Communication Presenter Name

Key Points How do I communicate with students, parents, and colleagues? Why and when do I contact parents? How do I document these contacts? What’s the difference between feedback & criticism? How does nonverbal & verbal communication impact learning and behavior? How do I communicate with a student who is misbehaving?

Professional Communication As a professional, your task is to recognize the communication issues in any situation… –Distractions –Undertones –Reactions –Emotional responses And to act and react appropriately.

Communication with Parents Parents are a key component of student success and should be contacted for –Positive reinforcement –Help or ideas for behavior management –Assistance with academic struggles –Guidance with challenging situations Make parent contacts strategy meetings, not “gripe sessions” by focusing on solving the struggles the student is facing, not on how the student in “making you crazy.”

Communication with Parents Document parent contacts regardless of the form of communication –Conference – –Phone call –Notes Note the date, time, reason for the contact, and result of the contact for future reference and follow up.

Feedback vs. Criticism FeedbackCriticism Motivation is to help students improve Motivation is to point out insufficiencies or wrongs Focused on specific behavior or issue Focused on personal or individual aspects of student Strategic—offers spotlight on what went wrong and how to fix it Punitive—delineates acceptable and unacceptable Intended to be a “loop” that asks for information in return Intended to be statement with little return communication

Verbal vs. Nonverbal Communication Verbal—words or written comments Nonverbal—gestures, expressions, proximity Both are used by teachers and students throughout any interaction –Nonverbal cues are often noticed, but consciously ignored by both –Teachers can use both effectively and strategically If verbal and nonverbal signals don’t match, nonverbal wins.

Nonverbal Communication S: Smile Smiles soften your face even in conflict situations O: Open Gestures Watch out for closed arms, hands on hips, and curled fists F: Face forward Looking away from the person with whom you are speaking communicates distraction or dismissal T: Tone of Voice Be aware of the volume and attitude of your words E: Eye Contact Even when communicating bad news, eye contact allows the listener to see beyond the words. N: Nod A gentle, timely nod tells the speaker your listening, that you hear them even when you don’t agree

Communicating with Misbehaving Students Watch the situation. Notice all the factors that influence the behavior. –Who else is involved? –What are the circumstances? –Is this an isolated incident? While close to the misbehaving student, describe to the student at least two features of correct performance that would be most useful in serving as a springboard to the prompt. Get close to the student. –Don’t discipline a student in front of the class or distract others with it –For older students, get on the student’s level, be aware that standing “over” him/her can cause negative reaction. Describe the situation and behavior as clearly and briefly as possible. –Help the student see what you see Describe the consequences for the misbehavior or the next steps you want taken to correct it. –Questions such “would you…?” or “could you...?” tend to get a better response than statements like “you need to…” or demands for cooperation. Praise the compliance with a short “Thank you” and move away.