Communicating with Families

To prepare for this discussion, view the video Teacher and Parent Relationships – A Crucial Ingredient: Cecile Carroll at TEDxWellsStreetED. (Links to an external site.)

Leaders in the field of early childhood education must understand and value the families of the children with which they work. Only through an understanding of children and families can teachers begin to create meaningful reciprocal relationships that support families and empower them to advocate for their children. Family-professional relationships are those where “families (not just parents) and professionals build on each other’s expertise and resources so decisions will benefit children as well as their partnership” (Wortham & Hardin, 2015, p. 268). As a leader in the field, how will you ensure this statement is reflected in your teaching practices and/or overall school environment? Through this discussion forum, the hope is that you will have a greater understanding of why this is important and how you will move forward in creating dynamic partnerships with your students’ families.

For this discussion, you will use each of the seven principles of strong partnerships from Chapter 11 of the Wortham & Hardin text, the NAEYC Standard 2, and the Teacher and Parent Relationships – A Crucial Ingredient: Cecile Carroll at TEDxWellsStreetED (Links to an external site.)video.

Your initial response should:

• Examine the role of families in the screening and assessment process.
• Analyze the role of early childhood leaders in establishing effective assessment partnerships with families.
  • Describe specifically how you will include each of the seven principles of strong partnerships (from Chapter 11 in your course text) in your classroom and in your school or center in order to develop and maintain assessment partnership with families. Include specific strategies for involving families in their child’s learning and development in each area (communication, professional competence, respect, commitment, equality, advocacy, and trust).
• Reflect on the following quotation:
  • “Teachers working conditions are students learning conditions” (TEDx Talks, 2013).
    • Explain how this quotation and your knowledge of strong family-professional partnerships are connected.
    • Explain how this quotation encompasses how important it is to accurately assess developmental concerns and develop appropriate intervention strategies in early childhood settings.