As a parent to 5 children I was involved in all six aspects. At the time my children were in school we did not have the technology available for communication that we do today. We learned of school events, activities, teacher concerns, classroom needs, and all the information we needed to support their education in the old fashioned way.....paper. With more than 20 years of communication experience from the trenches I think I saw every way imaginable to communicate and ensure that materials traveled between home and school. Notes taped, stapled and paperclipped to anything and everything. Information tucked into a book, at the same chapter (the book NEVER left the bookbag). A manila envelope was very popular for several years and was probably the most effective way to communicate.
I was always impressed with the way some teachers seemed to naturally take to the process of communication and others never quite got the hang of it. There was always some give and take at the beginning of the school year until the kids settled into their routines, IEPs were addressed, disciplinary issues were ironed out, and communication methods were firmed up. You see, with five there was one that just did not play by the rules. We quickly learned (by the end of Kindergarten) that the rules did not apply to her and she would (and usually did) disrupt the best laid plans. By third grade we were funneling communications through siblings and that became our method for the remainder of her school career. Communication was key for a successful school year and the communication of her likes, dislikes, personality, and a variety of other concerns were the subject of various meetings, phone calls, and notes. By the fifth grade we had identified a friend who worked well with her and whom our daughter would virtually always respond to. This friend did not have children at that school, but she became a volunteer at school activities and events. She took an active role in the school community. Through her volunteer work with one student she engaged others to become involved in school projects and help establish mentorship between students and community members. This partnership helped to reduce behavioral issues, improve grades, and make the educational experience better for all. We had good years and bad years with this child, she did not graduate although she attempts, from time to time to obtain her GED.
Our daughter, my husband's child, was/is bi-polar. Diagnosed at the age of 6 and medicated with Prozac and Lithium, her illness kept the family and the school on a roller coaster ride for many years. Understandably, in todays world of privacy issues, there is not the freedom to discuss as we did in the 1990s, but communication and collaboration were key to making each year a measurable success. By engaging volunteers familiar with her issues, communicating through the appropriate teams (medical, curriculum, IEP etc), locating community resources that offered support to the family members and the family as a whole, the school community was able to survive some very difficult years.
While some may consider this accounting peripheral to the dicussion on Connecting with Communities I believe that it is very relevant. Not all communities are idyllic and the behavior of a few (and sometimes only 1) students can have an impact upon the entire learning community. Defining the micro and macro communities, engaging the appropriate stakeholders and identifying the resources available to support it are vital to the success of the educational experience.
Epstein, J. L., & Salinas, K. C. (n.d.). Partnering with families and communities. (2004). Schools as Learning Communities, 61(8), 12-18.
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