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After an introduction to the course and a discussion of family issues, participants are matched with families with whom they carry out projects and activities for ten weeks. Activities include interviewing a family, reviewing school records with the family, conducting diagnostic teaching on the child, and modeling successful teaching strategies for family members. Participants must also write weekly progress reports and a final summary for the classroom teacher, lead a weekly parent discussion group and a children's self-esteem group, and compile a resource notebook with parents.
Beginning in the 13th week of the semester, participants expand on what they have learned during their work with the families. They complete school surveys and design family involvement programs to implement in their current or future job situations. Many participants complete master's theses on some aspect of family involvement, which they then use to build programs serving families. Master's students must disseminate the information from their theses at conferences, staff development institutes, faculty inservice programs, and university classes. Evaluation data collected from parents, teachers, and Parent Power teachers reveal improvement in grades and classroom behavior as well as eased tensions at home because of involvement in the project. "It is very gratifying to watch my students grow to the point that they can make their own contribution to the field," says Deanna Evans-Schilling, program founder and director. "There are numerous spin-off projects, and some students are entering doctoral programs to pursue their interest in family involvement. Many say the course is the most useful one they have taken." In 1992, the Project was awarded the Christa McAuliffe Showcase Award for innovative curricula in teacher preparation programs.
The program prepares preservice teachers in family involvement by providing lists of possible experiences during their internships, suggesting questions for their journal observations, and asking questions about family involvement. The program also explores teachers' attitudes and beliefs about working with families. Students engage in self-reflection about their own cultural background and experience, complete readings on family involvement research, and participate in role playing of parent-teacher communications.
Students organize themselves into cooperative groups to explore research and readings on a wide range of topics in the area of family involvement such as "Involving Parents in Assessment," "African American Parent Perspectives on Schooling," and "Helping Parents Understand Reform." Each group develops a chapter for a Teacher Resource Guide on Family Involvement, designed to guide first-year teachers' work with families.
Martha Allexsaht-Snider asserts that through collaboration with University colleagues, teachers in the partnership schools have become very active in research and inquiry in their own classrooms. Family involvement has been the focus of several teacher research projects, and the program has linked preservice students with these teachers. Graduates of the program who have continued to conduct action research in family involvement have returned to UGA as mentors and guest speakers in preservice education courses.
Another intensive course related to families and schools has been developed as a component in the Prekindergarten-Second Grade Emphasis Program. Students in the course develop resource packets for teachers. The packets are based on interviews and presentations by community agency representatives who collaborate with teachers to strengthen family, school, and community linkages. In their field placement, students develop a parent project in which they meet with a classroom teacher and parent to provide resources for family involvement in a child's learning. Students also plan and carry out lessons for elementary children, focusing specifically on family and community themes.
| Functional Approach | Parent Empowerment |
|---|---|
| Skills in involving parents in their children's learning outside of the classroom Skills in sharing teaching skills with parents |
Skills in developing activities that build parents' confidence and facility in conducting home learning activities with their children Skills in providing constructive feedback |
| Cultural Competence | Social Capital |
| Skills to incorporate family "funds of knowledge" into homework projects, so that families and communities can contribute to children's learning | Skills in motivating family involvement in home-learning activities Skills in home visiting Skills in fostering community participation in educational activities |
* 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).
Preparing teachers to involve families in their children's schooling can help teachers to understand families, communicate with them, negotiate differences, and build consensus. This training enables teachers to participate in forums for parents, teachers, and other citizens to establish collective support for learning and student achievement. Teachers also develop the skills to involve parents and other family members as resources for the school.
Currently, participating teachers go into all types of households, including English- and Spanish-speaking, low-income and middle-income, and so forth. After visiting the households of two or three of their students and interviewing the families, the teachers participate in study groups to analyze their findings collectively. Teachers then form curriculum units that reflect what they have learned from their household visits and study groups, integrating this knowledge into their classroom lessons and activities.
Teachers have learned to conduct interviews under a wide range of circumstances, and to take advantage of every opportunity to investigate funds of knowledge, whether they are walking down the hall or are participating in a field trip. They also learn to focus on the strengths of the individuals whom they encounter through their work. In addition, as Norma Gonzalez notes, "New avenues of communication between school and home have been constructed in a way that fosters confianza, or mutual trust."
| Functional Approach | Parent Empowerment |
|---|---|
| Skills in involving parents in the school and the classroom | Skills in making parents feel valued by inviting them to contribute their expertise in the classroom and in the school |
| Cultural Competence | Social Capital |
| Knowledge of the financial and time restraints of low-SES, single and/or working parents Skills in creating opportunities for parent involvement in school Skills in discovering different potential contributions of parents, and inviting them as guest speakers, translators, and organizers of cultural events |
Skills in fostering parents' investment in their children in school, through volunteering, attendance at school events, and fundraising Skills in utilizing resources of other community groups Skills in building reciprocal exchanges between school and home |
* 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).
