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
  consistently - more homework completed
• Higher graduation rates and enrollment rates in
  post-secondary education
• Schools perform better because of difference in
  students attitudes and behavior

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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
• 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
• Improved morale

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Benefits for Communities

• Greater ability to address community needs and
  issues
• Increased access to services for families
• Greater impact of services through comprehensive,
  integrated approach

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Research on Parent 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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Research on Parent Involvement

• 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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Research on Parent Involvement

• 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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Research on Parent Involvement

• 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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Research on Parent Involvement

• 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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Research on Parent Involvement

• 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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Being Successful with Parent Involvement

• Schools that are 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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Being Successful with Parent Involvement

• Schools that actively involve parents as full
  partners view childrens learning as a shared
  responsibility among everyone involved in the
  childs education school, home and community

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What is a Family?

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

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Working Definition

• In the realm of parental involvement research and
  activities, Parent refers to any individual
  fulfilling the role of parenting a child, and who
  is 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 how and where to begin.

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Ten Truths of Parent Involvement

• All parents have hopes and goals for their
  children, but 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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Ten Truths of Parent Involvement

• The parent is the central contributor to a
  childs education. Schools can either ignore
  this fact or recognize the potential of the
  parent in helping to educate the child.
• 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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Ten Truths of Parent Involvement

• 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.
• The involvement of parents differs in every
  situation. One size DOES NOT fit all!

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Ten Truths of Parent Involvement

• Parents interaction with their own children is
  the cornerstone of parent involvement. A
  worthwhile parent involvement program will
  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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Ten Truths of Parent Involvement

• 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
• Parents past negative experiences with schools
  and/or feelings of uncertainty about treading on
  school territory

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Barriers to Involvement

• 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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Barriers to Involvement

• Feelings of inadequacy associated with difference
  in income or education
• Safety, especially in inner-city school
  neighborhoods
• Uncertainty about what to do
• 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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10 Guiding Principles concerning Parent
Involvement

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

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10 Guiding Principles concerning Parent
Involvement

• 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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10 Guiding Principles concerning Parent
Involvement

• 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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10 Guiding Principles concerning Parent
Involvement

• 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!