International Research Journal of Engineering and Technology (IRJET) e-ISSN:2395-0056
Volume:12Issue: 10| Oct2025 www.irjet.net p-ISSN:2395-0072
Parent Connect: Bridging School–Home Communication through a Digital Platform
Sneha Shahane
1,
Shravani Tormad2, Renuka Sonawane3, Sujata Kangune
4
1Sneha Shahane, Student, MCA, MET Institute of Management, Nashik Maharashtra, India
2Shravani Tormad, Student, MCA, MET Institute of Management, Nashik Maharashtra, India
3Renuka Sonawane, Student, MCA, MET Institute of Management, Nashik Maharashtra, India
4Sujata kangune , Assistant Professor, Department ( MCA) MET Institute of Management , Nashik Maharashtra, India
Abstract - Timely and effective communication between parents and schools is increasingly valued as a key aspect to facilitate students' educational learning and development; however, traditional measures of printed reports, meetings at intervals, multiple portals, or paper diaries are not sufficient, and opportunities for parental participation are often overlooked. As a solution to this gap, this research description provides a new platform called Parent Connect, a digital tool that supports school-to-home-and-back-to-school interactions from one application with features for tracking academic development, messaging, transport, emotional health, and serialized study tips with gamification. It also includes its own diary, performance reports, alerts, feedback, and mini skillbased games, ensuring all essential communication needs are centralized. Using a mixed methods approach (surveys, interviews, and systematic literature reviews), Parent Connect demonstrates strong potential to enhance parental engagement, improve student participation, reduce administrative workload, and create a one-stop solution for continuous communication and better academic outcomes.
Key Words: Parent–School Communication, Parental Engagement, Digital Education Platform, Academic Performance Tracking, Transport and Safety Monitoring, Gamified Learning, Educational Technology Integration
1. INTRODUCTION
The current educational landscape requires continuous engagement between parents and schools to promote the academic and personal development of students. Current forms of communication - paper based report cards, parent/teacher meetings, disconnected portals - are not reliable indicators of communication which leads to disengagementofparents, miscommunication,andmissed opportunities to provide intervention for an academic or behavioral situation. Online solutionsofferan opportunity to address these issues through real time information, tracking of academic progress of students, and the ability toprovidecommunicationtools.ParentConnectwouldlike to address the gap in communication channels by
providingasingleplatformforparentstotrackhomework, attendance, performance, receive reminders of events at school, monitor transportation safety, receive study tips, and securely communicate with teachers. Providing all of these activities under one platform can improve parental engagement, promote better student achievement, and reduce the administrative burden for schools. With its modular design, the platform ensures adaptability to diverse school environments. Parent Connect ultimately aims to make communication seamless, transparent, and impactfulforeverystakeholderintheeducationprocess.
2. LITERATURE REVIEW
Parentalinvolvementisstronglyrelatedtohigheracademic performance and positive development of the student. Fan andChen[2]conductedameta-analysisofvariousstudent outcomes and identified studies that showed a strong positive association between parental involvementintheir child's education and academic performance for the child. Additionally, Li et al. [4] noted a positive link between parental involvement and creativity as well as overall developmentforthestudent.
Digital communication tools suchasSeesawandClassDojo have shown to improve parent-teacher communication via real-time updates and collaborative involvement (Smith & Johnson, 2021, cited in [7]). For instance, parents of students that are poor readers have recognized communication applications as valuable for helping them monitor their child's progress and accountability in their academic performance, especially for schools with limited resources(Williams,2022,citedin[7]).
Parentalcontrolandsafetysoftwarehastakenoversomeof the job for monitoring the student. According to Brown (2021, cited in [5]), the important list of features like activity monitoring, app blocking and screen time can enable parents to protect access to their child's digital world. Further, artificial intelligence driven transport tracking and live bus tracking initiatives will bolster the safetyofstudentswhileoutonexcursions[1],[12].
Digital interventions such as gamified study aids and
International Research Journal of Engineering and Technology (IRJET) e-ISSN:2395-0056
Volume:12Issue: 10| Oct2025 www.irjet.net p-ISSN:2395-0072
mental health support increase motivation and engagement. Digital mental health interventions can improvestudentwell-being(Chenetal.,2021,citedin[7]). Gamification previously improved academic engagement and performance, and studies have confirmed the value of integrating daily study tips and mini skill games into learningcontent(Kim&Park,2022,citedin[7]).
