National Survey Uncovers Communications Preferences from K-12 Families

SchoolStatus’ K-12 family communications survey highlights families’ desire for frequent, relevant, and actionable communications on student progress and attendance

Ridgeland, Mississippi—March 22, 2024—SchoolStatus, a leading provider of K-12 solutions that enable districts to engage more families and improve attendance, today released key findings from a nationwide survey of K-12 families. Notably, the survey found that despite 77% of K-12 families recognizing the importance of school-home communication to student success, 33% feel uninformed about their child’s progress in school. Moreover, less than 40% of families receive regular communication on how they can support their child’s academic success.

The survey underscores the significance of frequent, relevant, and actionable communication, particularly regarding academic progress and attendance. Attendance emerged as a critical factor for student success, with 88% of families across all grades considering it essential. 

The survey collected insights from 1,050 diverse K-12 families on student attendance, communication preferences, and the relevancy, inclusivity, and accessibility of current school communications. Full findings are available in the 2024 School-Family Communications Report: Understanding Key Trends.

Underscoring the urgency of these findings, the Biden-Harris Administration recently identified two-way school-home communication and addressing chronic absenteeism as top priorities for improving overall student achievement in 2024. This highlights an opportunity for districts to leverage survey findings to enhance collaboration with families and improve communication effectiveness on these issues.

Streamlined, Accessible Digital Communications Channels

The survey findings reveal that K-12 families are grappling with technology and information overload, emphasizing a strong desire for a single, user-friendly school-home communications solution. 

• 62% of respondents expressed that having a central communications hub would simplify their connection with their child’s school
• 72% of respondents favor emails and 70% prefer texts, highlighting that strong digital communication is key for engagement

Frequent, Relevant & Actionable Communications on Student Progress

The report underscores the importance of content frequency, relevance, actionability, and simplicity. Families are most interested in updates on their child’s academic progress and grades, with behavior and areas requiring extra support also ranking high. The survey illuminated a clear need for improvement in ensuring information accessibility and understanding, as well.

• 69% of families want daily (48%) or weekly (21%) communication on their children’s academic progress, but only 52% currently receive updates at that frequency 
• 45% reported that school communications are not frequent enough 
• 42% indicated insufficient information is provided by the school
• 53% expressed that information shared by their children’s school is not always easy to access and understand

Positive, Proactive Communication About Attendance

Attendance emerged as a critical aspect of student success in the findings, with K-12 families expressing the importance of proactive, positive messaging. While districts are communicating about attendance, many families believe there is room for improvement in this area. 

• More than 45% of families only receive communication about the importance of attendance after their child misses school
• More than 70% of families believe positive updates celebrating good attendance or improvements in attendance are helpful

The full survey results are available in the 2024 School-Family Communications Report: Understanding Key Trends. The report also includes actionable insights for K-12 districts seeking to enhance collaboration and engagement with families to improve overall communication effectiveness. 

About the Survey

The 2024 K-12 Family Communication Survey, conducted by SchoolStatus in January 2024, aimed to gather insights from 1,000 U.S. families and caregivers of K-12 children aged 6-18. The survey employed SurveyMonkey Audience as the data collection platform.

About SchoolStatus

SchoolStatus provides a suite of data-driven solutions that impact positive student outcomes through attendance improvement, family engagement and communication, educator development, and administrative excellence. Partnering with thousands of districts across the U.S., SchoolStatus serves over 22 million students across all 50 states. Because when schools and families come together, there’s no limit to what students can achieve. For more information, visit schoolstatus.com.

Media Contact:
Sydney Stressman
Zer0 to 5ive for SchoolStatus
[email protected]
609.238.6663