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Over the past 50 years, the nature of family involvement has evolved from a narrowly defined concept into a much broader set of ideas. The traditional view of "parent involvement" includes activities that often are unidirectional (parents give something to the school); exclusive (only a small, "privileged" group of parents participate); and narrow in focus (centering mainly on children's achievement). Newer concepts focus on developing mutual partnerships, involving all families, and recognizing a range of types of family involvement. This is reflected in the change from "parent involvement" to "family involvement," the latter indicating that all family members, including the extended family, contribute to children's learning and school improvement. Also, families -- as contexts of human development -- and not just children, deserve support and participation in educational matters. These changes imply that teacher preparation must reflect a more inclusive and comprehensive understanding of family involvement than it did in the past.
The framework presented in this section illustrates the range of training for family involvement. It emerged from a review of the parent and family involvement literature, an analysis of state certification, and a survey of teacher education programs. While other typologies of family involvement have been created (Epstein, 1992), they consist of actual types of family involvement activities carried out in schools. The framework, illustrated in Table 3, differs from such typologies in its focus on the attitudes, skills, and knowledge that teachers need to work effectively with parents. For example, "General Family Knowledge," in this framework, is not a type of family involvement per se, but an area of knowledge that teachers need in order to work with parents.
By providing a range of types of training, the framework overcomes the fragmentation in the way in which students learn about family involvement. Content knowledge is enhanced when presented in a progressive and integrated manner. The framework begins with general knowledge about family contributions to child development and school achievement, and then builds toward specialized knowledge such as ways in which schools can support families and families can support schools. These latter activities point to the need as well for new schools that enable teachers to practice their new skills. Family involvement is more likely to occur when school policies encourage it and school administrators support and reward teachers for their efforts.
The framework recognizes several approaches to training in family involvement, which can be used alone or in combination. Four major approaches illustrate the kinds of attitudes, knowledge, and skills that teachers can acquire to increase their effectiveness with families. The approaches include: (1) a functional approach that describes the roles and responsibilities of teachers and parents in promoting student achievement; (2) a parent empowerment approach based on the strengths of disenfranchised families; (3) a cultural competence approach that makes the school an inclusive, respectful setting where diversity is welcomed; and (4) a social capital approach that builds community support for education.
Table 3 identifies the different content areas and their goals. Table 4 indicates which programs illustrate each content area of the framework. These tables are followed by a brief description of each content area, a table that details the attitudes, knowledge, and skills embodied in each of the four approaches identified above, and profiles of model programs that illustrate each content area.
The nine programs that illustrate the framework were chosen from the survey or were nominated by survey respondents. Therefore, these programs may not represent the universe of exemplary programs. However, each program in this sample met three criteria: they commonly focused on family involvement as an important area for preservice preparation; they engaged student teachers in hands-on activities; and they promoted a broad concept of family involvement that recognizes family strengths, the need for family support, and the importance of home-school collaboration. Notably, the programs tended to demonstrate knowledge, skill development, and experiences in several content areas, as well as innovative methods of delivery.
