Garrydoolis National School is a co-educational Catholic primary school which strives to provide a well-ordered, caring, happy and secure atmosphere where the intellectual, spiritual, moral and cultural needs of the pupils are identified and nurtured.
Parents are recognized as the primary educators of their children. Teachers are recognized as professionals in education and work in partnership with parents.
At Garrydoolis National School, regular orderly parent-teacher communication is welcomed throughout the duration of the pupil’s education at the school and home-school links are actively encouraged.
Members of the B.O.M., teaching staff, support staff, administrative and maintenance staff strive to create an open and welcoming atmosphere where good communications are fostered and developed.
Aims of Communication Policy
- To build a school community which is supportive of pupils, staff and all members of the school community who serve the school
- To establish procedures for the sharing of information in relation to pupil progress, needs and attainment
- To enrich and optimize the educational opportunities provided for our pupils by accessing the skills and talents of all of the school community
- To promote a culture of partnership in the education of our children
Types of parent-teacher/ home-school communication at Garrydoolis National School:
- Informal parent-teacher contact
- Formal parent-teacher contact
- Specially convened parent-teacher meetings
- Pre-enrolment/ enrolment of new entrants to the school
- Written Progress Reports
- Newsletters
- Notice Board
- School website
- Text Message to Parents/Guardians
- Information meetings
- Board of Management
- Parents’Association
Arranging to meet the class teacher
If a parent needs to meet his/her child’s class teacher he/she is most welcome to do so.
Parents can arrange an appointment through the school secretary (Tuesday), by writing to the teacher, via email at garrydoolisns@gmail.com or by mentioning it to the teacher when collecting their child.
Parents should, in the first instance, arrange to meet their child’s class teacher to discuss concerns regarding their child. Teachers are happy to speak to parents and to help solve problems relating to pupils and their progress in school.
If a parent has further concerns s/he should arrange to speak to the principal who will endeavour to assist in resolving any school-related problems a pupil may have.
Should a parent still feel that the problem or complaint has not been resolved satisfactorily s/he may decide to take the matter further.
An agreed complaints procedure involving all the representatives in the education process (teacher unions, managerial bodies and DES) was devised in 1993 and the steps necessary to resolve school-related complaints are clearly laid out.
This policy may be accessed on the INTO website, www.into.ie, or through the school.
Parents are reminded that Garrydoolis National School is always prepared to listen and it is the policy of the school to resolve difficulties at an early stage in the interests of pupils.
Informal parent-teacher contact occurs regularly in the school as parents bring and collect children.
Regretfully, teachers are unable to enter into consultation with parents during formal teaching time, between 9.20am and 3pm. If a parent wishes to pass on information to the child’s class teacher during these times he/she should write a short note to the teacher. Alternatively, a message may be passed on through the school secretary or via email.
In the event of an emergency occurring during school holidays/ outside of school hours, contact with the principal/ school authorities may be made via email or alternatively a message may be left on the school answering machine service.
Formal Parent-Teacher Consultations are held annually in accordance with DES guidelines. Parents are given at least one week’s notice of these consultations. Should the appointed time prove inconvenient an alternate appointment will be arranged at a mutually convenient time.
Garrydoolis National School strongly encourages all parents to participate in these individual consultations. They provide a valuable opportunity for parents to learn about their child and to get advice about their child’s learning needs.
Follow-up meetings can be arranged if the need arises.
Meetings with Special Education Teachers: Parents of pupils who are in receipt of extra learning support are required to meet with the Special Education teacher in order to discuss the learning needs of their child.
Parents are expected to participate as partners in the formulation of Individual Educational Plans if their child is in receipt of support for low incidence learning difficulties.
Parents whose children are in receipt of special education for high incidence learning needs (e.g. reading support) are expected to attend meetings with the special education teacher and to assist in the formulation of Individual Pupil Learning Profiles.
Annual Progress Reports detailing pupil progress during the academic year are issued in June. Teachers spend quite some time in collating these reports. Parents are advised to keep these reports in a safe place for reference as they may be required if the child changes school. They are also useful in building a profile of a pupil’s learning strengths and weaknesses.
Registration of new entrants: Parents of all new entrants are required to complete a pre-enrolment form prior to official enrolment and to attend an open evening (“Stepping In”) with their child.
Information meetings are organized as the need arises to advise parents of educational and curricular matters of relevance to their child’s education and welfare.
Newsletters are issued regularly and are distributed to pupils. Extracts from the newsletter are also available on the school website, www.garrydoolisns.com
Information leaflets/ forms from the HSE, DES or other bodies directly connected with education and welfare of pupils in the school will be distributed to pupils from time to time.
Occasionally the CPSMA will authorize the distribution of information to parents and pupils.
All other correspondence must firstly be approved by the Board of Management before it is distributed to pupils. Garrydoolis National School does not distribute advertising material or other commercial material to individual pupils.
A designated communications notice board with school and community information is situated in the front hall of the school and important notices may occasionally be posted on the front door.
Website: Our website address is www.garrydoolisns.com. The website will be maintained and upgraded on a regular basis. We welcome feedback on the content of the website.
Text Message to Parents: This facility is used to remind parents of events/changes to schedules etc as necessary.
Absences must be notified in writing to the school in accordance with N. E. W. B. requirements. A separate attendance policy is available in the school.
Parents Association
Garrydoolis Parents’ Association represents the parents of the school.
The committee of the Parents’ Association aims to promote the interests of all pupils at Garrydoolis National School in partnership with the B. O. M., the principal, the teaching staff, support staff, administrative and ancillary staff.
The committee of the Parents’ Association meets on a regular basis throughout the school year. The function of these meetings is to plan for school activities, to discuss and organize fund-raising activities and to discuss general matters of concern to the parent body in the school. The principal has regular contact with the association.
Individual parents are encouraged to assist at the various events organized for parents and pupils throughout the school year.
Board of Management: Garrydoolis National School has a properly constituted Board of Management comprising representatives of the trustees, community representatives, teacher representatives and two elected parent representatives. The B. O. M. meets on a regular basis.
This policy has been devised in consultation with the staff of Garrydoolis National School, the Parents Association and the Board of Management.
This policy was ratified on and will be reviewed regularly in accordance with DES requirements and the changing needs of the school community.
Signed: Chairperson of Board of Management