Contemporary Family Structures and Teacher-Parent Communication

Abstract

This qualitative study was designed to explore diverse-family parents’ (such as one parent family and same-sex families) perspective of their communication with their children's teachers. This study acknowledges the importance of effective communication between teachers and parents for the benefit of the children. It is based on researches that constantly reveal the significance of home-school communication in increasing children's motivation to study, improving their academic achievements and intellectual skills, improving self-image, decreasing problems of school discipline and lowering absenteeism. The research questions mainly addressed parents' feelings in relation to their communication with the teachers. and specific challenges in relation to teachers addressing children from diverse family patterns. Participants: 14 parents (11females, 3 males) who had children in elementary school. 5 were divorced, 5 single parents family, 4 same-sex families. Procedure: Semi-structured in-depth non-directive interviews were conducted to gather the participants' descriptions of their experience communicating with the teachers. Ethical principles were strictly considered. Findings: reveal teachers tend to avoid classroom discussing issues related to diverse-family patterns, and are not sufficiently sensitive to children from such families. The parents maintain that teachers should receive formal training to address such issues in class, while acknowledging their own responsibility to explain themselves to the teachers. Conclusion: Guidance to teachers is recommended in order to improve an open, attentive, accepting, nonjudgmental atmosphere in class.



Author Information
Asnat Dor, Max Stern Academic College of Emek Yezreel, Israel

Paper Information
Conference: BCE2020
Stream: Education

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Posted by James Alexander Gordon