Part 3: Innovations in Professional Growth
Public Education and Webcasting in BC:
October 2005 to May 2006
Parent Involvement in British Columbia:
Building Community
November 30, 2005
Activity Package
PARENTING
All parents want the
best for their children
Parents are the primary
source of basic needs:
Physical
Emotional
Social
Developmental
Examples:
 Parent support programs,
parent education, workshops,
parent-to-parent connections,
and assistance to provide
home conditions that support
learning at each age and
stage of development.
 Workshops
 Websites
 Pamphlets and resources
 Outreach programs
Notes:
PARENTING: To help parents fulfil their responsibilities of
providing for their child’s well-being and development from
pre–school through secondary school and to assist the school
in understanding families.
Adapted from Epstein , J (2001). School family and community partnerships: Preparing educators and improving schools. Boulder CO: Westview Press
PARENTING
QUESTIONS TO DISCUSS:
1.
Identify ways to connect with parents of pre-school
students.
2.
What information do you think families want and need
every year from schools to understand child and
adolescent development?
3.
What information do you think all schools want and
need each year from families to understand the
students and their families?
Sample
Challenges for
Success with
Parenting
One activity that
would meet this
challenge.
One short-term
result the
activity is likely
to produce.
Who will
benefit?
Provide information
for parents who
cannot attend a
workshop or
meeting.
Obtain information
from parents to
help teachers
understand their
children and
families.
Adapted from Epstein , J (2001). School family and community partnerships: Preparing educators and improving schools. Boulder CO: Westview Press
COMMUNICATING
Ongoing communications
help educators and families
understand each other in
the interest of student
progress.
Communication is from
school to home and home
to school.
Examples:
 School-to-home: memos,
notices, report cards,
conferences, newsletters,
phone calls, computerized
messages, web sites
 Information on school
programs, tests/assessment
and children’s progress
 Information needed to choose
or change schools, courses,
programs, activities
 Home-to-School: Two-way
channels of communication
for questions, comments, and
other interactions.
Notes:
COMMUNICATING: To share information clearly and
continuously with all families; both from school-to-home
and from home-to-school.
Adapted from Epstein , J (2001). School family and community partnerships: Preparing educators and improving schools. Boulder CO: Westview Press
COMMUNICATING
QUESTIONS TO DISCUSS:
1.
What do families and students need to know about the following
aspects of school programs, and what might families and students
contribute to the success of these aspects of schooling?
Families
need to
know
Students
need to
know
Families or
students may
contribute:
A. Curriculum, school subjects
B. Tests and assessments
C. Report cards
D. Standards for students’ work
E. Other
2.
Think of Examples:
A.
B.
C.
3.
Give two examples of how students might help conduct school-tohome communications about school programs and student progress in
learning and behaviour.
Give two examples of how students might hinder school-to-home or
home-to-school communications about school programs and student
progress in learning and behaviour.
Give two examples of what teachers and/or parents could say or do to
help students understand the importance of their roles in school-tohome-to school communications.
Collect one example of a school or classroom newsletter.
A.
B.
C.
Identify the school level (preschool, elementary, middle, or high
school) or grade level of the example.
Analyze the purpose(s) and content of the newsletter: the format;
readability; quality of information; participation of students, teachers,
administrators, and parents; strategies to enhance two-way
communications.
Give two suggestions of how you would improve the newsletter you
reviewed.
Adapted from Epstein , J (2001). School family and community partnerships: Preparing educators and improving schools. Boulder CO: Westview Press
VOLUNTEERING
Volunteers provide
support to children’s
learning.
Volunteer activities can
occur in the school and in
the community.
Notes:
Examples:
 Redefining volunteer to include
those who support children’s
learning any place, any time:
aides, tutors, coaches, lecturers,
chaperones and other leaders, as
well as audience members for
events/ceremonies.
 Recruiting and training volunteers.
 Identifying volunteer activities in
newsletters.
 Arranging opportune schedules
and location for volunteers.
 Conducting surveys of parents to
gather information about the
talents and interests of parents in
the community.
 Considering a parent for each
class, and the development of
phone trees and networks to
support volunteers.
 Appreciate and celebrate
volunteers.
VOLUNTEERING: To support and develop volunteer
activities and opportunities.
Adapted from Epstein , J (2001). School family and community partnerships: Preparing educators and improving schools. Boulder CO: Westview Press
VOLUNTEERING
QUESTIONS TO DISCUSS:
1.
2.
3.
Suppose you notice that working parents, single parents, or parents
who live far from the school do not volunteer as much as other
parents. What is one new approach to increase the number of each of
the following groups of parents to volunteer in ways that help student
learning and success?
School Community members:
One way to increase
participation:
A. Working Parents
B. Single Parents
C. Parents who live far from
the school
D. Fathers
A.
B.
C.
D.
The number of families who become volunteers at the school building
may be increased if parents and other family members can volunteer
to assist in classroom, in parent rooms, on the playground, in the
lunchroom, and in other locations. Give one idea for how each of the
following ways of working with volunteers might be expanded or
changed to enable more families to participate.
Volunteers must
Change to:
A. come to the school building.
B. come during school hours.
C. come during the school
year.
D. work with a specific teacher.
E. have children in the school.
F. not be involved in
curriculum-related activities.
