Too Cool for School: Why Parents Should Communicate Better With Educators

Ann M. Ishimaru, Megan Bang, Michelle Valladares

Education, Americas

 A new way is needed for schools to engage with parents.

Text messages, email alerts, open houses, fundraising appeals, robocalls – parents know the drill. They are inundated with requests from children’s schools.

These missives aren’t really asking for engagement. Rather they can be viewed as ways for educators to tell parents what they should do to support their students or the school. These experiences can inadvertently communicate that schools alone know what’s best for children – and parents should listen and follow directions, a dynamic especially present in schools serving working-class communities of color.

As scholars and parents, my colleagues and I research the intersection of families, schools and racial inequities. We have learned new ways for schools and families to work together to help realize children’s potential. And the answer isn’t fundraising, checking the latest school app or listening to robo-calls.

Research tells us that families play a critically important role in the educational success of their children. We also know from research that schools typically expect parents and families of color to conform to the values and behaviors of white, middle-class parents.

The hitch is that families of color don’t always participate in the ways schools expect. Histories of distrust and conflict often exist between families of color and schools.