Collectively, the research shows a centralized online platform that combines academic tracking, real-time communication, transport tracking, mental health counselling, and gamified participation would contribute meaningfully to improved schoolparent partnership, and subsequently,studentsuccess.
3. SYSTEM DESIGN
Diary: The diary module provides parents and students withreal-timeaccesstohomework,classwork,andteacher notes. By centralizing daily academic activities, it ensures transparency and reduces miscommunication. Teachers can add remarks or attachments to support learning, and parents can track their child’s academic progress conveniently.
Alerts: The alerts module delivers timely notifications regarding announcements, schedule changes, upcoming events, or transport updates. By automating critical communications, parents receive accurate information promptly, reducing the need for manual follow-ups and enhancingengagement.
Performance Reports: Performance reports aggregate academicresults,attendance,andbehavioralrecordsintoa consolidated view. Parents can monitor trends over time, enabling early identification of learning difficulties and facilitatingtimelyinterventionsbyteachersorguardians.
Messages:Securemessagingallowsdirectcommunication between parents and teachers, replacing informal phone calls or third-party apps. Conversations are organized by student or subject, supporting clarity and accountability whilemaintainingprivacyanddatasecurity.
Events & Feedback: This module manages school events, tracksattendance,andcollectsfeedbackfromparticipants. Parents can confirm participation digitally, and teachers can assess engagement and gather insights to improve futureevents.
Transport Tracking: Transport tracking provides realtime updates on school buses or other transportation services.
Parents can monitor student safety during commutes, receive notifications for delays, and gain peace of mind abouttheirchild’swell-being.
Mental Health Chat: The mental health module allows students to check in on their emotional and psychological wellbeing.Guidedpromptsandchatsprovideinsightsinto student welfare, while escalating potential concerns to counselorswhenneeded,promotingearlysupport.
MiniSkill Games:Thisfeaturedeliverspersonalizedstudy tips and gamified learning exercises to motivate students. By reinforcing classroom learning and encouraging daily engagement,itsupportsacademicdevelopmentandbuilds essentialskillsthroughinteractiveactivities.
-1 [SystemArchitectureoftheParentConnect Platform]
4. METHODOLOGY
4.1ResearchDesign
This study employs a mixed-method design that contains both quantitative and qualitative approaches. This approach creates the opportunity for us to make this platform evidence-basedandpragmatic, whilefocusing on people.
4.2Populationand Sample
Population: parents of students (grades 1-10), teachers, and school administration. Sample size: Parents (61), Teachers (22), Administrators (10). Sampling technique: Convenience sampling used for surveys and purposive samplingusedforinterviews.
4.3DataCollectionMethods
Primary Data: Structured surveys to collect information on challenges with tracking student achievement and communicating with stakeholders. Semi-structured
Fig
International Research Journal of Engineering and Technology (IRJET) e-ISSN:2395-0056
Volume:12Issue: 10| Oct2025 www.irjet.net p-ISSN:2395-0072
interviews and focus group interviews with teachers and otheradministration.
Secondary Data: Literature review of over 25 credible research publications pertaining to parents and parental involvement in learning, review of digital platforms for communication and social media platforms for use in schools. Survey and review of existing apps such as ClassDojo,Edmodo,andGoogleClassroom.
4.4ResearchInstruments
Questionnaires: closed-ended (Likert scale, multiplechoice) and open-ended questions. Interview Guide:Themesidentifiedwerebarriersofcommunication, usesoftechnology,andexpectationsofparents.
4.5DataAnalysis
Quantitative: descriptive data using frequency, percentage, mean, charts, and graphs. Qualitative: data completed with thematic analysis looking specifically at gaps in communication, privacy issues, and issues around digitalliteracy
5. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
Thesurvey gatheredvaluableinsightsinto the rolesof the participants, which is essential for understanding the perspectives behind the feedback. Among the 93 respondents, most identified as parents, followed by teachers, with a smaller group identifying as both. This distribution shows that the bulk of the feedback comes fromparents,whilethosewearingdualhatsofferaunique blend of home and school experiences. You can see the breakdownoftheserolesinFig.1.
