Teachers and communities

The value we, as teachers, place on learning and on knowledge is directly communicated to children, and indirectly to the adults in our community.

Within the school, we can also represent the best values and attitudes of the community, standing as examples of fairness, of compassion and concern.

Sometimes, however, we, as teachers, are assigned to schools (and neighbourhoods or villages) with which we are unfamiliar. Sometimes, we may not even live in the community - we may travel everyday from a neighbouring town, or we may even board at the school and return on weekends to see our own families in distant cities.

As teachers, it is our responsibility to open lines of communication to families and other members of the community.

We can use many different means. These include:

- conduct group meetings
- schedule discussions and informal gatherings with parents
- guide learners in tapping the knowledge in their homes
- initiate field visits for learning
- cultivate volunteer aides
- invite community experts to address the class

For more information, go to Involving families in learning and Field visits for active learning.

For help in preparing for discussions with parents and families, go to Active assessment for active learning.

Journal activity: Assessing things as they are

Assess the relations between your school and the community.

Begin by listing every school activity you are aware of that involves family members or the community. Include field visits, parent conferences, holiday parades, and any other activity that brings teachers, children, families, or other community members together, no matter how briefly. If there are negative or counterproductive aspects to these events, note them as well.

Underline the events or circumstances that you think are most important. Circle those that are directly related to your class or teaching practices.

Briefly summarise the relations between your school and community. Add any other observations or ideas that occur to you.

If you have some useful hints as to how you made positive links with your community, please pass them on to other teachers by posting them to the Teachers Talking Forum.