GreatSchools Community Team Blog

Preview of Coming Attractions

It won't be long until community is live -- I know we keep saying this, but this time I really mean it! We invited some super-awesome folks from our beta group to take it for a test drive, and have been wrapping up some last-minute fixes and improvements based on their feedback before we open it up to the world. In case that doesn't prove to you that we're on the brink of launching something big, though, perhaps this will:

GreatSchools Parent Community: The Official Sneak Peek

We put together a little "preview of coming attractions" so you can check out some of the features and pages we'll have to offer on the Parent Community. It's interactive, too! Enjoy...and see you soon!

On Your Mark, Get Set...Beta!

Before we launch community to the public, we'll be inviting our beta group to take it for a pre-launch test drive. That means that folks who have signed up for our beta group will get a chance to not only see the community before everyone else, they'll be invited to give us feedback on what they like and dislike about what they see.

We take feedback from parents very seriously. Especially when it comes to our parent community -- because, after all, parents are the people who we've spent months and months building it for; parents ARE our community. We want to give you something that you'll use and, more importantly, enjoy. And believe me, we will read every piece of feedback (big or small, nice or mean) that comes through.

Don't be intimidated by the words "beta group." But, if you are, here's a breakdown of what it means to be a member of the GreatSchools beta group:

1. Go to http://www.greatschools.net/community/beta.page. Enter your email address. Click "Sign me up!"

2. Check your email. Your first opportunity for feedback has arrived!

3. Check your email again in the next few weeks. You'll get an announcement that the community is ready for beta feedback. We'll give you top-secret access to the community and ask you to fill out a short survey about the features and tools we built.

4. That's it!

We try to make this as easy and painless as possible -- we know that most of you are busy parents (most of us are, too).

Before I wrap up this post and leave you to register for our beta group, I wanted to announce some exciting news: Tajalli has recently joined our team as our Community Moderator! You'll be seeing (and reading) a lot from her once we open the community doors. I know she's eager to start meeting all of you!

See you soon!

Lurking and Delurking

I'm a lurker. And so, most likely, are you ... if you're like the vast majority of online users.

You hang out in the background on discussion lists, forums or social networking sites, observing and picking up useful information. Please don't be embarrassed. There's nothing really terrible about it.

Although the word "lurker" may conjure up an image of a mysterious, perhaps nefarious, someone or something peering out of a dark alleyway, in the online world the word has a very benign meaning. Among Web users, lurking simply means "watching without participating." However, because online lurkers are invisible, through no fault of their own, they have been tagged with this unfortunate label.

Research shows that 90% of online users are lurkers. The remaining 10% fall into one of two camps: those who chime in from time to time (9%) and those who seem to live online (1%). Those prolific 1%ers often eventually become the face of their online communities, the unofficial hosts and hostesses who answer all posts with a comment.

Although lurking may be associated with time constraints, unfamiliarity with an online community or a retiring personality, lurkers should not allow themselves to fall into a lurking rut. They need to "delurkify." They need to realize that sharing experiences, opinions and general ruminations creates community, builds a knowledge base and helps people (like you) get questions answered.

So, say you're a lurker and you're finally ready to join the discussion. There are two things you can do to ensure a warm welcome from the community: introduce yourself and identify yourself as a lurker.

Yes, according to those who study these things, you can earn social capital by introducing yourself as a lurker in your first email. You might even say how long you've been lurking. For bouncing into the discussion with nary a word about who you are can be startling. You don't want to be abrupt. You want to show respect. You know the community from reading their posts, but they don't know you. A sentence or two of introduction with a phrase about your lurking — something like this, for example, "I've been watching this discussion for a while" or "I've been a lurker here" — will do wonders. Mentioning any other pertinent information, such as whether you are a parent, grandparent, student, teacher or principal, will also increase your chances of having your question answered or your comment acknowledged.

Now you know how to "delurkify" yourself, just in case you need it.

Homework SOS: How We Can Help Each Other

I'm looking forward to the time (yes, it's really coming ...) when we can easily swap ideas in the GreatSchools Parent Community.  We're all here because we want to help our kids do better in school and schools do better by our kids.

But in the meantime, school has started and you're looking for advice. Two of you (Aurelia and "Tired of homework already!") posted pleas about homework: Aurelia wants to know if spending 2-3 hours a night helping two kids do homework is excessive. And "Tired" says her kids spend 3 hours a night, too, leaving little time for social and family life.