-1:Piechart[RolesofSurveyParticipants]
Over time, the Parent Connect platform has been spotlighted by literature and research studies as an instrumental tool for boosting parental involvement, driving communication efficiency, and ushering in student development. To investigate the current communication practicesanduserroles,asurveyinvolving93participants wascarriedout.Theparticipantdemographicincludedthe following: 61 (65.6%) parents, 22 (23.7%) teachers, and
10 (10.7%) both identifying as parents and teachers, thus merging the viewpoints and the need for a shared communicationplatform(chart.1).
Chart -2:Barchart[CurrentModesofCommunication BetweenSchoolsandParents]
Respondents had to indicate the present day channels by which they get notified of student performance or school activities, to which 90 provided multiple responses. Phone callswerereported asthechannel used by72 participants (80%), while WhatsApp or other third-party messaging apps were resorted to by 75 participants (83.3%) making them slightly more used. The old-fashioned paper diaries or notices were there for 45 participants (50%), and 50 participants(55.6%)wentthatwaythroughparent-teacher meetings. Only 7 participants (7.8%) said they were using formalschoolportalsorERPsystems(chart2).Thus,these resultsrevealthatthemajorityofparentsandteachersare keeping themselves posted through various, often fragmented, channels and the formal digital systems seem tobeoflittleuse.
The survey feedback really emphasizes the need for a cohesive platform like Parent Connect. This tool could seamlessly integrate various services such as tracking homework, accessing performance reports, messaging, monitoringtransport,receivingeventalerts,checkinginon mental health, and even gamifying learning. With features like transport safety tracking and parental oversight, parents can feel more at ease about their children's journeys. Plus, the mental health support and engaging learning activities can boost students' motivation and involvement,ultimatelyenhancingtheiroverallwell-being. The secure messaging and event feedback options ensure that communication between parents and teachers is timelyandeffective.However,therearesomechallengesto consider,likedifferinglevelsofdigitalliteracy,connectivity issues, and how well it integrates with current school management systems. All in all, this platform has great potential to improve communication, encourage collaboration between schools and families, and help identify academic or emotional issues early on, which can lead to better student outcomes and smoother administrativeprocesses.
Chart
Volume:12Issue: 10| Oct2025 www.irjet.net
6. SCALABILITY AND COST EFFICIENCY
Parent Connect is a lightweight HTML/CSS and Pythonbasedapplicationthatisscalableduetoitsmodular architecture.Schoolscangraduallyincreasetheiruseofthe application by adding new features, like a diary, alerts, or performance tracking, without disrupting the existing modules. Since it can be deployed on local servers or on the hosting services that are cheap, the platform does not have the high infrastructurecosts thatareassociated with the cloud solutions. Automation of routine tasks diary updates, performance reporting, and event logging lessens the administrative effort and paper-based communication,whichinturnleadstocostefficiency.This design means that Parent Connect is still very much practical for small schools with limited budgets while at the same time, it is still very much flexible to expand to largerinstitutions.
7. CONCLUSION
Parent Connect provides a comprehensive means for closing the communication gap between parents and schools. By offering academic monitoring, messaging, transport tracking, mental health supports, and gamified learning options, Parent Connect connects the school and parents, enhancing parental involvement, student achievement,andadministrativeefficiency.ParentConnect will develop its services further in future years and hopes to one day offer AI-enabled insights, adaptive learning options, and seamless integration with national education datasystemstoenhancecoordinationbetweenschoolsand parents.
The system’s modular and automated design ensures that new features can be added or updated without disrupting existing workflows, providing flexibility for schools of differentsizesandresources.Furthermore,ParentConnect supports early identification of academic or emotional concerns, enabling timely intervention by teachers and counselors. Whilechallengessuchaslimitedusertraining, digital literacy, and workflow diversity were observed, these can be mitigated through iterative improvements, broader deployment, and integration with existing educational processes. Parent Connect offers a costeffective, efficient, and comprehensive solution for modernizing school–parent communication. Its adaptability and potential for scalability make it suitable forbroaderadoption,andwithcontinuousenhancement,it can serve as a foundation for smarter, datadriven, and moreinclusiveeducationalmanagementsystems.
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