| General Family Involvement | To provide general information on the goals of, benefits of, and barriers to family involvement. To promote knowledge of, skills in, and positive attitudes toward involving parents. |
| General Family Knowledge | To promote knowledge of different families' cultural beliefs, childrearing practices, structures, and living environments. To promote an awareness of and respect for different backgrounds and lifestyles. |
| Home-School Communication | To provide various techniques and strategies to improve two-way communication between home and school (and/or parent and teacher). |
| Family Involvement in Learning Activities | To provide information on how to involve parents in their children's learning outside of the classroom. |
| Families Supporting Schools | To provide information on ways to involve parents in helping the school, both within and outside the classroom. |
| Schools Supporting Families | To examine how schools can support families' social, educational, and social service needs through parent education programs, parent centers, and referrals to other community or social services. |
| Families as Change Agents | To introduce ways to support and involve parents and families in decision making, action research, child advocacy, parent and teacher training, and development of policy, programs, and curriculum. |
| Type | Teacher Training Institutions |
|---|---|
| General Family Involvement | Trinity College, University of Arizona, Indiana University Northwest |
| General Family Knowledge | Trinity College, Northern Arizona University, University of Wisconsin, California State University (Fresno) |
| Home-School Communication | Vanderbilt University-Peabody College, University of Arizona, University of Houston at Clear Lake |
| Family Involvement in Learning Activities | Vanderbilt University-Peabody College, California State University (Fresno), University of Georgia (Athens), University of Houston at Clear Lake |
| Families Supporting Schools | University of Arizona, Indiana University Northwest, University of Wisconsin (Madison) |
| Schools Supporting Families | Trinity College, University of Houston at Clear Lake, University of Georgia (Athens), Indiana University Northwest |
| Families as Change Agents | Northern Arizona University, Indiana University Northwest |
By taking an approach that identifies and builds on family strengths and resources, teachers can build on the wealth of knowledge, experience, and skills that parents possess. Parents feel valued when teachers work in partnership with them. They gain confidence in their ability to contribute to their children's schooling, and as a result, they are more likely to become involved in their children's education.
In the early childhood program, seven required courses have a family involvement component. An optional course, a required workshop, student teaching, and a field experience also have a family involvement component. Preservice teachers attend guest lectures by parents who discuss issues related to parenting, finding appropriate child care, raising a child with special needs, and making the difficult transitions involved in sending a child to public school.
Faculty who teach courses in social work present lectures on family dynamics and related concerns, and a special educator talks about how Individual Family Service Plans are developed with families. Prospective teachers interview parents and other family members about issues pertinent to early childhood. They also interview their own families for an understanding of the ways in which their family experiences have influenced them as teachers. For example, when addressing the subject of social development, preservice students consider their own social development: they examine the many influences in their lives that have contributed to their work with children and families.
The program also includes a special community service element through which student volunteers provide tutoring, respite care, and child care, and at the same time, gain experience working directly with families. "Students come to college with a lot of baggage, and this [program] helps them on their personal and professional journey to becoming a teacher," observes Marilyn Richardson, director and faculty member. "The first semester is a lot of perspective taking, analyzing who they are, and getting information about children along the way."
| Functional Approach | Parent Empowerment |
| Attitude that all teachers should learn skills and sensitivity in dealing with parents Knowledge about the goals and benefits of family involvement and also the barriers to it Skills in involving parents of all backgrounds in school Knowledge of the role of school administration in promoting or preventing family involvement |
Attitude that all parents want what is best for their children and that all parents want to be good parents Attitude that parents are children's first and most important teachers Attitude of respect for the role of the family in the nurturance and education of children Attitude that the most useful knowledge about rearing children can be found within the community |
| Cultural Competence | Social Capital |
| Knowledge that minority and low-SES students benefit academically from family involvement Skills in using culturally appropriate themes in the curriculum |
Knowledge of the idea of social capital and parental investment in their children's learning |
*The approaches are based on the work of the following authors: Joyce Epstein (functional); Moncrieff Cochran (parent empowerment); Luis Moll (cultural competence); and James Coleman (social capital).
Participants in the program have many opportunities to learn about Navajo culture and language. They live on the reservation for the academic year and take courses on site with an NAU professor. Each of these preservice teachers is also paired with a Navajo teacher aide who has been a student in the program. These teacher aides are paid a stipend to help the NAU student teachers adapt to the community and learn about Navajo culture. Each month, the teacher aides bring participants to various cultural events and activities, such as a Navajo wedding, that involve the entire community. Participants must also attend all school board meetings, where they can observe community decision making in action.
The program is field-based and collaborates with four elementary schools that have diverse student populations. At least one-third of the faculty members in each of the schools must be willing to collaborate with the University. Before starting the program, faculty meet with various segments of the community, including the superintendent and members of the teachers' unions and two community-based organizations -- Centro Hispano and the South Madison Neighborhood Center -- to introduce themselves and explain what they hope to achieve.
