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In what practical ways do you and/or your school currently support parents? What benefits have you seen from this?
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I am not currently in a school setting. However, in the past, we worked to invite and include their insights about their children from the beginning to inform decisions about class assignments, groupings within the classroom, and approaches to teaching and learning. We also functioned as advocates of children and families by equipping parents with knowledge of the educational system–especially the parts related to the special interests and unique circumstances of their child–in ways they could understand.
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I definitely think that we support parents with the freedom of scheduling conferences now to work around the individual parent’s schedule. Many parents also prefer more text-like updates and several apps allow for immediate quick communication. Also, continuing to have a special day for grandparents recognizes the generational dynamic to families and celebrating their involvement and encouraging them.
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Since I am in a public school I will speak from this position. We have a social worker. I have worked with this social worker a number of times. I have brought students to their attention when I felt that there was some issue outside the school that needed support. One student that the social worker called me about did not have running water in their home. The social worker knew that I was involved with a local church and she wanted to know if my church could help that family. Unfortunately in this case, the church that we attend has a policy of not helping anyone that is not a paying offical church member. The church is operated by the pastor’s family members and he only visits and is involved with his family members. He doesn’t even get involved with my family. I did call him just in case he knew someone that could help and his response was what I just stated. He was unwilling to assist.
I have purchases some winter coats and made them available for students that don’t have coats. The school provides free breakfast and lunch to students whose families can’t afford lunch. I bring in bottles of water and snacks for kids that are not eligible for the lunch programs. Usually it is because the parents have not filled out the free or reduced lunch forms for the kids.
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Our school provides Sunday church service for parents and students to attend. In addition to the church service, life groups are available for parents and students to join through out the week.
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The school in which I work at takes a few days to schedule parent teacher conferences allowing both morning and late afternoon options. There are also parent workshop nights to learn about requirements for student whether it’s first-time students’ orientation to school, college information nights, or even hosting townhall meetings. This has built a strong relationship between families and school staff. Parents feel welcomed to ask any questions or make constructive concerns known to leadership teams and teachers..