Transcript How can primary pupils’ reading motivation and

Improving home-school
engagement
The benefits of home-school
engagement activities
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Outcomes from this homeschool project found that:
– parents ask informed
questions about children’s
lessons
– teachers understand more
about the diverse cultural
heritage of the children in
their classes
What were effective engagement
activities?
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Activities that were particularly useful
included:
– providing parents with videos of lessons
– pupils using digital cameras for learning
– encouraging the use of home languages in the
school, and
– showcasing pupils’ work
Providing parents with videos of lessons
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Parents felt that the videos:
– offered them an opportunity to observe their child:
The video was good because I got to see my son in class
(Mother)
– showed them how the literacy lessons were organised:
I think people look at that and think, oh yes, I could do
that... (Mother)
Pupils use of disposable cameras
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Encouraging pupils to take pictures at
home helped teachers learn more
about their pupils’ backgrounds:
(they) gave me an insight into their
lives outside of school… you have
pictures showing where they are
actually using maths at home
(Teacher).
Many families referred to the
motivating effect:
… it got him involved in the whole
process. (Father)
Using home languages
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Teachers supported parents whose first language was
not English by:
– encouraging the use of heritage languages in the
school
– inviting them to attend meetings, and
– inviting them into their children’s lessons supported
by an interpreter.
Showcasing pupils’ work
One school set up a stall
in a supermarket
 The stall included
photographs of parents
and children making books
together
 The books were displayed
with explanations of the
activities and information
for parents

Objects photographed by the children
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Pupils took photographs of:
– items relating to their class
topic - making a model
vehicle, living things, plants
and growth and the local
environment
– everyday maths activities
they took part in at home
– other activities they engaged
in at home
How did teachers encourage to use the
images to extend learning?
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Once pictures had been developed, pupils were
encouraged to:
- work with a parent to select their favourite picture for
an album or a display
- record in a diary the details of each image taken
- discuss their content in class or small groups,
- write captions for their photos to explain how they
linked to their learning at school
Particular issues teachers needed to
address

Teachers encountered particular issues relating to:
– how to support parents who have little knowledge of
what to expect in an English classroom
– how to support children who have learned numeracy
using English, to explain things in their home
language
– the extent to which children should be seen to be
struggling and/or making mistakes by an audience
that extends beyond their families, and
– the extent to which pupils want to expose their
private home life to the scrutiny of those at school
Who was involved in the project?
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The researchers worked with parents and
teachers at eight primary schools to find out:
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what information and knowledge parents wanted from
school
what information and knowledge parents wanted to
give the school, and
ways in which this knowledge could be exchanged
The project had two strands:
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supporting literacy learning at Key Stage 1 (starting in
Year 1 age 5-6 yrs)
supporting numeracy learning at Key Stage 2 (starting
in Year 4 age 8- 9 yrs)
How was the information gathered?

The researchers monitored the effect of the
strategies by regularly interviewing six ‘target
families’ from each class
How might teachers use this evidence?
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Videos of literacy and numeracy lessons helped
teachers share information about children’s learning.
Parents felt better able to ask questions about their own
child’s lessons.
How could you use this strategy? How could resources
for reproducing DVDs be secured? Or could you make
time to make screenings available at a time convenient
to parents?
How might school leaders use this
evidence?
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Some teachers are skilful at integrating knowledge from
home into their work but the amount and detail of the
information brought in can present a challenge to most
teachers in the time available to use it
How can more time be made available for teachers to
plan to use what children bring to school?
Can teachers’ PPA time be extended when they engage
in these activities?
Can teacher assistants be used to support the work?
Find out more
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Study reference: Feiler, A., Greenbough, P., Winter, J.,
Salway, L., & Scanlan, M. (2006) Getting engaged:
possibilities and problems for home-school knowledge
exchange in Educational Review Vol. 58, (4) 2006,
pp.451-469
You might like to read a longer summary of home-school
knowledge exchange on the GTC website:
http://www.gtce.org.uk/research/romtopics/rom_teaching
andlearning/home_and_school_apr08/
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