve this problem.
I tried to think about the problem from both a traditional perspective, and a 21st
Century perspective.
Phone Calls Blog
Email Twitter
Notes Home Weebly
School Newsletter Voice Mail Message
Classroom Newsletter Comment Sheet
Home Journals Paper LI
Agenda Notes Parent-Teacher Meetings
6. Strategy #3 - Work Backwards
For this strategy, I thought of all the qualities I wanted to see in the solution to this
problem. Anything that I felt was important and needed to be addressed, I put on
this list. This was useful when looking into different options, I could always look
back at this list and make sure these areas were being met.
A solution that is time efficient for all
Easy to Use
parties involved
Conveniently Accessible - Preferably
Works with different schedules
anywhere, anytime
Effective in Communication
Easy to update in order to provide
continual involvement and knowledge for
Provides 2 Way Communication
parents.
Contains both Public and Private
BONUS - Environmentally Friendly
discussion
7. Strategy #4 - Visual Representation
For this strategy I used an online mind mapping tool to visually lay out the
problems associated with parent-teacher communications. This is a useful
strategy for me because I am a very visual person, and like to map out my work.
I realized that
different
information is
important for
parents and
students. My
solution will
separate the
information
needed for
students, from
that needed for
parents, so the
tool is easy to
navigate.
8. Strategy #5 - Depth First
When using this strategy, you start with the option that is the most in-depth. This allows you to start with the
option that appears to be the most involved with the problem you are tackling. I like using this approach
because it requires you to fully exhaust the option before moving on to a new one. This works out well
because you can put all your efforts into one tool, without being distracted part way through by other
possible options.
I felt the best tool to start looking into would be Weebly. I was fairly
unfamiliar with this tool, and had never created my own website before. It
seemed to be the most in-depth tool, as it provided a lot of features I
thought would be useful.
After perusing this website and becoming acquainted with the tool, I could
already tell it had the elements I was looking for. I experimented with many
different design elements, and layout features and eventually began to
create a mock class web page.
I could easily align my list of desired elements with the features offered
through Weebly. After observing this, I was confident that I could continue
on with Weebly, and solve the problem of parent-teacher communication.
9. How Does Weebly Solve This Problem?
I decided to proceed with Weebly as the solution to this problem. It is an easy,
yet effective and efficient, solution to improving parent-teacher
communications.
Information can be broadcast to all Works with varying schedules of
parents at once - significantly cuts families and teacher
down on time.
Easy to Use
Positive remarks can be shared and
celebrated, not just talking to Inexpensive - FREE!
parents over negative issues.
Environmentally Friendly
Allows for 2 Way Communication
Convenient
Links to Email
All information can be found in one
Private & Public Communication location
Accessible at all Times
10. Attribute Activation Matrix
Problem Dimensions Tool Attributes Rationale
Allows for photos, calendars, class volunteer Encouraging parent involvement in their child’s education is appreciated
Encourage Parent Involvement opportunities, and important information to be shared by parents. Even if they cannot volunteer in the class, it is helpful just to
with parents. be filled in on what’s happening in the classroom.
Need to accommodate busy, Online. Accessible at any time as long as there is an The accessibility of the tool is important for busy families who don’t
varying schedules internet connection. have time to meet with the teacher.
Publishing public information to all parents at once saves a lot of time
Parents and Teacher can post and reply to public blog,
Public and Private Forums for teachers. Yet, parents still need a place to raise specific, private
or use the link to private email
concerns.
Blog is included for teacher to update parents on To establish successful communication, both parties need to be able to
Need 2 Way Communication what’s going on. Parents can reply to blog posts or contact one another when needed. The ability to get in touch and
send private emails for teacher to reply to. express concerns or questions is very important.
It’s important for parent-teacher relations to acknowledge positive
Need to celebrate positives, not Allows for photos of fun class activities, and will have
contributions made by students. Parents will respond better when they
just punish negatives. a “Student of The Week” feature
know the teacher is on their child’s side.
Having one central location for all upcoming deadlines and important
One Location to Find Short Allows for a calendar page describing important
dates is convenient for parents, students, and the teacher. Parents know
and Long Term Deadlines & monthly announcements. Also can show weekly
exactly where to look to find the information, and Students are never
Important Dates homework assignments.
without assignment due dates.
11. Weebly is an online, free, web page
creator. It allows for the creation of
professional looking web pages, in an easy
to understand format. Editing is simple
and straightforward. Final products are
easy to navigate for users.
12. This is the
homepage of the
class website I
created. The home
page has a Welcome
note, and clearly
labelled headings to
direct Parents and
Students to what
they’re looking for.
These headings
make the site very
easy to navigate.
13. This page allows
students and
parents to get to
know a bit about
the teacher.
Sharing some basic
facts and hobbies
“humanizes” the
teacher and can
make them more
relatable. This is a
good idea,
especially for the
start of the year
when relationships
are being
established.
14. The “Announcements” page has a
list of upcoming deadlines, and
important dates. It also includes
parent volunteer opportunities.
There is a link on this page that
takes you to a calendar layout of
the same information.
This allows parents and students to keep up to
date with upcoming deadlines and school
activities.
15. Under the heading “Homework Updates” is a weekly schedule
of homework. This is available for both students and parents to
see. This should reduce instances of students forgetting due
dates, and should keep parents knowledgeable about school
work.
16. “Student Links” page allows for helpful student
resources to be uploaded. These can be explored
by students on their own time, or could be directly
related to their homework.
17. Parent Links is a page that provides parents with helpful links. It also
provides a library link for those who don’t have computers at home.
These families can go to the public library and access information from
there, or any other computer connected to the internet.
This page also contains the Private Contact
Form - a form that links directly to teacher
email. This is a forum to raise specific, private,
concerns.
18. The Blog page allows
the teacher to write
blog posts about
what is happening in
class. This is an
informal, yet
informative, way to
share with parents
the fun activities
being done in class.
Parents can reply to
these blog posts with
any questions or
comments. The
teacher can then
respond to these
comments. This is a
great forum to share
public information
intended for all
parents.
19. Problem Solved?
I think that the solution decided upon, Weebly, was a great tool to use in order to solve this problem. It
provides teachers, parents, and students, a one stop location for all information about the class. It addresses
the need for 2 way communication, as well as allowing for both private and public communications. All of the
problems I have been looking at have been solved. A webpage allows for a very accessible and convenient tool
for families with busy schedules. It is not always easy to find time to call, or set up a meeting. A webpage
allows for parents to gain the information and communication they need, at a time that works for them. The
only limitation I feel this technology presents is that not all families will have access to a computer at home. If
the family does not have any internet connected device (smart phone, tablet, computer, etc.) then perhaps a
library computer could be used, or print copes of the information could easily be distributed.
Now that I have created this webpage I feel confident I could put it into use for my next practicum, or future
teaching jobs. It is a great tool, and now I have got the foundation laid to continue building upon.
The website I created can be accessed at
www.msrae.weebly.com
20. Resources
Freytag, C. E. (2001). Teacher-Parent Communication: Starting the Year off Right.
Weebly Inc. (2012). Create a Free Website and a Free Blog. Retrieved June 1 2012,
from http://www.weebly.com/
