Ued 495-496 Kelley Shelby Rationale and Reflection Paper 1

1
Running head: COMMUNICATION
Effective Communication and Collaboration

Shelby Kelley
Regent University
COMMUNICATION
Introduction
The ability to communicate effectively is one of the most important traits of a highquality teacher. A persons ability to communicate affects all of his relationships, and by refining
his communication skills, he has the ability to create meaningful interaction, discussion, and
collaboration with those around him. Most teachers choose the profession because they want the
best for their students, and this cannot be achieved without stellar communication skills. An
effective teacher must be able to communicate with parents in a student-centered and positive
manner in order to create a consistent classroom, but collaboration with other teachers and
school employees is just as important. The following artifacts demonstrate my ability to
communicate with parents and with my fellow teachers with the goal of providing students with
the most dependable, constructive school environment.
Rationale
The first artifact I have selected is the letter that was sent out to parents on the first day of
school describing our classroom management plan, encouraging parental involvement by
requesting that they keep up with their childs planner, and asking for parent contact information.
Because parents must also take some responsibility for the education of their children, a good
teacher sees fit to actively welcome, and even promote, parental involvement in the classroom.
This includes keeping parents updated on a childs homework, which is shown in the planner, but
also making certain that they are aware of whatever behavior-related concerns may arise. I have
included some samples of notes we have written to parents. We wrote some notes to seek help
with correcting certain behaviors, but other notes are written to inform parents that attitudes have
steadily improved. Because we want parent communication to be an overall positive thing, we
COMMUNICATION
include stamps in student planners if they have not caused any problems that day. Additionally,
we keep a binder with all updated parent contact information by the phone, and we log each
instance of parent contact. Because we so highly value parent involvement, we wish to be able to
reach parents as quickly as possible in case of emergency.
The second artifact that I am including is my letter to parents informing them of my
involvement in their childs classroom. During my time at Bettie F. Williams, I have already
become a very significant part of my students educational experience; to deprive parents of the
knowledge of who I am and why I am with their children would have been disrespectful. Instead,
I sought to display my desire to keep parents informed and involved by sending out a letter
sharing a bit about myself, my background, Regents Interdisciplinary Studies Program, and my
intentions for my time with their children.
Communication with parents is important, but collaboration with coworkers is equally
vital for a thriving classroom. To prove that I value this, I have included a picture from a recent
collaboration meeting with the schools reading specialists. During this meeting, we spoke about
the importance of summarizing, and we all shared ideas about what the students would need to
know in order to produce a good summary. I contributed multiple ideas to this list, and I listened
to the other teachers as they shared their ideas. It is always a privilege to be able to bounce ideas
off of other teachers, but it is important to do this with respect and tact, as my team does.
Reflection
The attached artifacts are just a sampling of my dedication to keeping parents informed
and involved in their childs education, but they are also proof of my commitment to effective
communication and collaboration inside and out of the classroom. As a teacher, communication
COMMUNICATION
is an essential part of my profession; I must be proficient at giving feedback, receiving criticism,

and actively listening to concerns. I must also be skilled at explaining concepts in ways that
different types of learners are able to comprehend. During my time at Regent, I have learned to
be an effective communicator, and I have been given many opportunities to hone these skills via
group projects, time spent in classrooms, and discussions with professors. I have attained the
skills necessary to discern what type of communication is necessary on a given occasion, and I
have learned to let [my] speech be graciousso that [I] may know how [I] ought to answer
each person (Colossians 4:6 English Standard Version). For example, in Dr. Kurt Kreassigs
class on management, we discussed how to work effectively with other teachers. He shared tips
such as remaining open-minded to others ideas, acknowledg[ing] fellow teachers successes,
and communicat[ing] directly with them (Partin, 2009, p. 270-271). When I teach, I know that
Im working toward a specific goal: the success of the students. Remaining positive and open
with colleagues will increase collective productivity and provide students with the highestquality instruction. The same is true of relationships with parents, who can play a valuable role
in [ones] teaching success as long the teacher remains upbeat with them and keeps them
informed of the goings on in the classroom (Partin, 2009, p. 280).
COMMUNICATION
References
Partin, R. (2009). Building a Learning Community. In Classroom teacher's survival guide:
Practical strategies, management techniques, and reproducibles for new and experienced
teachers (3rd ed., pp. 270-271, 280). San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.

Ued 495-496 Kelley Shelby Rationale and Reflection Paper 1

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

Ued 495-496 Kelley Shelby Rationale and Reflection Paper 1

Uploaded by

Document Information

Original Title

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

Ued 495-496 Kelley Shelby Rationale and Reflection Paper 1

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

1

Running head: COMMUNICATION

Effective Communication and Collaboration

is an essential part of my profession; I must be proficient at giving feedback, receiving criticism,

You might also like