Child Classroom Engagement and Parent-Teacher Communication: How Teachers’ Perception Influences the Parent-Teacher Relationship

• In Event: Research in Progress Roundtable Session 2
  In Invited Roundtable: Early Care and Education: Equity, Engagement, Social and Emotional Learning, Language and Literacy (Table 6)

Abstract

This study aims to understand if preschool children’s classroom engagement predicts the quality of parent-teacher communication. In doing so, we hope to expand the knowledge of which, if any, child-focused factors contribute to the foundation of high-quality communication between parents and teachers. This study samples students, families, and teachers from a diverse Head Start program. Parents completed a survey on communication quality regarding their child’s teacher. Teachers completed a comparable survey on communication quality regarding the student’s parents and a survey rating the student’s engagement in the classroom. Our guiding research question is: Does child engagement in the beginning of the year impact parent-teacher communication at the end of the year?

Authors

• Minah Kim, Tufts University

• Sophia Betar, Tufts University