Often, one of the best communications goals of a school or district is to raise the level of dialogue about your school, your district or public education in general.

But raising the level of dialogue is often made difficult due to the complexity of the items we wish to communicate. Here is a tip. Whenever you are communicating about a complex issue or an issue that evokes a lot of emotion, use a frequently asked questions document.

Frequently asked questions documents, or FAQs, are terrific for three reasons.

First and most importantly, they help to communicate difficult subject matter in a question and answer format that facilitates good, clear communication.

Second, in writing questions and answers, you are putting yourself in the position of your audience. This is always important to do.

Finally, writing FAQs with your administrative team helps ensure consistency in how information is conveyed across your school or district.

Remember, when you are creating FAQs, to ask the kinds of difficult questions your stakeholders will ask and try to keep your responses brief.

Keep in mind that FAQs work well on the back of one-page parent letters or on the bottom of parent emails.