Highlighting Parent Involvement in Education

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Highlighting Parent Involvement in Education
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Family Involvement

• Research demonstrates that parent/ family
  involvement significantly contributes to improved
  student outcomes.
• Everyone -- students, parents, teachers,
  administrators, and communities -- benefits from
  family involvement.

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What are the Benefits?

• More positive attitudes toward school
• Higher achievement, better attendance, and more
  homework completed consistently
• Higher graduation rates and enrollment rates in
  post-secondary education
• Better schools to attend.

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Benefits for Parents

• Greater knowledge of education programs and how
  schools work
• Knowledge of how to be more supportive of
  children
• Greater confidence about ways to help children
  learn
• More positive view of teachers and,
• Greater empowerment.

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Benefits for School Staff

• Greater teaching effectiveness
• Higher expectations of students
• Increased ability to understand family views and
  cultures
• Greater appreciation of parent volunteers and,
• Improved morale.

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Benefits for Communities

• Greater strength
• Greater impact of services through comprehensive,
  integrated approach
• Increased access to services for families.

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Research on Involvement

• Effective parent/family involvement improves
  student outcomes throughout the school years.
• While parent/family involvement improves student
  outcomes, variations in culture, ethnicity, and/
  or socioeconomic background affect how families
  are involved.

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• Parent/family involvement at home has more impact
  on children than parent/family involvement in
  school activities.
• The nature of effective parent/family involvement
  changes as children reach adolescence.

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• Parent/family involvement in early childhood
  programs help children succeed in their
  transition to kindergarten and elementary school.
• Parent/families may need guidance and assistance
  in how to effectively help their children with
  homework.

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• Parent/family involvement will differ for ethnic
  and cultural groups. These differences should be
  considered when planning parent/ family
  involvement programs.
• Improved student outcomes have been documented in
  math and reading when families are involved.

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• The most promising opportunity for student
  achievement occurs when families, schools, and
  community organizations work together.
• To be effective, school programs must be
  individualized to fit the needs of the students,
  parents, and community.

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• Effective programs assist parents in creating a
  home environment that fosters learning and
  provides support and encouragement for their
  childrens success.
• Teachers must be trained to promote effective
  parent/family involvement.

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Outdated Thinkingon Parent Involvement

• Parents should come to school only when invited
• Stay-at-home mothers serve as homeroom mothers
• Parents visit school mainly for childrens
  performances and open houses
• Parents help raise money for school.

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• Schools that have been the most successful in
  involving families look beyond traditional
  definitions to a broader view that considers
  parents/families as full partners in the
  education of their children.

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• These schools view childrens learning as a
  shared responsibility among everyone involved in
  the childs education.

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What is a Family?

• Traditional?
• Blended?
• Extended?
• Multi-generational?
• Migrant?
• Minority?
• Single-parent?
• Divorced?
• Other?

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A Personal Definition

• For the purpose of todays conversation, Parent
  or Family refers to anyone actively involved in
  raising and educating a child.

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Factors in Involvement

• Parents are a childs first teachers.
• The American family has changed dramatically over
  the last 50 years.
• Schools arent always knowledgeable in how to
  encourage involvement.
• Parents dont always recognize the importance of
  becoming involved or know where to begin.

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Ten Truths of Parent Involvement

• All parents have hopes and goals for their
  children. They differ in how they support their
  childrens efforts to achieve those goals.
• The home is one of several areas that
  simultaneously influence a child. The school
  must work with people in the other areas for the
  childs benefit.

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• The parent is the central contributor to a
  childs education. Schools can either ignore
  this fact or recognize the potential of the
  parent.
• Parent involvement must be a legitimate element
  of education. It deserves equal emphasis with
  elements such as program improvement and
  evaluation.

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• Parent involvement is a process, not a program of
  activities. It requires ongoing energy and
  effort.
• Parent involvement requires a vision, policy, and
  framework. A consensus of understanding is
  important.

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• Parents interaction with their own children is
  the cornerstone of parent involvement. A program
  must recognize the value, diversity, and
  difficulty of this role.
• Most barriers to parent involvement are found
  within school practices. They are not found with
  parents.

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• Any parent can be hard to reach. Parents must
  be identified and approached individually they
  are not defined by gender, ethnicity, family
  situation, education, or income.
• Successful parent involvement nurtures
  relationships and partnerships. It strengthens
  bonds between home and school, parent and
  teacher, parent and school, school and community.

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Barriers to Involvement

• Lack of a school environment that supports
  parent/family involvement
• School practices that do not accommodate the
  diversity of family needs
• Child care constraints
• Families past negative experiences with schools
  and/or feelings of uncertainty about treading on
  school territory.

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• Cultural differences (language barriers,
  attitudes toward professionals, lack of knowledge
  of the American education system)
• Primacy of basic needs (food, clothing, and
  shelter take precedence over educational needs)

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• Feelings of inadequacy associated with difference
  in income or education
• Safety, especially in inner-city school
  neighborhoods
• Uncertainty about what to do and,
• Lack of time.

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100 Ways

• The brochure, 100 Ways for Parents to be
  Involved in Their Childs Education is available
  from the National PTA
• http//www.pta.org/
• Based on the National Standards for Parent/Family
  Involvement Programs.

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Remember These 10 Guiding Principles

• Family members are equal partners in a childs
  education.
• The home environment is the primary educational
  environment.
• Schools must respect the diversity o families and
  their varied needs.
• All families care about their children.

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• Family involvement is important through all years
  of a childs education.
• Family involvement takes many forms and may not
  require a familys presence at school.
• Families, schools, and communities are closely
  interconnected and must collaborate in educating
  children.

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• School leaders and staff need support and
  training in how to encourage family involvement.
• One size does not fit all when developing
  school-family partnerships.
• Change takes time and building successful
  partnerships requires much effort over time.

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• Become involved in your local school.
• Contact a Parent-Educator Resource Center near
  you for information on upcoming parent training
  opportunities.

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Thank You!