Engaging Parents On School Landscapes Parents as Partners Webcast Monday, May 5th, 2008

Prepared by Debbie Pushor Associate Professor, College of Education, University of Saskatchewan [email_address]

Involvement: The word involvement comes from the Latin word “involvere” which means “to roll into.” Students, parents, and community members are “co-opted”; “brought into the act by another party.”

The word involvement comes from the Latin word “involvere” which means “to roll into.” Students, parents, and community members are “co-opted”; “brought into the act by another party.”

Involvement: Involvement may include activities such as having parents organize events, arrange fundraising activities, be audience members or support classroom activities.

Involvement may include activities such as having parents organize events, arrange fundraising activities, be audience members or support classroom activities.

Example: A school is working to improve student academic performance. The school holds a reading day and invites parents and community members in to read with students.

A school is working to improve student academic performance. The school holds a reading day and invites parents and community members in to read with students.

Engagement : The word ‘engagement’ comes from ‘en’ meaning make and ‘gage’ meaning pledge – to make a pledge to; to make a moral commitment. Students, parents, and community members who are engaged are “brought into the act” because of care and commitment.

The word ‘engagement’ comes from ‘en’ meaning make and ‘gage’ meaning pledge

– to make a pledge to; to make a moral commitment. Students, parents, and community members who are engaged are “brought into the act” because of care and commitment.

Engagement : Together, staff, students, parents, and community members: create the agenda, make decisions, and take actions. Children, families, the school and the community all benefit from this engagement

Together, staff, students, parents, and community members:

create the agenda,

make decisions, and

take actions.

Children, families, the school and the community all benefit from this engagement

Example : A school wants to work toward improving student academic performance. Through personal contact, all staff invite students, parents and community members to a forum to discuss what together they could do to positively impact achievement. Together, they actualize the plan and integrate the learning community’s suggestions into the school. They review their progress by measuring and sharing outcomes with all involved.

A school wants to work toward improving student academic performance.

Through personal contact, all staff invite students, parents and community members to a forum to discuss what together they could do to positively impact achievement.

Together, they actualize the plan and integrate the learning community’s suggestions into the school. They review their progress by measuring and sharing outcomes with all involved.

Engagement Engagement Involvement school’s agenda hierarchical unidirectional school’s power teacher knowledge “ hotdogs & plumbing” shared agenda side by side reciprocal shared power teacher & parent knowledge teaching & learning

Key Finding “ Parent and community involvement that is linked to student learning [in other words, parent engagement ] has a greater effect on achievement than more general forms of involvement” (Henderson & Mapp, 2002, p. 38).

Key Finding In Jeynes’ meta-analysis (2005), he found it was not particular parent actions attending school functions establishing household rules checking student homework that yielded the statistically significant effect sizes.

attending school functions

establishing household rules

checking student homework

Key Finding Instead, it was things which create “ an educationally oriented ambiance” – a sense of support and standards in the child’s mind – which produced the strongest results.

- a “new story” of school. It interrupts the “old story” of parent involvement to put a new story in its place. It redefines what we do, how we do it - and why. Parent Engagement

Engaging Parents On School Landscapes Parents as Partners Webcast Monday, May 5th, 2008