Four months progress.
Effective parental engagement can lead to an average of four months additional progress over the course of an academic year.
This low-cost strategy pays dividends when improving attainment and exam results.
Additionally, fostering good relationships with home can result in higher aspirations and promote meaningful conversations about personal development.
Yet this tactic is not implemented universally in education.
We recommend a Parent’s Evening in the first term of Secondary School, particularly for Year 7 families. Here’s why:
The advantages of early parental engagement in Secondary School
Children spend around 15% of their time in school.
How can schools encourage parents to support learning at home and in the local community for the remaining 85%?
Setting up a Year 7 Parent’s Evening is a great way of highlighting the importance of parental involvement in their child’s education, and that much of their knowledge is developed outside the classroom.
But that’s not all, here are our key benefits that demonstrate the positives of early communication:
Establishing boundaries – communicating what will and will not be tolerated in classrooms. Though many of these behaviours should be expected, it’s always good to clarify with parents so they are on the same page with their child’s teacher.
Maximising attendance – discussing early attendance patterns could potentially be a great way of understanding why a child is reluctant to come to school on a certain day. Addressing these concerns early can have a monumental impact on outcomes for the year ahead.
Familiar faces – parents will typically be accustomed to one teacher per year at Primary School. Creating this early contact puts a name to a face and will hopefully encourage parents to be more forthcoming in future meetings.
Any questions? – this works for both parties. Parents should feel comfortable asking questions of their children’s teachers. How is their attitude to learning in class? Where can they improve? Conversely, this is a great opportunity for teachers to understand barriers to learning. Is there anything going on at home? How has their schooling life been so far?
Talking of barriers, this is something which can really damage the effectiveness of your Parent’s Evening.
This is where your school MIS can help.
Bromcom’s experts present some key tactics to running the ideal Parent’s Evening, covering inclusion, accessibility, and maximising parent/teacher time.
Utilising your School MIS to maximise parental engagement
Flexible accessibility with Bromcom
Bromcom’s integration with Google and the Microsoft Suite means Parent Evenings can be hosted in person or remotely.
Remote meetings between teachers and parents offer a way to help with the current cost of living increases. Parents have an option to avoid transportation costs, and potentially needing to arrange childcare cover, as long as they can access the internet from a device.
Secure logins mean parents can privately hear about their child’s early progress and ask questions from the comfort of their own home.
Clear communication with the School community
Financial savings also extend to the school.
Communication via Bromcom’s MCAS app and SMS/Email notifications mean printed appointment sheets are a thing of the past. Support the environment and have a digital record of when and what times you are meeting.
Parents can seamlessly book appointments via the app and will have a clear indication of when the Parent’s Evening is occurring. With 28% of parents stating that they are not invited to these events, this problem is eradicated with Bromcom.
It’s also worth noting that this communication extends throughout the year. For £6 per student, you can send unlimited messages to parents year-round.
The benefit? According to the EEF, this continued contact can generate an additional one month of academic progress.
Save time and provide meaningful insight
Bromcom’s School MIS puts every individual in focus.
This means, instead of following a speed-dating style format with parents moving from teacher to teacher in rapid succession, the form tutor can give an accurate presentation of a child’s development across the school.
The Bromcom MIS details behaviour, attendance, and attainment in one tab. No need to toggle between multiple windows and programmes. One point of truth exists for each child.
Present a snapshot at the beginning of Year 7 to parents and don’t leave teachers scrabbling for notes on a child they have only seen three times in the first six weeks.
Looking to change your School MIS?
If you’re school or trust are looking to engage with parents more effectively then why not book a chat with our industry experts?
Discover how our MIS can transform the way you communicate with your most important stakeholders.
Get in touch today.
