Transcript Participation or Engagement: A Powerful Distinction that

FAMILY PARTICIPATION OR ENGAGEMENT:
A POWERFUL DISTINCTION THAT SUPPORTS
POSITIVE OUTCOMES FOR KIDS
Presented at the National Catholic Educational Conference
Orlando, Florida
4/8/15
By Shauna Adams and Susan Ferguson
Introductions
Who is our audience?
Who we areSusan Ferguson:
◦ Director of the Center for Catholic Education at the University of Dayton
◦ Marianist Educational Associate
◦ Family Engagement Collaborative of the Miami Valley Steering Committee
◦ Catholic Family Traditions Specialist for Stories of God’s Love, RCL-Benziger
Shauna Adams:
◦ Director of the Center for Early Learning at the University of Dayton
◦ Associate Professor of Early Childhood
◦ Principle Investigator Family Engagement Collaborative of the Miami Valley
◦ Co-author, Stories of God’s Love, RCL Benziger
Learner Outcomes
Participants will
1. Evaluate their school’s family engagement
strategies to identify areas of strength
2. Evaluate their school’s family engagement
strategies to identify opportunities for growth
Family Engagement
System Self-Evaluation
Tool
Throughout this session we will be
referring to this tool to assist you
as you evaluate the current
practice in your school or parish.
At the end of the session you will
complete an action plan and be
invited to join the Family
Engagement Collaborative.
Supporting those
who Support
Families
www.familyengagementcollabortive.com
Tool Kits
The 4 Principles of a Research-based
Family Engagement System
A. Effective family engagement programs build
relationships between the school and families.
B. Effective family engagement programs appropriately
meet the needs of families and children.
C. Effective family engagement programs establish a
comprehensive system of communication.
D. Effective family engagement programs embrace and
respect the cultural background of all families.
A. Effective family engagement
programs build relationships between
the school and families.
1. They are based on the belief that families,
teachers and administrators are partners and
are jointly responsible for school readiness and
success.
Ready Families + Ready Communities + Ready Schools
= Ready Children
2. Establish a family engagement team
More of
this
Teams work together to design,
implement, and monitor the family
engagement plan.
Less of
this
3. Use effective survey processes.
Did you survey
the families to
see what they
wanted?
I did and gave
them what they
said they wanted
but they still didn’t
show up.
4. Use data about families to plan.
Be sure that you are gathering the right data.
What you think we
can do better
What we think you
can do better
5. Incorporate many roles
Families and educators
are not limited by the
traditional view of their
roles
B. Effective family engagement
programs appropriately meet the
needs of families and children.
1. Empower families by focusing on
strengths and avoiding a deficit model
2. Address children and families’ basic
needs before higher learning skills.
3. Recognize that many factors act
together to influence the development
of a child.
4. Provide information about community
resources available to support families
and educators.
Social and Emotional Competence of Children
5. Incorporate the Six Protective
Factors
• Parental Resilience
• Social Connections
• Concrete Supports for Parents
• Nurturing and Attachment
• Knowledge of Parenting and Child
Development
Social and Emotional Competence of Children
5. Incorporate the Six Protective
Factors
• Parental Resilience
• Social Connections
• Concrete Supports for Parents
• Nurturing and Attachment
• Knowledge of Parenting and Child
Development
Family Café
Adapted from the work of Center for the Study of Social Policy,(2006). Strengthen Families: A
Protective Factors Framework. http://www.cssp.org/reform/strengtheningfamilies
1. Include a meal
4. Start with three 2-hour sessions
2. Provide child Care
5. Avoid experts and advice
3. Are hosted by families
Family Café Philosophy
• Families come with strengths
• There are no experts here
• Guidelines for successful Cafés
◦
◦
◦
◦
◦
Everyone shares
No one dominates
Share personal experiences
Do not give advice
Disagree respectfully
Let’s try a segment of a Family Café
1. What are you doing the
same and what are you
doing differently from
your parents and why?
C. Effective family engagement
programs establish a comprehensive
system of communication.
1. Work with families to create a
clear mission statement
2. Include a two-way
communication system
3. Include both formal and informal
meetings and/or home visits
D. Effective family engagement
programs embrace and respect the
cultural background of all families.
1. Include activities that have a clear cultural
connection to the community and the
participants
2. Involve facilitators who are familiar with the
culture of the school and community.
To Contact Us
Susan Ferguson
[email protected]
Shauna Adams
[email protected]
References
Center for the Study of Social Policy,(2006). Strengthen Families: a Protective Factors Framework.
http://www.cssp.org/reform/strengtheningfamilies
Crosson-Tower, C. (2010). Understanding child abuse and neglect, (8th ed.). Boston, MA: Allyn and
Bacon.
Diffily, D. (2004). Teachers and Families Working Together. Boston, MA: Pearson, Allyn and Bacon.
Epstein, J.L. (2011). School, Family and Community Partnerships: Preparing Educators, Improving
Schools. Philadelphia, PA: Westview Press.
Family Engagement Collaborative of the Miami Valley Region:
www.familyengagementcollaborative.com
Grant, K.B. & Ray, J.A. (2013). Home, School and Community Collaboration: Culturally Responsive
Family Engagement. Los Angeles, CA: SAGE Publications, Inc.
Hanson, M. & Lynch, E. (2013). Understanding Families: Supportive Approach to Diversity, Disability,
and Risk (2nd). Baltimore, MD: Brookes.
Overton, S. (2005). Collaborating with Families: A Case Study Approach. Columbus, OH: Pearson.