parent involvement in preschool classrooms: how to obtain parental participation and make them feel...
TRANSCRIPT
Michael Wells, MS Monitoring Specialist for Quality Assurance
Parent Involvement in Preschool Classrooms: How to Obtain
Parental Participation and Make Them Feel Comfortable
Parental Involvement
Parent involvement has always been a significant part of Head Start (Zigler & Styfco, 2000)
Head Start has a better support system for parent involvement than private preschools (Roach, Kim, O’Connor, & Laurion, 2009)
Parent involvement leads to cognitive, language, and socio-emotional benefits (Castro et al.,
2004)
Parental Involvement - Head Start Performance Standards
Build partnerships with parents
Help parents access social services
Provide voluntary opportunities in the program and parent education
Allow parents to provide input in Head Start curriculum
Provide parents with health, nutrition, and mental health education programs
Use Community Resources
Support the transition to Kindergarten
Offer at least 2 home visits per year
Parent Involvement
How do you define parent involvement?
Epstein’s (1995) 6 Types of Parental Involvement
Parenting Styles
– Quality of parents’ interactions with children
Parent-School Communication
– Conversations with parents, phone calls, newsletters, etc
Parent Participation at School
– Volunteering in classrooms, helping plan events, going on field trips
Epstein’s (1995) 6 Types of Parental Involvement
Parent-Engagement in Learning at Home
– Reinforce what is taught at school
Parent Involvement in School Decisions
– Parent Policy Council
– Parent-Teacher Organizations
– Parent Group Meetings
School-Community Connections
– Using members of the surrounding community
Parent Involvement Defined
Head Start Family and Child Experiences Survey (FACES)
– Two types of Parent Involvement
Family and Child Activities
Parent Involvement in Head Start
(US Department of Health and Human Services, 1998)
Parental Help
What form of involvement is more beneficial?
– Active Involvement –volunteering, visiting class
– Passive Involvement – home visits, parent-teacher conferences
Where do you get the most parental help?
– Parent Group Meetings
– Volunteering in the classroom
– Field Trips (i.e. Zoo)
– Parents helping from home
What time of year do parents volunteer the most?
– Fall
– Spring
Parental Help
Active Involvement
Helping out in the classroom was the most common
– Parent Meetings were the second most common
Parents volunteer more time in the fall than in the spring
(Castro et al., 2004)
Parent Involvement
Who volunteers?
– Full Time Employed Parents
– Part Time Employed Parents
– Unemployed Parents
– More years of schooling (college)
– Less years of schooling (high school)
– Mothers
– Fathers
Who’s Involved?
Unemployed
Less years of schooling (High School)
(Castro et al., 2004)
Mothers
Why do you think this is?
How is this information beneficial?
The Teachers Role
Who Gets Parents Involved?
– Teachers with more years of experience
– Teachers with fewer years of experience
What type of Classroom are Parents more likely to be Involved In?
– Higher Quality Classrooms
– Lower Quality Classrooms
Teacher’s Role
Teachers with more experience
Classrooms with Higher Quality
– Using the Early Childhood Environment Rating Scale
(Castro et al., 2004)
Schools Participating
N = 239
Who Filled Out the Survey?
Race
Age of Parent
Parent Group Meetings
How Often Do You Attend Parent Group Meetings?
Visit Classroom
Received Fliers for Parents to Come to Class
Received Fliers for Parent Group Meetings
Teachers Encourage Classroom Participation
Teachers Encourage Attending Parent Group Meetings
Head Start Encourages Parents to be Involved in the Classroom
Encouraging Participation in Parent Group Meetings
Barriers to Parental Involvement
Busy Schedules
Work
School
Having Younger or Older Children to look after
Mental Health Issues (depression)
(Lamb-Parker et al., 2001)
This data shows similar findings as employment, school, and scheduling were all significant barriers
Increasing Parental Involvement in Classrooms
Provide opportunities for parents to have a say in their child’s education
Ask parents what their strengths and skills are and prepare lessons based around them
Advise parents of the huge help and difference they make in their child’s learning
Encourage and remind parents to come to the classroom often
Increasing Parental Involvement in Classrooms
Once parents are in the classroom, advise them of the daily events and how they can assist
Creating high quality classrooms may encourage greater levels of parental participation
Creating a mentoring program whereby those teachers who bring in more parent volunteers work with less experienced teachers
Gaining Greater Parental Involvement at Parent Group Meetings
Have Parent Group Meetings on different times and days
Having events that involve the whole family, especially fathers and other children, might engender greater involvement in after-school programs
(Castro et al., 2004)
What Parents May Experience a in Classrooms
Large Group Time
– Songs, Stories, Games
Transition Activities
Story Time/Literacy
Special Activities
– Field trips, visitors, cooking, center events
Home-School Connection
– Must relate to an activity that is sent home each week
Small Group Activities
– Curriculum’s Goals/Objective
Challenges
Directors
– Challenge your curriculum to be flexible
Teachers
– Challenge your parents to create and implement an hour long in -class activity
Parents
– Empower yourself – Challenge the teachers by asking questions about how you can support their teachings at home