Student voice is playing a bigger role in school communications as district leaders work to build engagement and improve attendance, among other goals.
Video is now the most popular format for highlighting student voice in school communications. Districts are also expanding their reach through student-led events and first-person stories, says by the National School Public Relations Association and School Status, a communications provider.
Leaders surveyed this spring are seeing increased engagement with student-created content, as well as greater trust and authenticity in school communications. Students participating in internships and ambassador programs are now valuable contributors.
“These findings reflect a broader shift in school communication: from talking about students to communicating with them,” the report says. “Including students as storytellers, message recipients and collaborators isn鈥檛 just a feel-good initiative鈥攊t can be a strategy that supports belonging, well-being and student success.”
While high school students are most involved in first-person storytelling, a growing number of districts are looking to middle school and elementary students to create this type of content.
Many districts intentionally recruit students with diverse perspectives to participate in outreach initiatives, but fewer communicate in multiple languages. More than two-thirds of districts also expressed “fear of political backlash when uplifting certain identities or experiences,” the survey notes.
Only one in three districts compares the performance of student-led content to staff-created messaging. Among those that do, almost all report that students generate as much engagement as staff; about 60% found that student content gets a greater response.
But some of the districts surveyed reported having staffing limitations, according to the report.
Student voice stats
Here are key numbers from the survey:
- 81% of respondents use video to share student-created content
- 65% are investing in studios and equipment for students to create content
- 63% say that students are reluctant to get involved in school communications
- 59% are recruiting students with a range of lived experiences
- 52% of districts share聽stories in students鈥 own words
- 39% copy students on messages to families, often via email
- 17% encourage multilingual storytelling
Funding focus: Superintendents hope for more certainty
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