G. Other idea:______________
A.
B.
C.
D.
E.
F.
G.
Discuss ways to identify the talents, skills, and time that parents can
share with the school.
Adapted from Epstein , J (2001). School family and community partnerships: Preparing educators and improving schools. Boulder CO: Westview Press
LEARNING AT HOME
Activities that involve
families with their
children which influence
children’s achievement,
decisions, and choices.




Developing skills
Homework
Goal Setting
Curriculum related
activities
Examples:
 How to help with homework.
 Skills required to pass each
subject.
 Curriculum related decisions.
 Students’ goal setting for
success in school and postsecondary planning.
 Developing other skills and
talents.
Notes:
LEARNING AT HOME: To involve families with their children
at home in activities or decisions about learning and school.
Adapted from Epstein , J (2001). School family and community partnerships: Preparing educators and improving schools. Boulder CO: Westview Press
LEARNING AT HOME
QUESTIONS TO DISCUSS:
1.
How are parents affected if the school DOES or DOES NOT provide
the following information? On the chart below, list one result for
parents that you would expect if the school does/does not provide
information on the following items:
If the school DOES
provide information….
Item
A.
Homework policies
B.
Requirements for passing
each subject
C.
How to monitor students’
homework
D.
How students can share
something that they learned
in class
E.
How to make choices of
academic courses in math,
science, foreign language, and
electives in high school.
If the school DOES
NOT provide
information….
2.
Select one result from your chart that you believe is particularly
compelling. Describe one activity that might help teachers provide
the information to all parents and that would produce the result
you expect.
3.
Select one result from your chart that you believe is particularly
troublesome. Describe one problem that could arise and an activity
that would help solve that problem.
Adapted from Epstein , J (2001). School family and community partnerships: Preparing educators and improving schools. Boulder CO: Westview Press
Examples:
DECISION-MAKING
Activities that involve
families as participants in
decision-making of all
kinds.
Parent Advisory Councils
School Planning Councils
Notes:
 Council/committee membership,
participation, leadership,
representation.
 Advisory councils, School Planning
Councils, school improvement teams.
 School site management teams, other
committees.
 Opportunities for training are
available.
 Representatives reflect on all
members of diverse communities
served by the school so all families
have a voice in decisions made.
 Educators, parents and students work
together to improve and extend
discussions which lead to better
decisions.
DECISION-MAKING: To encourage and assist parents to
participate in decision-making in a variety of ways and to
obtain information from/provide information to other parents
about decisions made.
Adapted from Epstein , J (2001). School family and community partnerships: Preparing educators and improving schools. Boulder CO: Westview Press
DECISION-MAKING
QUESTIONS TO DISCUSS:
Improving districts and schools work with all parents
to improve student achievement.
1.
Describe how the school board:
A. Consults with the SPCs.
B. Approves school plans.
2.
How can the community be engaged in this process at
the school level?
3.
What strategies are used to seek input from groups such
as parents, staff, students, and the community?
A. Suggest some additional strategies to enhance
opportunities for input.
4.
How are parents and parent groups, including the PAC(s)
and DPAC, involved in efforts to improve student
achievement?
5.
Suggest some strategies that the district can use to
enhance decision-making opportunities.
6.
What strategies are you finding most useful in engaging
others?
Adapted from the Ministry of Education
District Review Guide 2005/06.
COLLABORATING
with the COMMUNITY
Building Partnerships:
Activities bring resources to
the school from the
community and from the
school to the community.
Community services
support and enhance
school programs and
directions.
Notes:
Examples:
 Information about community
programs and services are
shared and families have equal
access to the
programs/services.
 Community contributes to
schools, students, families.
 Business partners, agencies,
cultural groups, health services,
recreation, and other groups
strengthen programs and
curriculum.
 Schools, students, and families
contribute to community.
 Service learning, special
projects to share talents, solving
local problems.
COLLABORATING WITH THE COMMUNITY: To bring
talents and resources to the school/classroom from the
community and to share the resources of the school with
the community.
Adapted from Epstein , J (2001). School family and community partnerships: Preparing educators and improving schools. Boulder CO: Westview Press
COLLABORATING WITH THE COMMUNITY
QUESTIONS TO DISCUSS:
1.
Give one example of a school, family, and community partnership
activity that would fulfill the spirit of each of the following
redefinitions of selected activities for the six types of involvement.
A.
Workshop is not only a meeting on a topic held at the school
building but also the content of that meeting, which may be
viewed, heard, or read at convenient times and varied locations.
B.
Communications about school programs and student progress
C.
Volunteers are not only parents or others who come to help
D.
Help at home does not mean that parents must know how to
E.
Decision-making means exchanging views to plan and implement
F.
Community includes not only families with children in school but
are not only from school-to-home but also from home-to-school
and with the community.
during the school day but also those who give their time to
support school goals and children’s learning in any locations.
“teach” school subjects, but that families guide, encourage, and
interact with their children on homework and school-related
decisions.
an effective, coordinated partnership program that will help
students succeed in school. It is not a power struggle.
also all citizens who are interested in and affected by the quality
of education.
Adapted from Epstein , J (2001). School family and community partnerships: Preparing educators and improving schools. Boulder CO: Westview Press