Better Education Is Everybody’s Business!

Better Education Is Everybody’s Business!

The Partnership for Family Involvement in Education:A nationwide effort to increase family involvement

at home and at school

and to

Promote children’s learning and achievement

It’s a fact! Family involvement contributes to children’sacademic success

It’s a fact! Family involvement contributes to children’sacademic success

Thirty years of research show that greater family involvement in children’s learning is a critical link to achieving a high-quality education.

Schools with high family involvement benefit from greater parent satisfaction with the school, and have improved teacher morale and more community support. (Henderson and Berla, 1994)

Positive attitudes of families and teachers toward learning are consistently related to children’s academic success. (Henderson and Berla, 1994)

Recent research again shows:Recent research again shows:

High involvement by families can make a positive difference for children’s learning across grades K-12.

“High involvement” in this study means both parents have done three or all of these activities in a school year: attend a general school meeting, attend a regularly scheduled parent-teacher conference, attend a school or class event, and serve as a volunteer at school. (National Center for Education Statistics, 1997)

According to teachers:According to teachers:

“The single most important thing public schools need to help students learn” is involved parents. (Public Agenda, 1996)

According to parents:According to parents:

The school treats them as important partners in children’s learning(89 percent said this).

They want to learn more about how to become involved in their children’s learning (77 percent said this).

They want to be more involved at their child’s school. (72 percent said this).(GTE, 1997)

Who is responsible for maximizing children’s learning?Who is responsible for maximizing children’s learning?

Responsibility should be shared by educators and families with support from the larger community, community and nonprofit organizations, business, faith communities and government. (Henderson and Berla, 1994 as cited in New Skills for New Schools, 1997)

Barriers to family involvementin educationBarriers to family involvementin education

Lack of time Not knowing what to do Differences in language and culture Unsafe neighborhoods Schools lacking a family-friendly environment Schools not organized to work with families

Solutions to barriers to family involvement in educationSolutions to barriers to family involvement in education

Overcome time and resource constraints Provide information and training to parents and

school staff Restructure schools to support family

involvement Bridge school-family differences Tap external support for partnerships from the

local community, nonprofit organizations, businesses, government and faith communities

Who we areWho we are

We are thousands of partners joined together in a growing grassroots movement to support student learning according to high standards. We come from families, schools, and a variety of businesses, communities, and religions, and are organized into four groups: Family-School Partners, Employers for Learning, Community Organizations and Religious Groups.

How we are organizedHow we are organized

The Partnership for Family Involvement in Education is organized into four groups:

Family-School Partners Employers for Learning Community Organizations Religious Groups

These partners have pledged to:These partners have pledged to:

Increase opportunities for families to be more involved in their children’s education at home and at school

Promote children’s learning and achievement

What the Partnership for Family Involvement doesWhat the Partnership for Family Involvement does

We address issues, provide information, expand professional development, and offer opportunities for sharing and networking through:

Convened meetings Materials (guides, kits, reports, CDs and videos) Hosted teleconferences A monthly newsletter (Community Update) Directed research A Web site Extended technical assistance

The benefits of joining the PartnershipThe benefits of joining the Partnership

Share and exchange good ideas and exemplary practices with partner leaders

Access the latest information and research about family involvement in education

Help families help their children succeed in school Work with other partners to develop a common vision

to improve efforts to help children learn and generate enthusiasm for learning

Promote effective ongoing two-way communication between home and school

Receive recognition for your commitment to education Promote the arts, a second language and technology

as integral to learning

How we achieve our goalsHow we achieve our goals

We come together as a team. A team could include representatives from a school community—families, teachers, principals, students and concerned community leaders—who agree to share responsibilityfor student learning.

We identify and commit to shared responsibilities. We evaluate the results of the partnership. We strengthen, improve and expand your

partnership.

Community Centers Community

Organizations Local, State and National

Government Agencies Faith Communities Youth Groups

Partners and partner groupswork with:Partners and partner groupswork with:

Schools School Districts Classrooms Students Teachers and

Administrators Families

What partners doin the PartnershipWhat partners doin the Partnership

Participate as volunteers, tutors, and mentors Make work and community sites available as learning

sites for students, teachers and families Promote improvement of schools and teaching in order

to reach high standards Elevate excellence throughout the teaching profession Support leadership, training and support for principals Adopt family- and student-friendly business practices Provide before- and after-school learning activities for

children in safe, drug-free environments

What partners doin the Partnership (cont.)What partners doin the Partnership (cont.)

Make effective use of facilities (for example, schools, community buildings and churches) for children’s and families’ learning

Give families increased access to resources, training and information to help children learn

Provide educators with a broad range of tools to better engage families in children’s learning

Wire and connect schools, students, teachers, community centers and families to the Internet

Prepare future and experienced teachers as well as students and families to maximize the use of technology for instruction

The spectrum of partner involvement in education:The spectrum of partner involvement in education:

Establish m

entoring

programs for students to

prepare them for college

Provide financial

aid information

to parents

College-Going

Train teachers in

real-world applications

of mathematicsProvide information to

parents on math classes

children should take

Mat

hem

atic

s

Establish literacy as acommunity priority throughintegrated tutoring programs Donate BooksRea

din

g

Spo

nsor

afte

r-sc

hool

prog

ram

s an

dpa

rtne

rshi

ps

Dis

trib

ute

info

rmat

ion

on lo

cal a

fter-

scho

ol

prog

ram

s

After-School

Wire

school c

lassrooms f

or

the Internet a

nd train

teachers

to use te

chnology

Donate

computers

Technology

Provide regular release

time for employees to attend

parent-teacher conferences

and other school eventsGive out information

for parents to help

children with homework

Fam

ily

Invo

lvemen

t

Low Involvement High Involvement

Partners

PFIE goal: Increase opportunitiesfor families to be more involved intheir children’s education

PFIE goal: Increase opportunitiesfor families to be more involved intheir children’s education

Give families the resources, training and information they need to help children learn

Strengthen family-school partnerships: Extend ongoing two-way communication and information sharing, and work together for children’s learning

PFIE goal: Promote children’s learning and achievementPFIE goal: Promote children’s learning and achievement

Help children read well and independently by third grade

Support learning right from the beginning of the school year…and beyond

Turn around student achievement in mathematics and science

Keep kids safe and smart before, during and after school

Give teachers and principals the tools they need to engage families and their support for learning

“How-To” resources available from the Partnership for Family Involvement

“How-To” resources available from the Partnership for Family Involvement

For All Partnership Members:– The Compact for Reading Guide

(available online at pfie.ed.gov)– A Compact for Learning: An Action Handbook

for Family-School-Community Partnerships Especially for Family-School Partners:

– Working for Children and Families: Safe & Smart II–After-School Programs

– Preparing for Learning: Preparing Teachers to Involve Families (CD-ROM)

Especially for Community Organizations:– Investing in Partnerships for Student Success:

A Basic Tool for Community Stakeholders to Guide Educational Partnership Development and Management

“How-To” resources availablefrom the Partnership for Family Involvement (cont.)

“How-To” resources availablefrom the Partnership for Family Involvement (cont.)

Especially for Employers:– The Corporate Imperative: A Business Guide for

Implementing Strategic Education Partnerships– A Business Guide to Support Employee and

Family Involvement in Education– Using Technology to Strengthen Employee and

Family Involvement in Education

Especially for Religious Groups:– Faith Communities Joining with Local

Communities to Support Children’s Learning: Good Ideas

How to access resources fromThe Department of EducationHow to access resources fromThe Department of Education

1-800-USA-LEARN 1-877-4ED-PUBS www.ed.gov pfie.ed.gov