Tuesday, February 19, 2008

Positive Parent Communication

Just a quickie...

For every phone call you make to the parents or guardians of a struggling student, attempt to make a positive call to the parents or guardians of a successful student.

Any thought on this? Did any of you receive positive calls from teachers? Ask your parents... If not, would you have liked to hear positive feedback from a teacher? Do you think your parents would have liked those calls?

Let's think outside the box and be positive!

6 comments:

Srta. Cross said...

I was actually talking to my mom about this a few weeks ago. I remember one of my teachers made positive and negative phone calls and I thought it was such a good idea. Back then I knew I wanted to be a teacher, so I decided I was going to do the same. My mom said I used to get the positive phone calls, and my brother got the negative ones, but even when she got "improvement" phone calls about him, it was good. They weren't necessarily good or bad, but just informing her of what was going on. I think it's a great idea. Since I was a good student, I always felt like it wasn't fair that so much attention was placed on the "bad" students. I worked hard for my good grades, I wanted to be rewarded for them, rather than being punished for bad grades.

Dr. Luongo said...

Feedback of any kind (as long as it is constructive) can help a student or parent understand what is happening at school.

I feel that being upfront and letting parents know what is going on is the best way to approach the situation (either good or bad).

Thanks for the response, Jackie!

catarina said...

I really liked that comment. I feel parents are used to getting negative phone calls and that makes the students and parents feel awful. If a student gets a punishment for something bad they should get a reward for something good. That will also motivate the student. I know when my mom received phone calls from teachers she would get nervous even though it was nothing bad. Parents love to hear good things about their kids, I know I would!

Alisha said...

in my principles and techniques class, dr. o'brien told us about a positive phone call she made. she said the mother was so shocked to get a phone call from a teacher that wasn't negative. i think a positive phone call can help motivate students to want to do better so they can receive more calls like that. i agree with catarina. parents like to hear good things about their children. making the parent aware of their child's progess is very important.

Mohammad Awadallah said...

that's a cool idea..I remember in elementary school I would receive positive notes from my teacher's to give to my parent's...and my mom enjoyed receiving them so I think phone call's are a good idea..

Susan Mascolo said...

Positive feedback is so important. It keeps good students motivated and if poor students happen to have a great day in school-parents should be told of that. Negative feedback can sometimes make matters worse.