The use of digital media for parent-teacher communication is increasing. However, many parents and teachers are still reluctant to use such media to enhance two-way pedagogical communication between parents and teachers. This paper explores which of the parents' and teachers' beliefs have an influence on ICT implementation for such communication. We first developed a theoretical model as an adaptation of the Decomposed Theory of Planned Behaviour tailored specifically to address technological acceptance in parent-teacher interactions. Then we applied the proposed model to our data in order, firstly, to examine which beliefs support or constrain the use of digital media and, secondly, to compare the participants' views (parents and/or teachers from schools with different degrees of ICT implementation for parent-teacher communication) on using e-mails and online platforms to communicate with each other. The data were obtained from interviews with 30 families and 35 teachers from 11 different schools in Spain. The findings revealed that parents and teachers hold a set of beliefs about the use of digital media: beliefs about the medium (based on the characteristics of e-mails and online platforms) and beliefs about the context (based on their perceptions of the setting and of themselves), with the latter being the most important barriers to the use of digital media, particularly for teachers. The findings also showed that parents and teachers display more positive stances on the use of digital media in schools where the management team promotes the use of e-mails or online platforms for family-school communication. A major implication of these findings is that management teams should take the first step to introduce digital media to communicate with families. These findings are also important for researchers as they provide a framework to guide further studies, and give an insight into a field in which the literature is scarce.
<p>Los recursos tecnológicos han ido apareciendo en los centros escolares como potenciales instrumentos para mejorar la información y la comunicación con las familias. Una comunicación que es esencial para mejorar la relación entre ambos agentes e incrementar la implicación y participación de los progenitores en la educación de sus hijos y en el centro. En este contexto, el presente trabajo tiene como objetivos identificar los factores que influyen negativamente en el uso comunicativo de las TIC, y determinar si los estudios realizados en el campo pedagógico (de aplicación de las TIC en los procesos educativos de aula) pueden aplicarse en el ámbito comunicacional con las familias. Para ello se ha llevado a cabo un estudio etnográfico en 20 centros de educación primaria (realizado en cuatro Comunidades Autónomas españolas), seleccionados por tener indicadores positivos de implicación de las familias en los centros. Los resultados muestran que el acceso de las familias, así como la formación y actitudes de padres y docentes hacia las TIC condicionan el uso de las nuevas tecnologías en la comunicación familia-escuela.<br />La investigación evidencia, pues, que no sólo se debe mejorar la formación de las familias, sino también la de los docentes, especialmente para reducir su resistencia a utilizarlas (se requiere, sobre todo, una formación en actitudes).</p>
Parental involvement in their children's education is essential but still remains a major educational challenge. In this context, it is imperative to look at family-school communication since it enhances trust and confidence between the two educational agents (families and schools) and, consequently, it helps to improve family-school partnership. Thus, the present article analyses the weak points of the main channels of communication between parents and teachers, and describes effective practices for overcoming some of these barriers and improving the family-school communication thereof. The study, which is part of a larger research regarding parental involvement in Spain, adopted an ethnographic approach. Specifically, 20 primary schools from four autonomous communities (La Rioja, Aragon, the Balearic Islands and Catalonia) were studied. The findings revealed that schools are implementing multiple actions and interesting practices to overcome the weaknesses of the current media, which could be considered as initial proposals for improving family-school communication.
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