Engaging a parental community

Two early career teachers discuss their strategies for involving parents in their students’ learning. They meet with more experienced teachers to develop and review these strategies. They focus on developing collaborative and communicative relationships to build trust and to unite learning at home and at school. Teacher-parent communication initiatives include an online blog, Facebook, Twitter, email and text messaging, a Vietnamese-language newsletter, and the provision of interpreters for face-to-face meetings. The parents are also invited to teach items of cultural interest at the school and to support rotation activities.

St Gabriel’s is a Catholic primary school catering to many families from non-English speaking backgrounds, as well as students with English-speaking background.