Family Engagement: Moving from Theory to Practice

Photo Credit: found on blog bachwards by Tracy Bachellie

“…partnerships among schools, families and community groups are not a luxury – they are a necessity.” (Henderson, Mapp, Johnson, and  Davies 1)

 

In every middle school I've worked in we've struggled with how to effectively engage parents at the secondary level.  Some parents were so involved in their elementary school that they want a break when their child enters 6th grade and end up taking a middle school hiatus.  Yet others feel like (in the words of a parent) "their right arm has been lopped off" because there aren't opportunities for them to spend time in the school during the day supporting staff and students like they did when their children were in elementary school.  While developmentally students' needs change and the role of the family member in the school should be different,  I do not believe the parent/guardian's impact on the student's learning is any less important.  They continue to be the expert on their child, and  we need parents/guardians to share their knowledge as we endeavor to provide a successful learning experience in the classroom.  If we need parents/guardians to support student learning effectively they should be in our building witnessing the teaching and learning.  Finally, if we see ourselves as a learning organization, we have to create opportunities to learn with and from one another.  

In order to make this happen, we have to move from not only understanding the importance of partnerships with families, but also to making it a part of our school's core belief and action plan.  In assessing where our school is on the Family-School partnerships rubric in the book Beyond the Bake Sale: The Essential Guide to Family/school Partnerships, we fall solidly in the Open Door category  of the Family Engagement Rubric with a clear eye toward Partnership.  In our spring survey 86% of parents identified that they felt there were opportunities for involvement at our school and 73% noted that they feel well informed about what is happening in the classroom.  I believe this response (from 23% of our families) is a result of what we already have in place.

Parent/Guardian Teacher Meetings

• We hold two official Parent/Guardian teacher conferences twice a year with our fall conference being student-led.  
• Parents are invited and encouraged to set up teacher or team conferences throughout the year as needed or desired.
• Our teams often invite parents in when they feel it is important to go beyond a phone call or an e-mail. 

Frequent Communication

• Teachers and teams keep updated blogs and e-mail families regularly about the learning occurring or social/team events.  
• Teachers and parents use e-mail often to communicate about student progress.
• All families and students have access to Power School where they can monitor student progress.  
• A weekly electronic newsletter is sent home highlighting school happenings and opportunities both within the school and in the community along with parent/guardian resources regarding our students.  
• We have bi-monthly PTO meetings and Principal Coffees around topics parents identified as needs/want to knows in a fall survey. 
• We started a school and library Twitter account this year.

Some Opportunities for Involvement

• Parents/guardians can attend a limited number of field trips as chaperons.
• There are some tutoring opportunities during the day in certain subject areas.
• Volunteers are invited to bake for/chaperone school social events.

I sign all of my school correspondence to parents with the closing "Your Partner in Education" because I want them to understand that I/we cannot do what we do for our students without them. We have a good foundation;  however,  there is still more to be done to become a Partnership School.  I am excited to go to #ptcamp with 100 educators  participating in a global read for 6 weeks this summer on Beyond the  Bake Sale.  The conversations during this first week via Voxer, Twitter and Appernet have been inspiring and have opened my eyes to the possibilities of what we can do to move to the next level of work.    Based on this first week at #ptcamp, I know that I'm going to walk away with a knowledge base and resources to partner in meaningful ways.