Diversity is Our Strength: Moving from Vision to Mission

“We all should know that diversity makes for a rich tapestry, and we must understand that all the threads of the tapestry are equal in value no matter what their color.”― Maya Angelou

As we end week 3 of #ptcamp and our Beyond the Bake Sale study of Linking to Learning (Chapter 3) and Addressing Differences (Chapter 4), I’ve been astounded by the high level of collaboration, brainstorming and deep reflection among the campers as we continue to focus on authentic family engagement beliefs and practices.  As we consider how we approach issues of race, class and and culture, I must say that I'm proud to work and live in a diverse community.  

• There are more than 70 languages represented in our schools.

• Approximately 20% of our students live in homes where English is not the home language.  

• Almost 18% of residents were born in another country.

• The ethnic diversity in our town is about 38% (American Indian or Alaska Native, Black, Hispanic, Asian or Pacific Islander, and two or more races).

• 10% of our students receive special education services

• Approximately 19% of students are eligible for free/reduced-price meals.

Needless to say, we are a multitude of threads creating a rich tapestry. However, what most excites/warms/fulfills me is the fact that our community values the rich diversity in our community and attempts to operate on the belief that "diversity is our strength."   

Over years, there have been a number of efforts to have courageous conversations about race and diversity at the town and school level. Our district is committed to closing the achievement gap. Our Board of Education and our District have identified diversifying our staff "to more closely match the diversity of our student population" as a strategic initiative knowing that in doing so "we will deepen our understanding, capacity, and effectiveness in helping all students realize their full potential."   Within our schools, we have worked to look at our curriculum to make sure the experiences and activities make students aware of different cultures and diverse individual experiences. In addition, there are several programs and opportunities for students and families to celebrate, appreciate, and support the various types of diversity represented in our community.  Yet with all of the great things happening, we know that there is more we can and should be doing to demonstrate that "all families, no matter what their income, race, education, language, or culture, want their children to do well in school--and can make an important contribution to their children's learning."  

Educating students to become global citizens means equipping them with the tools to respectfully interact with people who look, sound, think, behave, and believe differently than they do.  We continue to need professional development to reexamine our assumptions and practices, to make sure that we are teaching and responding in culturally responsive ways to our students and families.  Our challenge is creating the professional learning experience that goes beyond a visiting speaker or one day workshop, because that doesn't promote the level of reflection and conversation necessary to go the distance.  In order to continually keep our cultural lens (think beyond the traditional definitions) fixed and clear, we need to consider how we invite parents/guardians and students into the conversation about respecting differences and bridging the divides.  Working together (school staff, teachers, students and families) we can and will operationalize the strength of our diversity in ways that not only make all members of our community feel welcomed, accepted, and appreciated, but also actively engaged in our school and greater community.

Parent Engagement: Building a Strong Foundation

"I want all parents to be real partners in education with their children’s teachers, from cradle to career. In this partnership, students and parents should feel connected—and teachers should feel supported."—ARNE DUNCAN, U.S. SECRETARY OF EDUCATION, MAY 3, 2010

Core Belief 1: 

All families have dreams for their children and want the best for them.

Core Belief 2: 

All parents have the capacity to support their children’s learning.

Core Belief 3: 

Parents and school staff should be equal partners.

Core Belief 4: 

The responsibility for building partnerships between school and home 

rests primarily with school staff, especially school leaders.

As I consider my daily work as a leader to ensure the social/emotional and academic success of our students, the four core beliefs identified in Beyond the Bake Sale: The Essential Guide to Family -School Partnerships  is a wonderful lens through which we can view and evaluate our work as a school community to actively engage families. 

All successful relationships require a strong foundation. As a staff, we work together to build strong relationships with one another and our students and value the support of our families.  We have the privilege of teaching amazing students who carry their parents'/guardians' hopes and dream. We have a responsibility to cultivate strong and healthy partnerships with families to support these dreams by providing opportunities for parents/guardians to share these dreams and identify how we will equip students with the tools to achieve them along with ways that families can support students at home. In order for this to happen, we have to believe that "all parents have the capacity to support their children’s learning."  If we believe that each adult in a student's life has "funds of knowledge" about their children and their community, then it is our responsibility to respect this knowledge and value their input by partnering with families to equally support our students. We have to actively seek to build these partnerships as a school community. 

We are ready for this opportunity to embed these core beliefs into our learning community's strong foundation of support.  Our first step will be to evaluate our current practices and create an action plan to better connect parents/guardians to our community "through a focus on the children and their learning."  As I consider our next steps, I'm excited about this journey, and I know that we will continue to enrich the lives of our students by building strong active relationships with our families.  

I look forward to sharing our progress with my fellow #ptcamp'ers and learning your journey toward strong family partnerships.  

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.