Let me illustrate how we can help each other on our community in the months to come, and, in the process, offer my own advice to Aurelia and "Tired."  I'm sure lots of you have tips, too.

First, we'll be able to share resources more easily — articles we've read, research on the issue at hand — that can make us more effective advocates for our kids at school.

In this case, Marian Wilde, GreatSchools' senior writer, has done a lot of research on homework, and her report might help you. She says there is an ongoing debate among researchers about whether the amount of homework has actually increased, but everyone does agree that homework is now being assigned in the early grades.

That doesn't seem to quite jibe with the experiences of Aurelia, "Tired" or other GreatSchools parents who say their kids are swamped and their family life is strained.

Here's why: The quantity of homework varies enormously from school to school. So while some kids are indeed getting too much, others aren't getting much at all. Marian also talked to a teacher who said she assigned homework because of the pressure from — parents, particularly high-achieving parents who want their kids to be able to get into the top universities in the country. That's evidence of parent power, clout that you and your parent group can exercise. In response to pressure from parents, some school boards have voted to rein in homework. (You can read Marian's article, How Much Homework Is Too Much?, to find out more. )

The National PTA has endorsed a policy of 10 minutes per grade for homework. If your child is getting a lot more than that, consider talking to the teacher and perhaps your parent group or school board to advocate for that policy. In the GreatSchools Parent Community, you'll be able to talk to parents across the country about whether they've put similar pressure on their schools.

Maybe you want to start a move to increase the quality and decrease the quantity of your child's homework. You'll be able to connect with parents in your own district to work together on issues like this one.

But often, what we really need is solid parent-to-parent advice to get through the day. Where to get online geometry help when you've forgotten your middle school math? How to find a writing tutor in your town? You'll be able to come to our community for that kind of advice.

Meanwhile, here's something to try: Ask the teacher how much time your child should be spending on homework. Sit down with your child at the kitchen table (or somewhere else away from the distractions of video games and cell phones) and make a homework schedule, setting aside the amount of time for each subject that the teacher indicated. Make sure you schedule study breaks, too. If the homework consistently far exceeds the allotted time, it's time for a serious talk with the teacher. Your child may need extra help with a subject or in getting organized (Take a look at our study skills article for some tips). Or the teacher may be giving too much homework — 100 math problems when 20 would do. Appeal to the teacher and, if necessary, the principal.

This may not solve your problem, but it might help you get a handle on it. I wish I had done it earlier in my children's school careers. It would have saved us a lot of late-night tears! I'm hoping our community can help save you some, too.  Let me know what you think.

The Clock Is Ticking, the Momentum Is Building

We are getting excited here at GreatSchools as we brainstorm, plan and create the platform that will soon be the GreatSchools Parent Community. We know from the tremendous amount of feedback that we get from you, our readers, that you are anxious to have a place online where you can discuss and share ideas about schools, and the challenges you face as parents of school-age children. Won’t it be great to know that when you have an issue or concern — your child keeps "losing" her homework or her grades have suddenly taken a dip — you’ll have a place to go to get advice? Or when you’ve had a break-through moment with your child — perhaps he has finally developed an interest in reading after discovering a particular author, or you’ve figured out how to help your messy daughter get organized the night before so she is ready for school each day — you’ll be able to share what worked with a community of other parents. We do hope that this community will become a tremendous resource for parents as you all share what has worked for you, and find that it’s a place where you can post a question and get answers from other parents who have had similar experiences.

Here at GreatSchools we gather frequently in the conference room to brainstorm and generate lists of discussion and advice topics. Members of our staff (many of whom are parents like you) will start some of the online groups. We know some of the issues that are on your minds based on experiences we have had with our own kids, as well as feedback we have received on our email newsletters and article content.

To whet your appetite, here’s a peek at some of the groups and discussions we’ll be starting:

• Helping children with special needs
• Bullying
• Charter schools
• Getting kids to read
• Balancing kids’ activities with family life
• School fundraising
• Homework strategies
• Single-parent issues
• Test-taking strategies
• After-school care
• School choice decisions

We know we have just scratched the surface of burning topics on your minds. What are issues that you need help with? What experiences have you had that will be helpful to other parents? What topics and groups would you like to see as part of the GreatSchools Parent Community? Let us know and we’ll add them to our growing list!