The parental involvement model at the University of Houston at Clear Lake has since expanded to include training for teachers in regular programs. Expansions have included a six-hour master's course, developed with Title VII funding, that instructs teachers on how to conduct research. Students then compile a book of abstracts describing their research projects with parents and families.
Future projects may include compiling case studies that portray different parents and teachers affected by the program, and developing a certification program for Mexican immigrant parents and other adults in the community to provide them English skills and prepare them as teachers' aides in the schools.
The program is dynamic and changes yearly, but always maintains a focus on the following: (1) the primary responsibility of schools to initiate contact with parents, who often regard school as a place where authority is never questioned; (2) teacher leadership; (3) parent education; and (4) multiple definitions of family involvement that range from getting children dressed and ready for school to PTA membership and representation for other parents.
Finally, pre- and post-test surveys over the first three years of this program have revealed positive changes in the attitudes of parents, teachers, and children. In addition, informal talks with graduates of the program reveal that they implement the skills learned in the program and extend this knowledge even further. Some graduates have become home-school coordinators, and others have started their own programs. Both the process and outcome evaluations of the program have been widely disseminated (for example, at the AERA annual conference led by Joyce Epstein).
| Functional Approach | Parent Empowerment |
|---|---|
| Knowledge of how schools can support families' social and educational needs Knowledge about processes of consultation and communication Knowledge of the roles of various specialists and of interprofessional collaboration Skills in referral procedures |
Knowledge of and skills in promoting parent empowerment through adult education and parenting courses Knowledge of and skills in ameliorating parents' basic needs as a first step to helping them help their children academically Skills in incorporating parents' self-identified needs into parent programs and school activities |
| Cultural Competence | Social Capital |
| Knowledge of resources for cultural minorities Skills in creating opportunities for parents with different backgrounds to learn from one another Sensitive attitude toward different groups' perceptions of school "help" and reciprocity Skills in incorporating parent preferences into parent programs and school involvement activities |
Skills in identifying the expectations and goals of families Knowledge of how school social events can create social capital Skills in building reciprocal exchanges between school and home |
* 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).
PDCs involve a collaboration between universities and schools or parts of schools. Courses and field experiences are coordinated by professors and paid teacher instructors. Teacher instructors deliver seminars at the school and negotiate syllabi with professors teaching courses.
One major concern addressed by UTEP is how teachers in urban settings can work effectively with urban parents, many of whom are reluctant to be involved in the life of the school. Traditionally, many urban parents have had negative experiences with teachers and schools, both as students and as parents. Many have been contacted by schools only when their children are having problems, and consequently lack confidence or become defensive when relating to teachers. UTEP prepares teachers to overcome these barriers by building relationships with urban parents and involving them in the schools.
One unique aspect of UTEP is the involvement of parents in the design of the teacher education program. For example, each PDC has a parent liaison. Also, a parent advisory board designs the community experience component of the program, which includes a tour of major service agencies in the community. This community experience component has recently been integrated into existing courses. For example, students in the Psychology of Teaching course participate in a 21-hour placement in a community service agency, such as a library, urban league, or community center with a tutoring program. Some students, in fact, choose to spend more time in their community placement than required.
The parent advisory board has also sponsored a school-based workshop entitled "Through the Eyes of the Child," which brought community professionals together with school staff, parents, and UTEP students. A doctor, social worker, school nurse, hospital representative, juvenile law enforcement agent, and DARE program representative participated in the workshop, along with members of the religious community, parents, teachers, teacher aides, and counselors.
| Functional Approach | Parent Empowerment |
|---|---|
| Skills in supporting and involving parents as decision makers; action researchers; advocates; policy, program, and curriculum developers; and parent and teacher trainers Skills in sharing information to help parents make decisions Skills in sharing leadership with and transferring it to parents Skills in interacting with parents on an equal footing |
Skills in promoting political empowerment for parents through:
|
| Cultural Competence | Social Capital |
| Skills in encouraging all parents to run for seats on school councils Knowledge of importance of providing translators at school council meetings Knowledge of the importance of having teachers from various cultures be present on councils to make all parents feel welcome |
Attitude that shared decision making is an essential ingredient to establishing and maintaining a common set of core values Skills in negotiating differences and conflicting opinions Skills in involving parents in design of curriculum that represents shared values Skill in co-development of mission statement in council meetings that represents shared values |
* 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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[IV. Promising Methods for Teacher Preparation]