Educators are in the business of communicating.
Teachers need to master it, and so do principals, central office staff, and superintendents.
If you work in a school district, you know that one wrong word at the wrong moment can spell disaster鈥攁nd sending mixed signals can have real consequences.
Here are some tips to increase the odds that your message gets across and has the intended impact.
Try a once-a-week newsletter
Building-level educators are busy. Don鈥檛 blast them all day with emails from every central office department. Yes, the information is important. But consider this: If they鈥檙e constantly getting updates, they are going to start tuning them out.
How you say what you say matters.
How about a weekly newsletter? A once-a-week bulletin, with a corner for department updates; what building-level educators need to know for the week ahead; a summary of state and district mandates and changes that affect them; and what鈥檚 on the horizon, including upcoming meeting dates, and deadlines.
(Of course, communicate urgent issues right away.)
鈥淚 need the meat and potatoes,鈥� said Cindy Sholtys-Cromwell, the principal of Kelso Virtual Academy and Loowit High School in Kelso, Wash. 鈥淪ummarize it, and tell me what I need to do.鈥�
The upshot? Building-level educators know when to expect the newsletter. And if they miss it鈥攐r forget the date of the next curriculum meeting鈥攊t鈥檚 just one search away in their mailbox.
There is more than one way to say something
Think about what you鈥檙e trying to communicate鈥攁nd what you鈥檙e hoping to accomplish.
Depending on your goal, an email might do the trick. But there are times when a short video clip would suffice, or a text message鈥攐r even a phone call. The old-fashioned bulletin board in a place where everyone gathers works, too鈥攊f only to reinforce a message you鈥檝e already communicated.
The important questions to ask yourself: What are you trying to say? Who is your audience? And what鈥檚 the best way to get that message through to them?
Sherelle Barnes, the principal of Edgewood Elementary School in Baltimore, knows her staff is made up of people with different personalities, so she uses emails, group texts, and other ways to reach them.
Teachers at her school get a text message鈥攁 more urgent, but still familiar form of communication鈥攚hen important dates are approaching.
鈥溾�榃e鈥檙e doing progress monitoring this week. Don鈥檛 forget,鈥欌�� a text message might read, Barnes said.
鈥淗aving that variety is huge for my teachers,鈥� Barnes said.
In keeping with the quick and simple approach, Marcus Belin, the principal of Huntley High School in Huntley, Ill., says try something new, like a newscast or short videos, depending on the message. Just give the highlights.
That approach worked well for Belin at the start of the pandemic, when information changed quickly and he needed to get timely news to the school community.
Short, recorded clips posted on social media cut through the information overload.
鈥淧eople got tired of reading and sitting behind the screens,鈥� he said.
Follow up with a conversation
Sometimes, you just need to talk.
While emails and other written communication appear easier in the moment, the tone鈥攚hether it鈥檚 urgency or levity鈥攄oesn鈥檛 always translate when written down.
A face-to-face conversation can reinforce the importance of a message already communicated through another medium, clear up any confusion, and even ease anxieties.
鈥淗ow you say what you say matters,鈥� said Belicia Reaves, the principal of Capital City Public Charter School in Washington, D.C.
鈥淚f [something] matters to you enough, then email to ask for a conversation, and then have a conversation.鈥�
