School, Family &
Community Partnerships
Download PDF Document
Overlapping Spheres of Influence
Family Involvement: A Key Component
of Student & School Success
The term “parent involvement” is used to describe participation by a
child’s primary caretaker(s) – whether that is a single mom, two parents,
grandparents, foster parents, or an older sibling. More broadly, many parent
involvement programs also address the needs of the entire family and include
younger siblings and others’ roles in creating school success.
(“Community Schools in Illinois” series
published in collaboration with the Illinois Family Partnership Network)
Reflection:
- What do you see as the benefits
of School, Family & Community Partnerships (or Family Involvement)
- What do you see as the costs of schools not partnering
with Family & Community
Why Focus on Family
Involvement?
- Required in IDEA
- Builds positive relationships
- Encourages new behaviors
- Reinforces skills (maintenance)
- Increases self-satisfaction and optimism among youth, parents, and
teachers
Schools that are committed
to student success are creative in accommodating students and families
- Replacing
punitive processes with ones that seek to understand and improve a child’s
situation
- Creating
schedules, policies, and programs that take into account students’ home-life
challenges
(Henderson and Berla,
p.168-p.171, Failure is Not an Option, Blankstein, Corwin and Hope, 2004)
No Child Left Behind
- Require
schools to develop ways to get parentsmore involved in their child’s education
and in improving schools.
- Requires
that states and local school districtsprovide information to help parents
makeinformed educational choices for their child.
(http://www.ed.gov/nclb/)
(31)
PARENT-The term parent' includes a legal guardian or other person standing in
loco parentis (such as a grandparent or stepparent with whom the child lives,
or a person who is legally responsible for the child's welfare).
(32)
PARENTAL INVOLVEMENT-The term parental involvement' means the participation of
parents in regular, two-way, and meaningful communication involving student
academic learning and other school activities, including ensuring …
- that parents play an integral role in assisting their child's learning;
- that parents are encouraged to be actively involved in their child's
education at school;
- that parents are full partners in their child's education and are
included, as appropriate, in decision making and on advisory committees to
assist in the education of their child;
(www.ed.gov/policy/elsec/leg/esea02/pg107.html)
IDEA 2004
“The
Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act of 2004 will help
children learn better by promoting accountability for results, enhancing parent involvement, using proven practices
and materials, providing more flexibility, and reducing paperwork burdens for
teachers, states and local school districts.”
What
are the Guidelines According to the Research?
Standards
identified by the National PTA build on six types of parent involvement
identified by Dr. Joyce L. Epstein of the Center on School, Family, and
Community Partnerships at Johns Hopkins University:
- Parenting
- Communicating
- Volunteering
- Student Learning
- Shared Decision-Making
- Collaborating with Community
Benefits of Family
Involvement
- Higher test scores
- Better grades
- Better attendance
- Higher levels of homework completion
- More positive student motivation
- Improved attitudes about school work
Darsch,
Miao, & Shippen. (2004) A Model for Involving Parents of Children with
Learning and Behavior Problems in the Schools: Preventing School Failure 48(3), 24-35
Family Involvement has a
positive effect on student behavior
- When families are involved, students exhibit more positive attitudes and behavior.
- When students report feeling support from both home and school, they
have more self-confidence, feel school is more
important, and they tend to do better in school.
- Student at-risk behaviors such as
alcohol use, violence, and other anti-social behaviorsdecrease as parent
involvement increases.
(National
PTA, 10/28/2005)
Demonstrated Benefits to
Teachers/Schools:
- Greater job satisfaction
- Higher ratings of teaching skills from bothparents and principals
- Higher ratings of school effectiveness
- Improved classroom behavior through increased knowledge of children’s
family, cultural, and community contexts
(Adapted
from Christenson, 1996)
Research Findings
- Low-income African American children whose families maintained high
rates of parent participation in elementary
school are more likely to complete high school.
- Low-income African American children with mothers involved in their
education showed more self-control in unruly and disorganized classrooms than children whose
parents did not provide support.
- Latino youth who are academically high achieving have parents who
provide encouragement and emphasize the value ofeducation as a way out of
poverty.
- Harvard
Family Research Project,2006
- In fact the most accurate predictor of a student’s achievement in
school is not income or social status, but the
extent to which the student’s family is able to:
- Create a home environment that encourages learning
- Become involved in their children’s education at school and in the
community
(Henderson
and Berla, 1997)
“At
all grade levels, the evidence suggests that school policies, teacher practices and family practices
are more important than race, parent education, family size, marital status and
even grade level in determining whether parents continue to be part of
their children’s education.”
(Joyce
Epstein)
“No matter what
the demographics, students are
more likely to earn higher grades and test scores, attend school regularly,
have better social skills, graduate and go on to postsecondary education
when schools and families partner”
(Karen
Mapp, Family Involvement Equals Student Success No Matter Background,
August 10, 2006)
Best-Practices to
Meaningfully Involve Families
Prepare
staff to work with families
- Help those who work with families take differentperspectives on
situations by discussing hypothetical cases from different familymembers’
points of view.
- Ask staff to evaluate their own assumptions and beliefs about the
families with whom they work.
- Develop staff communication skills.
- Provide staff time to process with others difficultconversations or
situations.
(Harvard
Family Research Project, October 2006)
Help
families create homes that get children ready to learn
- Enable families to share information with the school about culture,
background, children's talents and needs.
- Find out where to refer parents/guardians for family support programs
that help with health,nutrition or other services.
- Participate in neighborhood meetings to help families understand
schools and to help schools understand families.
(Based
on a Best-Practice Model Created by Dr. Joyce Epstein and Adapted by Seattle
Public Schools)
Tell
what's going on at school, and encourage families to share home events
- Respect parents‘/guardians’ perspective on their child's abilities and
progress. They know their own child in a different setting than you do.
- Expect to disagree once in a while and embrace the opportunity to see
things from a new point of view.
(Based
on a Best-Practice Model Created by Dr. Joyce Epstein and Adapted by Seattle
Public Schools)
Recruit
and organize family help and support
- Arrange to use parent/guardian and communityvolunteers in your
classroom. Recruit widely sothat all families know their contributions are
welcome. Provide training, and match time and talent with the work to be done
- Communicate with parents/guardians at thebeginning of each year to
identify talents, times and locations of volunteers.
(Based
on a Best-Practice Model Created by Dr. Joyce Epstein and Adapted by Seattle
Public Schools)
Focus
on recruitment and commitment
- Recruit families through face-to-face visits.
- Ask current and former
participants to help withrecruitment.
- Hold meetings for parents during nontraditional hours, including
weekends and evenings.
- Provide transportation, infant care, and meals atmeetings.
(Harvard
Family Research Project, October 2006)
Let
families know the best ways to help students learn
- If
students have several teachers, coordinate homework assignments.
- Provide
calendars with activities for parents/guardians and students at home.
- Ask
families to participate in setting student goals each year, and help them look
ahead to college or work.
- Based
on a Best-Practice Model Created by Dr. Joyce Epstein and Adapted by Seattle
Public Schools
Seek
out and use community resources that can strengthen school programs
- Help match community contributions to school goals; align child and
family services withlearning standards.
- As a class or school, have students, families and staff provide service
to the community. Among the possibilities are recycling, art, music ordrama
performances for seniors.
- Bring alumni back to participate in school programs for students.
(Based
on a Best-Practice Model Created by Dr. Joyce Epstein and Adapted by Seattle
Public Schools)
Develop
family leaders and include them in school decisions
- Be sure school councils and other school governance committees include family representatives.
- Nominate family members from your school for regional and district
councils and committees.
- Encourage parents/guardians from all segments of the school population
to become leaders and to get leadership training.
(Based
on a Best-Practice Model Created by Dr. Joyce Epstein and Adapted by Seattle
Public Schools)
IL Examples of How to
Involve Families
- At
the time of registration and /or open house provide families with information
on PBIS and encourage families to consider signing up to be involved with PBIS
activities/teams.
- Families
participate in the design and implementation of school-wide celebrations
- Families
are awarded acknowledgements (‘gotchas’) for their involvement at school
- Special
activities which increase family awareness of school supports offered to the students.
- Families
volunteer to participate, support, and develop the PBIS Universal Store
- Families
are invited to be active on PBIS teams
- Family
members can volunteer at lunch or bus to supervise and acknowledge expected
behavior
- Improve
school climate and increase familyfriendly atmosphere through new routines
andactivities (meet at buses, offer coffee)
- Families
receive acknowledgement when theirchildren act in appropriate and exceptional
ways
- Family
organization supports PBIS activities bydesignating a special line item in
their annual budget.
Host
a ‘Back to School Family Night’ to share information:
- School-wide expectations.
- School ‘acknowledgements’ described.
- School matrix sent home for posting on the refrigerator.
- Tips for helping students with ‘before and after’ school routines
IL Tips/Materials for
Families
- Provide
families with a PBIS calendar of when cool tools
will be instructed at school and provide families with the cool tools for
teaching at home.
- ‘Gotchas’
of a different color for home-students can bring them back to school or
families can create their own system for home.
- Families
are informed about PBIS with speciallydesigned
handbooks, mini-binders, newsletters and school websites.
- PBIS
family newsletter with cool tools for home.
- Provide
tools to parents to help them to understand function of
behavior and behavior modification.
- Families
of new students can be presented a DVD upon
enrollment in school. The result will be a visual, in addition to the written,
Student Success Guide.
Assess:
- Is
the data useful/accurate? Do you review this data in Universal team meetings? What are
some other indicators?
- What does your data say about how well you involve families?
ISBE Family
Involvement Data Source
- Percent of
students whose parents had personal contact with students' teachers.
- Teachers
include: all certified staff, such asstudent counselors and administrators.
- Exclude form letters or notices; parental letters/callsrelating to student
absences; regular notification ofgrades; student progress report cards; school
reportcards; attendance at school athletic, music, drama events, and other
co-curricular activities.
(Reported
on ISBE “School Report Card DataCollection Form")
School, Family &
Community Partnership efforts should help families…
- Get a clear idea of what their children are learning and doing in the
school
- Promote high standards for student work
- Gain skills to help their children at home
- Understand what good teaching looks like
- Discuss how to improve student progress
(Henderson,
Mapp, et al. Beyond the Bake
Sale: the Essential Guide to Family-School Partnerships. The New Press, 2007.
Families want…
- To feel welcome at school.
- To receive more information on how to help their children succeed.
- Positive feedback and personalized contact about their children
whenever possible.
- To be partners in the process of educating children, with timely
notification of problems.
The Importance of Family
Involvement
The
evidence is now beyond dispute. When schools and families work together to
support learning, children tend to succeed not just in school, but also
throughout life.
(Henderson
and Berla, 1997)
Books for Ed
- School-Family
Partnerships for Children’s Success. Patrikakou, Weissberg, Redding, and Walberg. Columbia, 2005
- Schools and
Families: Creating Essential Connections for Learning. Christenson and Sheridan. Guilford,
2001
- Parenting
with Positive Behavior Support.Hieneman and Childs. Brookes, 2006
- Beyond the
Bake Sale: the Essential Guide toFamily/School Partnerships. Henderson, Johnson, Mapp and Davies. New
Press, 2007
- Individualized
Supports for Students withProblem Behaviors: Designing PositiveBehavior Plans. Bambara and Kern.
Guilford Press, 2005
- School,
Family, and Community Partnerships: Your Handbook in Action, 2nd edition. Epstein, Sanders, Simon. Corwin,
2002
Tips
for Schools on How to Involve Families
The
following examples are based on a best-practice model created by Dr. Joyce
Epstein and adapted by Seattle Public Schools:
Best
Practice #1: Parenting Skills: Help families create homes that get children ready
to learn.
- Be sure information gets to all families who want or need it, not just
the few who can come to meetings at school.
