We have had some interesting discussion about parent involvement today in our skills clinic sessions. It's pretty clear how much we want our parents to be involved in their student's education, and research shows it is absolutely critical to student success. In fact, family participation in education was twice as predictive of academic success in school than was the economic status of the family. That success rate increases as the intensity of parent involvement increases. See the details of these studies here.
When thinking about parent involvement, a complete program will include these six items, called the Epstein Model of parent involvement:
Parenting
Communicating
Volunteering
Learning at Home
Decision Making
Collaborating with the Community
In all these types of involvement, two way communication is critical. The community must reach out to the school, for example, in collaborating with the community. But the school must also reach out to the community, working to make the whole community a better place.
What are some of the ways we are meeting these six items for parent involvement?
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