Parents who feel satisfied with the communication they get from their children’s school are more likely to be happy with their school overall, according to a report released Dec. 9 by GreatSchools.org, a nonprofit organization that aims to provide information about schools in a parent-friendly format.
In fact, 90% of parents who say they’d recommend their children’s school to others report being “satisfied” or “very satisfied” with the quality of the communication they receive.
And nearly three quarters of parents who are likely to highly recommend their children’s school—74%—say that it’s easy to find relevant information, compared to just 20% of parents who are less likely to recommend their schools. The survey of 1,100 parents was conducted in October.
Those results come as no surprise to Paige Kowalski, the executive vice-president of the Data Quality Campaign, a national nonprofit that encourages the use of data in school improvement.
“Access to information drives trust in the systems charged with serving students,” Kowalski said. “I think districts and schools and anyone that seeks to serve students need to understand that when families are left in the dark, trust declines.”
What’s more, when evaluating school quality, parents look beyond test scores to other factors. Nearly 80% of parents want clear information on a school’s academic offerings, such as what its reading curriculum looks like or whether it has a STEM focus. And more than 60% of parents want information about non-academic programs, such as extracurricular activities and mental health supports.
Nearly 60% of parents want clear explanations of school data, such as why reading scores are low in a particular year.
And a similar percentage want specifics about districtwide supports, such as whether schools offer free lunch to all students, what kind of after-care programs are available, and whether a school has a summer learning option.
Two-thirds of parents making less than $50,000 a year are more interested in learning about social supports—like whether a school offers free after care or lunch—compared to just over half of parents from higher-income households.
To help districts provide some of the information that most interests parents, GreatSchools—which parents often consult when considering whether to buy a home in a particular district—is now offering a “Claim Your District” feature that allows district leaders to highlight special programs and student supports and add context to student outcomes and other data.
Schools are offering “so many incredible opportunities that don’t [always] get captured,” in district report cards or on third-party sites like GreatSchools, said Jon Deane, the organization’s CEO. He hopes that the feature “will be incredibly helpful for both the districts getting messages out, but also for all the parents who want to see all that information.”
