Key Takeaways:

1. Parental involvement in ward’s school decreasing
2. Less time availability the key reason for parent’s less involvement in schools
3. Increasing number of real time school apps
4. School apps decrease communication gap between parents and schools
5. Apps also decrease communication gap between parents and their children.

Undoubtedly, communication gap is a thing across North America . The reason lies in the increasing working class community of US and Canada. Parents have less time to employ to their ward’s school because of their work. The challenge to cope up with this gap now lies in the able hands of schools and parents themselves.

Researches show that parental involvement has direct impact on a child’s success. A research by ChildTrends depicted that there has been a substantial decrease in parental involvement since 2017. Workload has made it difficult for parents to attend every event that the ward’s school organizes. Many parents find it difficult to talk to teachers and hence welcome the use of technology to bridge this gap.

Technology, here, can play a very crucial role. Technology can be used to bridge the gap between parents and their children, especially by indulging the parents in their wards’ school life. Researches have shown that school communicator apps help break the barriers co-existing between wards, their parents and the instructors.

According to parents, schools should start using technology in the classes and in their schools. They say that parent app and teacher app can help students explore new things and arouse curiosity in them. Further, they add that to adapt to the changing times, schools should acquire best educational apps. All this means that parents are very supportive of technology use and are looking forward to see it being used even more.

Technology provides a huge platform for schools to track down the activities going around in the school. Notifications regarding homework, school fees, school activities, functions, attendance of wards etc. can be sent to the parents using apps and different methods. It narrows down the communication gap between parents and school, as parents can connect with school in real time and are always connected to schools via the school app.

Technology has become a key part of our life, so why not use it to its supreme. Majority of researches stated that education and technology platforms have proved to make a difference and have brought parents closer to their wards too. Herein lies the future of parenting and education. Schools and parents, the hall is all yours. Lead the way!

Modern technology and schools

Technology has impacted almost every aspect of life. Education is no exception. The access to education has expanded. A plethora of information is now available at one’s fingertips, thanks to the internet. One can easily access books, audio, videos, images, and podcasts with just a click.

Beyond pedagogy, tech tools have also enabled schools to update the parents about their wards’ progress more instantaneously. With the advent of cutting-edge digital solutions, parents no longer need to wait for the PTA – which is typically a monthly or a bi-monthly event – to learn about the nitty-gritty of their wards’ performance metrics, including attendance records and test scores. Instead, schools can communicate such information to the parents on a regular basis through digital dashboards or mobile-friendly communication options such as emails and text messages.

Parents also expect schools to communicate safety-related information and update about their wards. According to a survey conducted by the National School Public Relations Association, safety was the most common information sought by parents with children in elementary as well as secondary schools – and technology steps in, once again, to help schools deliver on this expectation. For instance, cloud-based CCTV solutions can help schools monitor children within their premises while also allowing parents to check in on their wards in real-time.

However, ensuring safety while traveling to and from school has its own challenges. Parents have little to no visibility about the location of the vehicle, leaving them anxious until the children are back at home. The arrival and departure timings of the vehicles also often impact parents’ personal schedules. Further, in the current pandemic-hit scenario and President Biden’s announcement to reopen schools as soon as possible, ensuring student safety during transit becomes even more essential. This is where technology-led fleet management solutions enter the picture.

Tech solutions for student transport operations

Digital school bus fleet management software such as SpotBus is designed to empower school admins to ensure a safe and secure commute experience for schoolchildren. By using GPS, it can provide real-time visibility into the location of the school bus to both parents and the school administration. The system also provides automatic updates about the ETA and student boarding/ deboarding status on their mobile application, thereby enhancing transparency for parents.

Besides allowing parents to live track of the location of the school bus, SpotBus also allows admins to check for protocol violations such as inadequate social distancing, failure to wear masks, etc. Any instance of over speeding, erratic driving or deviation from a predetermined route also gets reflected on the platform in real-time, allowing school admins to intervene immediately.

SpotBus also empowers fleet managers to maintain digital checklists of sanitization schedules or replenishment of safety resources such as masks and sanitizer. The solution further enables schools to keep the parents informed about these measures, thereby giving them peace of mind about their wards’ safety in a post-pandemic world.

Considering these benefits, it is safe to conclude that, by embracing technological aids, schools can improve the efficiency and effectiveness of their interactions with parents. Active parent engagement will not only ensure better learning outcomes in children but also help schools to reflect on their objectives and their implementation.