Forming Partnerships With Members of the Education Team
The educational team will probably include a variety of people,
each of whom will be responsible for providing a specific service.
This can include classroom teachers, special education teachers,
building administrators, therapists, educational technicians,
evaluators, and others contracted service personnel. Your contact
with each of these people will vary, depending on the frequency
of the service they provide and how closely you will be working
together.
However, the one person on the team you will be communicating
with most often is the classroom teacher. This is the person your
child will see everyday throughout the school year, and the person
you will want to maintain close communication with regarding progress
and needs. Parents know that teachers who work well with students
are worth their weight in gold! Taking the time to nurture a positive
relationship with your child's teacher more than pays off in benefits
to your child and in your own feelings of confidence about your
child's school program.
The following represents some suggestions for getting off to
a good start with the teacher. They can also be applied to your
relationship with the other members of the team. They include:
- Whenever possible, try to meet with the teacher before the
school year begins so that the teacher has time to absorb the
information you have to share before classes start.
- Provide background information. This includes medical information,
the results of evaluations and other historical information
in an organized and concise manner so that the teacher can quickly
prepare to work effectively.
- Help the teacher to learn what is realistic to expect in terms
of behavior, academic achievement, endurance and attention span.
- Share tips on what has worked well in the past.
- Set up a schedule or process for regular communication so
that expectations are clear and problems can be addressed quickly.
Phone calls, notebooks that go back and forth daily, and/or
progress notes are options that might work for your situation.
- When setting up appointments to meet, find a time that is
mutually convenient so that you have adequate time and space
to discuss pressing issues.
- Ask questions when there are procedures or practices going
on at school that you don't understand, or when the IEP is not
being followed. Waiting until the end of the term or for the
next scheduled meeting can compromise your ability to make timely
changes that will influence your child's success.
- Be sure to let the teacher know how much you appreciate their
efforts! Don't let communication focus only on criticism or
the problems that surface. We all need words of encouragement
from time to time.
| What Has Worked For Me As
A Teacher Partnering With My Students' Parents... |
|
"Most classrooms now have phones
and voice mail. This makes communication much easier.
It is important for parents to be involved as volunteers
in the school."
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|
| What Has Worked For Me As
A Parent Partnering With My Children's Teachers... |
|
"I try to share phone numbers
and best times to talk at the beginning of each school
year."
"I try to go on at least one
field trip a year."
"I try to communicate in many
different ways: fax, phone, and in person."
"I try to bring my child to
school and talk with teachers and we can share concerns."
|
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