the toolkit for parent involvement that makes a difference

Beyond the school council: Parent involvement that makes a difference

Professor Carl Corter, Ontario Institute for Studies in Education / University of Toronto

About Carl Corter

Professor Carl Corter is a leading expert on parenting and parent involvement in schools. During his time at the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education, he has served as Dean and as Director of the Institute for Child Study. He has conducted highly influential research about school-based, integrated children’s services, including the Toronto First Duty project.

Agenda:

• Parent involvement matters• What matters most: high expectations, talking

about school, developing positive attitudes and work habits, reading with children

• Schools can make a difference: outreach, invitations and two-way communication

• Questions?

Agenda

Parent involvement mattersThirty years of research show parents’ involvement in their children’s education has significant impact on children’s academic and developmental goals. BUTNot all parent involvement is equally useful, and there is limited evidence for specific programs of parent involvement.

So what do we know?

Parent involvement matters

• Home-based activities and attitudes• School-based activities

Two types of parent involvement

More important than limiting TV time, or monitoring homework, four things parents do make the biggest difference:•Have high expectations•Talk with their children about school•Help develop positive attitudes and work habits•Reading to and with their children

Home-based activities

• When parents communicate that they expect their children to succeed, children and youth do better

High expectations

• Levels of home discussion are consistent across racial groups, family structure, and social class

• EQAO: only 38% of grade 6 students report they talk to a parent or guardian every day about school• Teachers - give parents something to talk about!

Talk about school

• Parents’ critical influence on school success is found in how they shape their children’s attitudes, sense of personal competence, and work habits

• Not “teaching” children• A major research review showed parents’

involvement in children’s homework had “neglible to nonexistent” effects

Positive attitudes and work habits

• Read for joy! • Read in any language!• EQAO: Only 21% of Ontario children in grade 3 report that they read together with a parent or guardian every day or almost every day

Reading together

Schools can make a difference

• Evidence clearly shows that school practices can make a difference, but it’s less about ‘programs’ and more about outreach, communication, collaboration and building relationships.

Schools can make a difference

Parents are more likely to get involved with school when they receive invitations to get involved from teachers, or through students•Send home questions to start conversations about what happened at school today•Consider assignments that require students to ask an adult at home questions•Ask parents to watch TV with their child and discuss

Invitations

Two-way communication

Try to find out what parents want and need to help their child succeed

Effective outreach improves school-wide achievement – but teachers need a menu of ways to communicate

Take advantage of school activities and events – parent teacher interviews, concerts, or celebrations - to build connections and trust

Questions from participants:•Is there research on building school culture?•How do we reach parents?•Information re: surveying students to find out if they feel they have someone to talk to at home – then communicating results to parents•Discussion about the variety of methods you can use to reach parents

Get the free Parent Involvement Toolkit www.peopleforeducation.ca

About P4E

People for Education is an independent charitable organization working to support public education in Ontario's English, Catholic and French schools. We believe that public education has the capacity to transform and enrich children's lives, and is the foundation of a civil society.