Learning & Leading Through Technology

Use Google Voice to Improve School Communi

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Some parent-teacher contacts are easy and even rewarding, but others can be stiff, awkward, and, let’s face it, inconvenient. Some teachers live in fear of talking to parents. Badly performed social niceties can become stumbling blocks that create intimidating or uncomfortable situations. At the worst, information can be misheard, misunderstood, or inaccurately repeated.

Google Voice can change all that. Unlike live telephone conversations or standard voicemail, you can review and edit your words to make sure that you maintain a professional, friendly voice with parents and students in every communication.

Google Voice is a free and easy
VoIP platform that can simplify par-
ent-teacher communication and allow
you to easily store and retrieve parent-
teacher contact records, record phone
conversations, and keep parents up to
date on their students’ progress and
obligations in your class.
You can create a “school” phone
number for parents and students that
will ring to any phone that you choose
(cell, work, or home) or go straight
to a personalized voicemail. Google
Voice even provides you with call-
screening capabilities. You can save
contacts in Gmail for caller ID, or you
can opt for a prompt that asks each
caller to state his or her name and
then gives you the option to accept or
deny the call.

Google Voice also has a feature that will allow you to make and receive calls within the continental United States for free. You can log in to voice. google.com or your Gmail account to make calls or send text messages directly online.

Get Started

The first thing you’ll need is a Gmail address. I recommend setting up a new email address so you can keep school-related communication separate from personal email. Next, log in to your Google account and search for Google Voice to begin setting up your voicemail greeting. Once you’re set up, send out an introductory text to students and parents letting them know what to expect and asking them to save the Google Voice number.

Get Good

Anyone can master the use of voicemail, but if you take the time to familiarize yourself with the many convenient and innovative features of Google Voice, you’ll change the way you communicate with parents and students and boost your organizational abilities.