- Enable families to share information with the school about culture,
background, children's talents and needs.
- Encourage your school to provide workshops, videotapes or computerized
phone messages on parenting and child rearing, and to publicize community
programs on nutrition, family literacy and adult education.
- Find out where to refer parents for family support programs that help
with health, nutrition or other services.
- Participate in neighborhood meetings to help families understand
schools and to help schools understand families.
Best
Practice #2: Home-School Communication: Tell what's going on at school, and encourage
parents to share home events.
- Follow up the annual parent-teacher conference with regular
communications with parents. Know how to get information translated into the
languages of your students' families.
- Consider parents who do not read well and arrange for phone calls in
their native language.
- Every week or every month, send home folders of student work for
parents' review and comment.
- Have a regular schedule to send home useful notices, memos or
newsletters.
- Respect parents' perspective on their child's abilities and progress.
They know their own child in a different setting than you do.
- Expect to disagree once in a while and embrace the opportunity to see
things from a new point of view.
Best
Practice #3: Volunteering: Recruit and organize parent help and support.
- Arrange to use parent and community volunteers in your classroom.
Recruit widely so that all families know their contributions are welcome.
Provide training, and match time and talent with the work to be done
- Implement a system of class parents, telephone tree, e-mail list or
other way to let volunteers know what's needed
- Plan lessons to include help from families at school or from home.
- Communicate with parents at the beginning of each year to identify
talents, times and locations of volunteers.
- Recognize family members for the support they provide.
Best
Practice #4: Learning at Home: Let families know the best ways to help students
learn.
- Be sure each family has information about the essential learning
standards for their child's grade level
- Be clear with parents about homework policies, and give them tips on
how to monitor and discuss schoolwork at home
- Assign homework that requires students to discuss and interact with
families about what they are learning in class
- If students have several teachers, coordinate homework
assignments.
- Provide calendars with activities for parents and students at
home.
- Send home summer learning packages.
- Ask families to participate in setting student goals each year, and
help them look ahead to college or work.
Best
Practice #5: Decision Making at School: Develop parent leaders and include them in school
decisions
- Foster an active PTA or other parent group.
- Involve students too, when appropriate.
- Be sure school councils and other school governance committees include
family representatives.
- Nominate family members from your school for regional and district
councils and committees.
- Encourage parents from all segments of the school population to become
leaders and to get leadership training.
- Help establish networks to link all families with parent
representatives.
Best
Practice #6: Collaborating with the Community: Seek out and use community
resources that can strengthen school programs.
- Encourage your school to provide families with information on community
activities that relate to learning skills, including summer programs,
mentoring, tutoring and business partnerships.
- Make sure students and families have access to information about
community health, cultural, recreational and social support services.
- Work with family representatives to find and apply for grants to
further student learning.
- Help organize a career fair in which community members expose students
to future job possibilities.
- Help match community contributions to school goals; align child and
family services with learning standards.
- Thank local merchants and other business owners who support activities
at school.
- As a class or school, have students, families and staff provide service
to the community. Among the possibilities are recycling, art, music or drama
performances for seniors.
- Bring alumni back to participate in school programs for students.
The
following examples are tips are from the Harvard Family Research Project,
October 2006:
A)
Tips for Preparing Staff to Work Families
- Help those who work with families take different perspectives on
situations by discussing hypothetical cases from different family members’
points of view.
- Ask staff to evaluate their own assumptions and beliefs about the
families with whom they work.
- Develop staff communication skills.
- Aid staff in understanding research on families and the theoretical
rationale for the program.
- Provide staff time to process with others difficult conversations or
situations.
B) Tips for Recruitment and
Retention
- Recruit families through face-to-face visits.
- Ask current and former program participants to help with
recruitment.
- Hold meetings for parents during nontraditional hours, including
weekends and evenings.
- Visit parents in community locations.
- Provide transportation, infant care, and meals at meetings.
- Ensure that staff are culturally sensitive.
- Understand the beliefs, values, and attitudes of the community.
- Help staff to think of recruitment and retention as a routine and ongoing
process.