Thoughts on Netiquette and Our Community

Like many of you, I've joined other online communities for parents. Before GreatSchools was founded, I joined a small local one to get the insiders' view of schools I was considering for my kids, find a low-cost tutoring center for one child and a Spanish tutor for the other.  Armed with the advice of the parents in this community, I was able to begin researching learning disabilities and finding how to get one of my children tested.

The parents in this community put a lot of thought into their posts, and I grew to trust them because I tested their advice and because they gave it in the spirit of helping others tackle tough problems.

As online communities have grown, I have joined others. Each has its own culture, and some of them can be pretty nasty.  I've seen discussions about the merits of public vs. private schools turn into virtual warfare with each faction insulting the other. I've seen parents level personal attacks at anyone who dares to disagree with their views about special ed. 

Some people thrive on bare-knuckle battling, and some communities — particularly those devoted to policy debates — do, too. But I think a community dedicated to helping parents solve emotionally wrenching problems should be a more welcoming place.

Don't get me wrong, I like passionate debate. I hope we'll have lots of it in the GreatSchools Parent Community. But I want our community to be one in which people feel they can freely ask questions and give advice. And I hope that when we disagree with one another, we keep in mind we're all doing the best we can to do right by our kids.

We'll be talking a lot more about community guidelines in the future. In the meantime, I'd offer up these three quick guidelines of my own: 

• Treat people online the way you would treat them face to face.

• Stay focused on the point you're trying to make.

• If you're angry when you write, don't hit "send" right way. Reread your post, remember that it will live on the Web long after you've calmed down. Then count to 10 before you hit "send."

What kinds of experiences — positive or negative — have you had in online communities?  What can we do to make our community a welcoming and useful one?

Take a Penny, Leave a Penny

The “take a penny, leave a penny” containers that sit on counters or near cash registers are pretty much a regular sight at small stores or coffee shops—at least here in San Francisco. When I’m picking up a late night chocolate fix from the corner store at the end of my block, these little containers become quite relevant. Otherwise, when I’m in a rush or picking up a gallon of OJ, a loaf of bread and that tasty package of peanut butter cups, I pay that little container and the few pennies in it no mind.

Usually, my package of peanut butter cups rings up at 99 cents. I hand the cashier a dollar. I get a penny back, and, as if it had ears and a brain, the “take a penny, leave a penny” container suddenly seems to have shimmied right into my line of vision. I drop my penny in. If I’ve seriously premeditated my purchase, I may have scrounged around for the correct change before arriving, but I’m inevitably short a couple of cents (probably because I always drop my pennies in “take a penny, leave a penny” containers!). I’ll grab a couple from the same container I patronized the night before. It’s a great cycle that keeps both my blood sugar and my spirits high.

We’re building an advice community for parents, not a general store, but the idea of “take some, leave some” is still relevant. I’ve had the chance to talk to quite a few parents and tech-savvy folks about the GreatSchools Parent Community, and, although they’re enthusiastic about it, they usually ask how the “advice” part works. I think the idea of advice, in general, is an interesting one.

When we think of advice, it’s pretty easy to conjure up images of the people we usually go to for it: mom, husband, wife, best friends, siblings. The word “advice” generally connotes something that’s somewhat emotional, personal and very thought-out. When we’re in a bind, we know who to go to for insight and we know what to ask. So advice is a lot like the “take a penny” idea—it’s there when and where you need it. But let’s not forget about Oprah, who presents us with a smorgasbord of food for thought every weekday afternoon, or even someone like Muse Marion, the style and togetherness guru of Domino magazine. What these personalities offer us may not be advice in the traditional sense, but it’s certainly insightful.

Now ask yourself this: Who comes to you for advice? It’s a trickier question. Your children probably do, and probably your spouse or partner. What about the parents you meet at back-to-school night who casually ask you where you found 150-sheet, wide ruled, single-subject spiral-bound notebooks with different color covers? Or your neighbor whose daughter has the same third-grade teacher as your son did last year and wants to know how much homework to expect? There are a ton of these little moments that may not feel like advice, but inevitably help others navigate through their day-to-day challenges. Very much like the “leave a penny” idea, right?

Who do you go to for advice? Who comes to you for advice?

Groups I'm Really Looking Forward to

When our community launches I'll be heading straight to a section called "Groups."

For parents new to Web communities, a group is simply an online collection of people with similar interests. A group relevant to you might be one composed of parents with kids the same age as yours, or parents struggling with the same parenting or academic issues you are, or parents with the same concerns about our educational system. Groups facilitate the sharing of experiences and knowledge.

