COMMUNICATION AND COLLABORATION 1

Effective Communication and Collaboration

Nicholas Kowalski

Regent University

In partial fulfillment of UED 495 Field Experience ePortfolio, Fall 2018

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Introduction

Effective communication and collaboration is key to success in any profession,

however it is especially crucial when it comes to education and instruction. In secondary

education in particular multiple teachers as well as their parents are teaching a single

student; this is multiplied by the dozens of students that each individual teacher instructs

each and every day. Communicating to make sure that problems are resolved, special

cases are noted and teachers are generally on the same page. Collaboration goes one step

further and has teachers, parents and staff at the school working together to make sure

that every student has a great chance to succeed.

Rationale

The first artifact that I have is a series of notes from a team meeting (including the

Social studies, math, science and English, teacher). We discussed a few topics including

discrepancies between how Schology displays itself to students and instructors, as well as

a few security issues. The most involving topic that we covered though concerned which

student the team would select as the student of the month. I selected this artifact because I

was thoroughly involved in collaborating with the other teachers of the team to select a

student of the month. Even though my first choice was not selected, the eventual pick

was one of my highest recommended students. It also showcases that constant

communication about students can reveal needs and strengths of students that one teacher

might not see.

The second artifact that I have is a collection of notes from a meeting with

guidance about an upcoming parent/teacher/guidance conference. This conference was

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made in response to a request by a parent who was allegedly harassing teachers with a

gratuitous amount of emails about the student in question. The parent’s concerns focused

on the student’s poor performance in science and English. The parent claimed that the

student’s 504 was not being properly met and that they were being forced to be in front of

a screen (chromebook) for far too long. The student in question has a 504 for ADHD and

requires extra attention and explanation because of this. During the meeting with

guidance the teachers were warned that previous teachers had an issue with this particular

parent. The guidance counselor described it as the parent waning to be heard so much that

she would constantly repeat herself and contact teachers about the same problems over

and over again. During this meeting we discussed what was to be, and what was not to be

discussed during the upcoming meeting. One teacher wanted to bring up with the parent

that the student seemed to have issues in the bathroom, the guidance counselor suggested

this might not be a great idea but if it was interfering with the student’s class participation

that she could bring it up.

The second part of this artifact includes the notes that were taken regarding the

actual parent/teacher/guidance conference. The parent was very polite, if a little repetitive

on her points. They talked about how gifted her child was but how he had problems with

any thinking that required a gray area. The parent said that her child viewed things as

“black and white; right or wrong” and that he struggled with ambiguity as well as with

fiction in English. She also mentioned that his bathroom problems (which were in fact

brought up) were probably caused by an increase in dosage of medication that the student

was taking as well as a picky unbalanced diet. Teachers addressed that they believed he

could be successful. But in order to do that the parent would have to make sure that he
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was on top of his homework, and focused on studying. The teachers also suggested that

the parent encourage her child to pursue every opportunity for extra credit and bonus

points. I selected this artifact because it showcases exactly how teachers and parents

should collaborate and communicate in order to ensure that the student in question is

ensured every chance at success. Even though the parent might be a little enthusiastic

doesn’t mean that they should be treated as a nuisance, far from it, their concerns should

be taken in and seriously addressed; validating their concerns, and figuring out ways to

try and fix them. Teachers and parents need to make sure that they work together to make

sure that student’s needs are met. This was a perfect example of a student’s teacher

(myself included) coming together to address the different needs of a child, and figuring

out ways to meet them.

Reflection

Throughout not only my years of college education but my years in the public

school system as well, I have learned that in order for a student to succeed it takes more

than the efforts of a single individual teacher. Teachers collaborating with each other

helps to make sure that students are not only challenged properly, ut also that they are

fully understood and their needs fully met from an academic perspective. Teachers

collaborating with each other can even lead away from mass-education styled lessons and

toward more individualized and differentiated lessons (Kim, Kang, Kuusinen, &

Kyoungho, 2017, p. 6).

Specifically in my personal field of instruction and education, history/social

studies. It has been found that secondary teachers can have their own material enriched

by collaborating with university professors. It is shown that history teachers can actaully
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learn how to include more critical thinking and discussion based elements into their

lessons by taking a page from post-secondary educators in the same field (Symcox, 2012,

p. 363).

Finally and perhaps the most important partner that I have learned teachers need

to collaborate with are the parents. Parents know the students on a personal/social level

better than anyone, and can be a powerful tool in helping stduents to understand what

their goals are as well as motivating them in accomplishing the tasks teachers set before

them. Parents being more involved in not only their children’s education but also in the

school itself can help to further boost the enthusiasm of the student themselves (Public

Agenda, 2018).
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References

Kim, J.-H., Kang, H. S., Kuusinen, C., & Kyoungho, P. (2017). Exploring the

relationship between teacher collaboration and learner-centered instruction. KEDI

Journal of Educational Policy , 14 (1), 3-24.

Public Agenda. (2018). Student Success: A Mix of Teacher Collaboration and Parent

Engagement. Retrieved October 4, 2018, from publicagenda.org:

https://www.publicagenda.org/blogs/student-success-a-mix-of-teacher-

collaboration-and-parent-engagement

Symcox, L. (2012). Forging New Partnerships: Collaboration between University

Professors and Classroom Teachers to Improve History Teaching, 1983-2011.

History Teacher , 45 (3), 359-382.