At the beginning of their first semester, all students are placed in a community setting. Approximately seven students are placed together at the same site so that they are not isolated from one another. During the academic year, they are in the schools 15 hours each week, tutoring and/or leading small group or whole class activities. While working in the schools, these preservice teachers also attend seminars given by University of Wisconsin faculty associates (Gloria Ladson-Billings, Mary Louise Gomez, and Kenneth Zeichner) who spend several days a week on site. Preservice teachers spend an additional five hours each week in a community setting.
In addition to attending the University seminars during the fall semester, the preservice teachers return to the University in the late afternoon or evening for additional classes. In the spring semester, they complete their full-time student teaching requirement at these schools. The following summer, they finish foundations coursework in educational policy studies and educational psychology, and complete a master's paper. This nontraditional course sequence offers a unique opportunity for connecting direct experiences with educational theory.
Students in the program learn about family involvement by working directly with community members whose children attend local schools. One assignment, for example, asks the preservice teachers to obtain information about a child's health and physical and social development from the child's family members and from community service providers familiar with the child. In this way, the program promotes the idea that parents and other family members, as well as family professionals, are valuable resources to teachers and schools.
| Functional Approach | Parent Empowerment |
|---|---|
| Knowledge of different cultural beliefs, lifestyles, childrearing practices, family structures, and living environments Attitude of respect for different backgrounds and lifestyles Knowledge of the functions of families |
Attitude of support toward parents, focused on strengths rather than deficits Knowledge of power differences among groups in society Knowledge of the history of disenfranchised groups Knowledge of the effects of a family's disadvantaged status on its interactions with teachers or other professionals Knowledge of how families interact with schools and similar institutions |
| Cultural Competence | Social Capital |
| Knowledge about cultural influences on discipline, learning, and childrearing practices Knowledge of personal assumptions, belief systems, and prejudices that can affect relationships with family and community Skills in understanding and reversing negative stereotypes of parents, families, and community members |
Knowledge that schools and homes have different norms and values, and that such differences influence partnerships between home and school Knowledge of common values that span different cultures and institutions Skills in conflict negotiation and consensus building |
* The approaches are based on the work of the following authors: Joyce Epstein (functional); Moncrieff Cochran (parent empowerment); Luis Moll (cultural competence); and James Coleman (social capital).
Professor Bauch's semester-long course enrolls more than 50 students each semester. The course is designed to be very practical, giving preservice teachers substantial practice with specific strategies that can be used in their future classrooms. For example, guest speakers, including a home-school coordinator and a human development counseling specialist, offer relevant information from the field. Throughout the course, preservice teachers prepare for home/school/community partnerships by:
Graduates who have taken the course have applied their new skills in the classroom in numerous ways. Some of them have scanned photos of themselves into letters to parents at the beginning of the school year to help personalize their introductions. Three graduates continued their interest in parent involvement by completing master's degrees to become home-school coordinators in the Nashville community's early childhood programs.
"When teachers are not prepared in family involvement," Bauch asserts, "it is unlikely that they will initiate comprehensive or innovative programs in their schools."
| Functional Approach | Parent Empowerment |
| Skills in effective interpersonal communication Communication skills to deal with defensive behaviors, distrust, hostility, and frustrated parents Skills in using active listening and effective communication to understand families and to build trust and cooperation |
Skills in effective interpersonal communication Skills in treating parents as equal partners Knowledge of the importance of positive communication with parents, even when the child is having problems Attitude that parents should not be controlled, but rather that their views and needs should be understood |
| Cultural Competence | Social Capital |
| Knowledge of the importance and logistics of obtaining translators for families who do not read or speak English Knowledge of the styles of communication of different cultural groups |
Skills in communicating expectations and values in order to build a sense of trust among members in the community Skills in communicating with parents in a way that models how values will be transmitted between other members of society (parent-child, teacher-child, or parent-parent) Skills in being attentive, persistent, and dependable over time in relationships with families, thereby showing genuine caring toward families |
* The approaches are based on the work of the following authors: Joyce Epstein (functional); Moncrieff Cochran (parent empowerment); Luis Moll (cultural competence); and James Coleman (social capital).
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[Chapter III. (part 2 of 2)]