Can you hear me now? How home and school can communicate more effectively.

It's no secret that students benefit when home and school communicate. That is why a key part of educator preparation programs emphasize the importance of home/school communication.

Over the last decade, our society has become increasingly complex and, without educators and parents who communicate well, our children are in jeopardy of being overlooked and underserved. Socio-cultural diversity is one aspect of this complexity and, if it's not recognized, chances are high that it will interfere with communication.

The busy lives of parents and caretakers are another potential roadblock to effective communication, so it's important that both educators and parents seek ways in which to support the children in our schools. Elise Trumbull and her co-authors, in their book Bridging Culture Between Home and School, have studied schools in California and have identified six areas of parent-school responsibilities that can facilitate or impede effective parent-school partnerships.

Basic obligations of Families--Parenting. Educators often develop parenting programs that impart information that, unknowingly, may imply that parents don't know how to rear children. Parents receive such programs as not being family-friendly. Effective parenting programs build on parents' strengths by incorporating their cultural practices when sharing information on sensitive topics such as discipline and health education.

Basic obligations of Schools--Communicating. Educators send communications to homes in a variety of ways--notes, newsletters, reporting cards and meeting announcements. It is important to know that when the welfare of a child is involved, a personal communicating in writing or a phone call may be more effective. In the event the parents or caretakers speak a language other than English, having a translator or interpreter facilitates effective communication between school and home.

Parents volunteering in Schools--It may be difficult for parents to take the initiative to volunteer in the manner expected by their children's school. The parents may be English learners, they may work more than one job, and they may be unfamiliar with the teaching and learning methods employed by U.S. schools. A tried and tested method is for one teacher to develop a relationship with one parent and to use that relationship to involve an increasing number of parents.

Learning Activities at Home--In homes where either parent may be limited in formal literacy skills (in English or the home language), the involvement of older siblings is a culturally responsive way of solving the problem. In addition to the younger child receiving the needed support and attention, the value of familial helpfulness is reinforced.

Parent Involvement in Decision Making, Governance and Advocacy--Similar to the issue of learning activities, parents whose literacy skills are limited may be hesitant to join traditional parent groups at school. However, these parents may become involved in groups designed to support their children. Two characteristics of successful programs are they' are based in the parents learning how to instill their own values of respect and cooperation and, at the same time, insure their children will be successful in U.S. schools.

Collaboration with the Community--Family resource centers that are located in the central part of the school and that have a home-like atmosphere are the most successful. A center that has comfortable furniture and that is welcoming of the extended family, communicates a respect for the family as a unit.

This article was provided by California Lutheran University. It was adapted from an article by Elise Trumbull, Carrie Rothstein-Fisch, Patricia.M. Greenfield, and Blanca Quiroz titled "Bridging Cultures Between Home and School: A Guide for Teachers with a special focus on immigrant Latino families." (Mahway, N.J.: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Publishers.)