Where To Go for Answers

April 1999
At Your Local School
   Ways to Improve Communications
   Ways to Get Involved
   Some Frequently Asked Questions
In Your School District
   School Board Members Answer to the Public
   Ways to Improve Communications
   Ways to Get Involved
County Offices of Education

At Your Local School
Feel free to contact your child’s school! Teachers, office staff, and the principal all want you to have the information you need to help your child succeed in school. That’s as true at high school as it is in elementary. Sometimes the most important thing is just knowing who to ask.

Talk to the school secretary about:
Registering for school • immunization requirements • school calendar • on-site day care • after-school programs • lost and found • school lunches • absences • getting a copy of the School Accountability Report Card • general questions about who to talk to and how to contact them.

Talk to your child’s teacher about:
Your child’s special needs, progress, and classroom behavior • homework • promotion requirements • what is being taught in class • helping in the classroom • test results and report cards • best time for you to be contacted • how you can support learning at home.

Talk to the principal (or vice principal) about:
What is being taught and what textbooks are used • student discipline and school rules • how your child is assigned to a class and teacher • the school dress code • special programs to help your child learn • the school’s safety plan • ways you can help and support the school • serving on the school-site council or advisory committees • anything you can’t find answers for elsewhere.

Talk to your high school guidance counselor about:
Any problems or special needs your student has • graduation requirements • your student’s course selections • college applications, requirements, entrance tests, and scholarships • special programs to help prepare students for college • internships, job placement, and career planning services • alternative programs and courses of study.

Talk to PTA or parent group leaders about:
Activities for parents and students • volunteering at school • committees on which you might like to serve • meeting times • legislation and political issues that affect your school • parenting education.

Ways to Improve Communications
Pay attention to the information the school sends you.
Some teachers may send letters home, post e-mail, or use a voice mail message system. Schools and PTAs send home frequent newsletters, which may be mailed directly to you or may be lost in your child’s backpack! More schools are creating Web sites. Take time to read these messages. You’ll understand a lot more about your child’s school experience. Make note of important school dates on your home calendar.

Attend school-sponsored events.
Schools often invite parents to come to school for special events like Back-to-School Night, parent-teacher conferences, special student performances, and more. Watch for information about these events and go to them. Your attendance helps you feel comfortable at school, keeps you informed, and tells your child that your family believes school is important.

Save questions about your child for private meetings.
At public meetings and events it’s hard for teachers and principals to answer questions about your individual child. Most will be happy to schedule a phone or personal appointment. Make sure the teacher knows the best time to reach you.

Ways to Get Involved
You can get involved with your local school in many different ways, small and large. You can donate the amount of money or time you can afford. You can volunteer at the school. You can attend a meeting or participate in activities sponsored by organizations like the PTA or booster club. Or you can serve on advisory groups such as the school-site council and committees for the parents of bilingual, gifted and talented, or Title I students.

The first steps:

• Ask other parents you know what they’re involved with.
  
  
• Talk to the principal about your interests and ways to get involved at school.
  
  
• Ask your child’s teacher about helping in the classroom.
  
  
• Attend a meeting of whatever organization or committee you’re interested in. Ask the school secretary for the time and location of those meetings. Ask the parent leaders at your school what you can do to help.
  

Some Frequently Asked Questions (And Who Might Be Able To Answer Them)
How can I better understand my child’s grades and test scores?
Ask your child’s teacher to explain the learning goals and the grading system in the classroom. Ask the teacher or principal for an explanation of your child’s basic skills STAR test scores. How can you and the teacher work together to improve your child’s learning and performance in school?

How can I help my child improve his behavior or attitude about school?
Ask the teacher how she sees your child behave in the classroom. What home and school help does she think would help? Ask the principal how the school decides if your child would benefit from extra school services.

How well is the school itself performing?
Every school is required to develop a yearly School Accountability Report Card. Ask the school secretary for a copy, which should include information about schoolwide student test scores, student ethnic backgrounds, dropout rates, per-student funding levels, and other important information. Talk to your principal if you need explanations or want to volunteer to help the school.

In Your School District
Your school district is a public agency and wants public support. The district must by law respond to all reasonable requests for information about local public schools. For routine, easy-to-find information, the first step is to call the main district phone number. When in doubt, call the District Superintendent’s Office. The staff there routinely takes calls from the public and so can almost always direct you to the right person.

Talk to the district secretary or main operator about:
Phone numbers or extensions for departments, staff members, and schools • enrollment procedures • district boundaries • how to contact school board members • school board meeting dates.

Call the Superintendent’s Office about:
Unsolved problems • district policies • districtwide committees, task forces, and projects • districtwide student test results • the district’s philosophy of education • how to run for school board • agendas and minutes of school board meetings • general issues and concerns.

Curriculum and instructional matters include:
Textbook selections • academic standards • standardized testing • magnet, choice, and other special school programs.

Services for students (often called pupil personnel) include:
Specialized educational programs offered by and through your district (e.g., Special Education, Limited English Proficient, Gifted and Talented) • your child’s eligibility for those programs • the student evaluation and placement process • explanation of special test scores.

Business and operations matters include:
Community use of school facilities and playing fields • how much money your school district receives • how the money is spent • the condition of school buildings, including maintenance needs • districtwide purchasing • district budgets.

School boundaries and choice:
School districts vary in how they handle school choice, attendance boundaries, and transfers between school districts and to other schools within the district. Ask the district’s main operator or someone in the Superintendent’s Office for the appropriate person or office.

School Board Members Answer to the Public
As elected officials, school board members represent you and want to know what you think. As policymakers, board members establish a vision for the district, set policies for how the district is run, oversee district operations, and hire the district superintendent. They cannot always answer detailed or specific questions about school operations, but can usually help you find the right person to talk to.

Talk to school board members about:
District vision and goals • district policies • questions about recent actions and decisions • your opinion on current issues • general concerns or questions.

Ways to Improve Communications
When you are unhappy or concerned about something that happens at the school or in the classroom, you should say so. Communicate with the teacher, the principal, the school district superintendent, and if necessary the school board. Putting your concerns into a written and signed letter helps schools create a record and take your opinions seriously. Express your concern with the same courteousness and respect you expect to receive in return.

It’s also important to tell school district leaders the good things. If you find an especially good school employee, teacher, or program at your school, let school district officials know. Educators value such approval from the public. It also helps identify you as a supporter of the schools.

Ways to get involved

• Start by serving on local school-site groups or committees. This often leads to district-level involvement. Let your school principal know that you’re interested in learning about the “bigger picture.”
  
  
• Find out more about district issues. Be sure you read any district newsletters or similar information you receive. If your district has a Web site, check it often. Attend school board or other districtwide meetings to meet people, learn about current issues, and identify opportunities to get involved.
  
  
• Watch for news about district task forces or committees such as facilities task forces, strategic planning committees, and budget advisory committees. Let district leaders and your school principal know you’re interested.
  
  

County Offices of Education
The County Office of Education provides services to school districts and runs some educational programs. When a matter involves more than one school district — or you’re not sure which district it involves — your local county office can usually help. (Look in the phone directory business white pages under your county’s name.)

Contact the County Office of Education about:
School district boundaries • Special Education services • county-run education programs such as juvenile court schools • interpretation of state regulations and school finance laws • comparative statistics and test scores for your local and neighboring school districts • matters related to school district organization and unification • appeals of district’s student expulsion and interdistrict transfer decisions • policies, budgets, and operations of the county office.

Go to the Public Involvement section of the website.