Running Head: EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION AND COLLABORATION

Effective Communication and Collaboration

Leah Madsen
Regent University

In partial fulfillment of UED 495 Field Experience ePortfolio, Fall 2015

EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION AND COLLABORATION

Introduction
Teachers must be effective communicators in order to succeed in their profession.
Communicating with students, parents, and other staff is vital to the success of the teacher and
her students. Unfortunately, there is not enough time in the school day to practice the content
students are learning at a rapid rate. Teachers who effectively communicate and collaborate with
other teachers, the students, and the families of their students are able to enlist their help and
strive towards mastery in the selected content area.

Rationale for Selection of Artifacts

The first artifact I chose was the letter I sent home with the students my first week of
student teaching in my second placement. I always find it important to introduce myself to any
parent/guardian whose child I will be responsible for. Parents can be skeptical of new people
around their children, especially when it comes to their childs education. I was placed in a
kindergarten class and saw the impact the letter I sent made on the families. By introducing
myself and explaining that I would be working under the supervision of the cooperating teacher,
the parent's/guardians mind was at ease knowing their child was in good hands. Many of the
parents thanked the cooperating teacher and me for communicating this information and keeping
them in-the-loop. It is much easier to work with parents who trust you and feel there is an open
line of communication going both ways. As a teacher, I feel it is crucial to reach out to the
families first to start the year on a strong and friendly note.
The second artifact I chose was the homework communication sheet that goes home with
the students each week. The sheet includes homework for the week and gives directions for each
day. Parents are required to sign the sheet stating that their child did the homework and an adult

EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION AND COLLABORATION

helped/viewed the work. This process allows for communication going from the teacher to the
parent/guardian and vice versa. Many parents will attach sticky notes with questions or
comments about the homework; also, if the sheet comes back blank or is not returned at all, it
usually suggests the child did not complete their homework.
Reflection on Theory and Practice
The importance of communication and collaboration have been instilled in my mind
throughout my education. Communicating is the only way to ensure multiple people are on the
same page; in a childs education, it is vital that teachers and families collaborate for the good of
the student. When groups effectively tap all their members resources, they are capable of
achieving synergy, meaning that the group product is superior to anything any one individual
could have achieved alone. (Parin, 2009, p. 275). If parents enforce the content at home that
teachers are teaching during the day, the student has a much greater chance of reaching a mastery
level. I learned through my cooperating teacher, practice does not necessarily make perfect, but
practice does make progress.
Furthermore, many parents appreciate communication and want to know what is going on
with their child at school. When a group of parents were asked to list top teacher traits they
believed were important, one of the most frequently chosen was the ability to communicate.
(Powell, 2012, p. 21). Many times students' actions academically or behaviorally are a direct
result of something that happened outside of school. Through communicating and collaborating
with families, teachers can gain information to help their students succeed at school, and families
can gain information to help their child at home.

EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION AND COLLABORATION

References
McTighe, J. &, Wiggins, G. (2005). Understanding by Design. Alexandria, VA: ASCD.
Powell, S., & Powell, S. (2012). Your introduction to education: Explorations in teaching (2nd
ed.). Boston: Pearson.
Partin, Ronald L. (2009). The Classroom Teachers Survival Guide. San Francisco, CA: John
Wiley & Sons, Inc.