Within each group, expect to find separate discussions taking place. Expect it to be like your last family reunion, or the last party you attended, where many conversations happen at the same time. The beauty of a group, and the advantage it has over a party or a meeting, is that you can participate in several conversations simultaneously. You can have your fingers in all the pies, if you want!

Initially, GreatSchools will start with several dozen groups, but members are free (and encouraged) to create as many groups as they desire. You can create an invitation-only, private group or you can create a public group.

What are the two groups I'm looking forward to? As the mother of a sixth-grader and an eleventh-grader, (and I will take responsibility for creating these groups) they are: Strategies for Success in Middle School and Junior Year Survival Skills. I'm interested in creating the first one because I'm concerned about my sensitive sixth-grader. I feel that he needs to learn what it means to apply himself to his work and to experience a sense of mastery, something that has eluded him so far. These are issues I didn't have to grapple with when my daughter was in sixth grade.

I'm equally concerned for my eleventh-grade daughter who is taking a rigorous slate of classes in an extremely competitive school. She always does well in school, but at great cost to her (and everyone else who lives in the same house).

So, I'm looking for any and all parenting advice. It won't be a total one-way street, as I have some words of wisdom to share.

I'm sure that you, too, have issues and concerns particular to your unique situation. If, once our community is up and running, you don't find the group that you want, please create it. When the conversation and advice start to flow, you'll be glad you did. And so will all the other parents in your new group.

Online Communities in the News

There's quite the buzz in the media these days about online communities. On the cover of the August 27 edition of Newsweek is a photo of Facebook founder, Mark Zuckerberg. The thrust of the article is that Facebook, begun as an online community four years ago for college students, is now growing to include all ages— more than half of its 35 million users are people other than students. The article begins with the description of a frustrated Facebook member who was distraught when the site was down for four hours and she couldn't get on to see what new photos had been posted or connect with her friends. That person was not a college student but a 40-year-old working mother.

I was intrigued when I read that first paragraph in Newsweek because working moms (and dads, too, as well as parents at home) are just the people we hope will join the GreatSchools Community. There is one difference, however. While Facebook users include a range of ages, interests and friend networks, parents who come to the GreatSchools Community will have an immediate bond with each other and a common focus — we all want our kids to succeed in school and get a great education, and the GreatSchools Community is a place to meet other parents with that same desire.

Zuckerberg, as quoted in the Newsweek article, says Facebook is "not a social networking site but a ‘utility,' a tool to facilitate the information flow between users and their compatriots, family members and professional connections." We couldn't have said it better to describe how we envision the GreatSchools Community.

Parenting and supporting our kids as they go through school can be a tough job. How great it will be to have a place where it's easy to ask for advice and find solutions, from complicated issues like dealing with a problem teacher or helping a child learn to read, to the simpler challenge of figuring out something new to pack in a school lunch. You'll know that at any time of day or night there will be others out there with similar experiences. Think of it as hanging out in the virtual schoolyard, talking to other moms and dads, and you don't need to leave the comfort of home to do it!

Why Join the GreatSchools Community?

As a parent of three, I've had plenty of questions about my kids. When I needed advice about my kindergartner's struggles with reading or my middle-schooler's disputes with his Spanish teacher, I relied on friends, teachers or the pediatrician. They were sometimes helpful but didn't always have experience solving the problems I had.

If I'd been able to ask those questions of a larger group of parents, I probably would have come up with more and better solutions. And I know I would have valued the support of parents who'd been there.  I hope that's what the GreatSchools Community can do for you.

I hope our community can help you with problems, large and small — problems like these, which parents sent to GreatSchools in just the last week or so:

• "I have a question about a concern of mine involving one of my children, and the 'teasing' factor at school. Is there anywhere I might be able to post this question out there so that I might receive helpful tips?"
• "It is still a daily struggle to encourage my 7-year-old son to read.  I am currently trying a quiet/reading time of about 15 -20 minutes, but it doesn't seem to be working to well — it's a battle; should I continue this?"
• "I'd like to know if anyone knows about a pencil sharpener w/shavings container attached that won't come apart in the backpack. The teachers always ask for this, but the cheap plastic doesn't stay closed and cracks or breaks."

We know some of you can help these three parents — because you have figured out a way to stop the teasing that hurt your child, inspire a boy who hates reading or find a pencil sharpener that just might last until spring vacation. In return, you'll have a vast and supportive network of other parents you can turn to when you're looking for advice or resources.

We can't wait to meet you in our community!