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What do families want from your schools?
It’s the question on every school leader’s mind, and every day the answer becomes more crucial. For decades now, the growing impact of school choice has forced schools to compete for enrollment. Under the incoming presidential administration, this trend is likely to intensify. If public districts are to hold their own against a multitude of alternate educational options, they must understand and deliver on what matters most to parents.
But while your relationships with parents and families have never been more pivotal, they may feel more fractured than ever. In a 2022 study by researchers at UCLA, nearly 70% of public school principals reported “substantial political conflict” with parents or community members over hot button issues like school library books and critical race theory. And even if your district’s conflicts aren’t political in nature, parents are more stressed than ever—and tensions are running high. The American Psychological Association found in 2023 that parents reported significantly higher levels of stress than their peers without children.
Why are parents so stressed? Why are they storming into your offices to complain about curriculum? What do they really want? These questions share a deceptively simple answer: Parents want their kids to thrive.
This simple fact is the subtext of nearly every interaction families have with their schools. Parents want to send their kids to top-notch schools, to be engaged in their child’s learning, to know what’s happening in the classroom—all because they want to ensure their children’s health, safety and happiness. To build their trust, you need to show them that you want the same things, too. We believe strong, positive communication can help you do just that—and in fact, we have the data to back it up.
In our newest study, aptly titled “What Parents Want,” we surveyed more than 1,400 U.S. parents about their preferences for school communication. Our favorite finding? When parents frequently receive positive, relevant communication, they’re more likely to trust their districts. We’re bolstering that research with more resources that will help you change how parents think and feel about your schools. How can you honor all your families’ unique cultures and languages? How can you make sure your district’s conversations aren’t one-sided? How can you diffuse tense situations with families? In the pages that follow, we’ll answer all those questions and more.
One question for you
1. What is your favorite way to listen to feedback from families?
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Email us at [email protected] or book a time on our calendar and let us know.
Two resources to help
1. New Research: When it comes to school communication, what do parents want, anyway? We surveyed over 1,400 American parents to find out.
2. We’ll be discussing our latest research and more in our upcoming webinar: Breaking Through the Noise: What Parents Want from School Communication. Join Apptegy’s Senior Manager of Media & Research, Brittany Keil and VP of Marketing, Tyler Vawser for a data-driven webinar that reveals what parents want from school communication. Register here!
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Three ideas to ponder
1. “There’s virtually nothing more important than keeping parents engaged with their child’s education. But as we’ve seen, incessant eduspeak can make your families feel unwelcome, disinterested or even antagonistic toward your schools.
So make sure you’re cutting out eduspeak when you can—and when you can’t, make sure you’re inviting parents in by defining your terminology. The more approachable you can be, the better. The key is not only to communicate clearly, but to do so in a way that shows parents they belong in your district. Families can and should be your district’s biggest advocates—don’t let the language you’re using keep them from joining the conversation.” — From Decode Your School Communication: Making your schools more inclusive by ditching eduspeak
2. “Have you ever found yourself stuck in a one-sided conversation? It’s a familiar experience to most of us—you meet an old coworker for coffee, and they spend the entire time talking about themselves. Meanwhile, you barely get a word in. These conversations don’t feel great. More often than not, they make us feel that the other person isn’t interested in our thoughts; we might even assume that they don’t really care about us.
Whether you’re a school leader or a comms professional, we know you’re interested in what your school community thinks. You certainly care about them. So why is school communication so one-sided most of the time?” — From Talking Back: Why Your School District Needs a Two-Way Communication Strategy
3. “In today’s hypercompetitive school market, your schools must work hard to meet your community’s needs. But how do you know what those needs are in the first place? How do you know for sure that you’re not missing something—especially when it comes to communication preferences?” — From Designing a School Communication Survey