Developing the home-school relationship using digital ... - Futurelab

STRATEGIC CONSIDERATIONS3.3 PROBLEM-SOLVING33.3 PROBLEM­SOLVINGCatching and acting on problems quicklyTeachers, children and parents generallyappreciate the role that a good home-schoolrelationship can play in resolving problemsthat children may be experiencing at school.Children may experience problems withtheir behaviour in school, their progress andachievement, or their social and emotionaladjustment. Identifying when a problem arisesand taking steps to tackle it quickly is crucialin making sure it does not become entrenched.Parents and teachers can sometimes bereticent to contact one another about aproblem, unsure of the response they willreceive. In some cases, by the time a parentcomes to school with a problem, they and theirchild are angry and upset. A more trustingrelationship can break down this reticenceand result in problems being addressedmore swiftly.Capturing, tracking and sharing data onchildren’s progress on a frequent basis is oneway in which problems can be identified at anearly stage by teachers, parents or childrenthemselves. Where children are falling behind,or repeatedly missing homework, waiting untilparents’ evening may mean a lost opportunityto address the problem, and that problembecoming more serious and more difficultto resolve. The online reporting expectationsinclude plans to make data on progressand behaviour available to parents, but it isimportant to consider how parents, childrenand teachers can act on the information theyreceive. For parents, the next step is usuallytalking to children to understand the issue,followed by talking to teachers to see what canbe done to address it. Tracking informationthrough online reporting has been used tosupport face to face ‘structured conversations’focused on listening to and learning fromparents and children in a project that aims toimprove the outcomes for children with specialeducational needs and disabilities 71 . Makingdata transparent therefore needs to be seenas the start of a conversation between parents,children and teachers, not an end point initself. Schools can therefore consider how theycan present data in ways that facilitate suchproductive conversations.A good relationship between parentsand teachers also means that consistentexpectations of children’s behaviour can beshared between home and school, meaningthat they are less likely to ‘play off’ teachersand parents against one another. Developingthese expectations needs to be done inconsultation with parents and children, sothat the school and home work to a set ofshared values. As well as asking parents tosupport the school’s policies, the school is ina stronger position when it also understandsand reinforces the expectations that childrenlive up to at home. Communication aboutbehaviour needs to happen as close to theevent as possible in order to have an effectand to reflect a consistent message acrossthe school; digital technologies can supportthis swift communication and help co-ordinatemessages across the school (see also ‘See theBigger Picture’).“If you’re in trouble then if your parentsknow they can talk to you and help you sussit out.” (Year 10 student)Addressing problems with schoolInevitably, there are times when childrenor parents have a problem with somethinghappening in school, or a complaint abouthow the school has approached or dealt withan issue. When these complaints are serious,there needs to be a straightforward policy forhow they are dealt with, and in most schoolsthis is in place. However, parents also wantto be able to provide feedback to the schoolin a ‘low-key’ way, providing suggestions forimprovement or letting the school know whenthings have not gone quite right. Bringingsuch feedback into the school providesanother perspective for the school to use in itsdevelopment, and can also stem the circulationand escalation of complaints that canundermine the school if not addressed. Digitaltechnologies can provide easy mechanismsfor such feedback, as well as making publicresponses where appropriate.Involving children in finding a solutionChildren are very clear that they want to beinvolved in the problem solving process, as theyare the key players and solutions developedwithout their input have a more limited chanceof being successful. Children often feel they donot have legitimate authority to raise problemsat school on their own, and usually turn toparents in the first place for support.4071. The ‘structured conversation’ approach could easily be applied to any children experiencing problems within school. For moreinformation on the ‘Achievement for All’ programme and structured conversations, seenationalstrategies.standards.dcsf.gov.uk/node/253403?uc=force_uj