Do you know how you would answer this interview question?
How would you make a difficult phone call to a parent?
It is important that the response you give to the job interview question is truthful, relevant to the position, and shows value to the school district. The following could be a possible answer… or it may provide some ideas for you to tailor your response:
The time to prepare for talking to a parent about a difficult matter is before a problem presents itself. A teacher calling to talk to a parent about academic or behavioral difficulties has a great advantage if the parent already has some familiarity with the teacher. The best way to prepare for this situation is for teachers to contact all parents in the first weeks of school. This can and should be a short phone call, welcoming them as parents of your students and making a positive comment about the student.
In the initial phone call, teachers should:
1. Introduce themselves.
2. Describe one activity in the classroom, such as “We’re making masks this week.”
3. Describe one positive attribute about the student, as in, “Charlie seems to really enjoy asking questions.”
4. Encourage the parent to contact you whenever a question or concern comes up.
Once this groundwork has been laid, a teacher should feel more confident about contacting parents again if a difficult matter comes up. When/if this happens:
1. Do research. What is the problem? What are the facts behind the problem?
2. What possible solutions can you suggest? Think of at least two.
Then you are ready to make the call.
1. Introduce yourself.
2. Mention that a problem has come up at school that you wanted to talk to the parent about.
3. Give the parents the facts.
4. Tell the parent what the problem is.
5. Ask the parent if they had heard about the problem. If so, ask what they’ve heard?
6. Ask the parent to meet with you to solve the problem or suggest a phone solution. (This does not mean that you should suggest a punishment for the child.)
7. Ask what they think of the solution.
8. If they accept the solution, thank the parent and say “Good-bye.”
9. If they don’t like the solution, suggest another solution.
10. Hopefully, the parent will accept that solution. If not, ask if the two of you could meet to discuss the matter further.
If the child has misbehaved and is going to receive a punishment, such as detention:
Make the call.
1. Introduce yourself.
2. Mention that a disciplinary problem has come up at school that you wanted to talk to them about.
3. Tell the parent what the problem is, e.g., “Johnny got into a fight on the playground.”
4. Give the parents the facts; be sure to present both sides.
5. Ask the parent if they had heard about the problem. If so, ask what they’ve heard?
6. Tell the parent how you handled the problem and what your final decision was as to who was at fault, etc. If appropriate, citing school policy, “At Washington School, all children involved in fights are required to serve a one-hour detention.”
7. Explain what the punishment will be and when it will take place.
8. If the parent accepts the situation, thank the parent and say “Good-bye.”
9. If the parent gets upset, ask if the two of you could meet to discuss the matter further. Making a difficult phone call requires you to stay call at all times.
10. Give the principal a “heads up” about the situation, as many parents will go directly to the principal to try to get their child out of trouble.
