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Out of Sight, Out of Mind? Bringing Indigenous Parent-‐Boarding School Communica<on to Light
Tessa Benveniste PhD candidate, Appleton Ins3tute (CQUniversity) CRC-‐REP -‐ Remote Educa3on Systems
Supervisors/co-‐authors: John Guenther, Drew Dawson, Sophia Rainbird
Note on use of term ‘parent’ !
I would first like to acknowledge that in many Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander
communities, a child may have a number of caregivers and guardians, these may be biological parents, aunties and uncles,
grandparents, or other relatives. The use of the term ‘parent’ throughout this presentation is
therefore not intended to be restricted solely to biological parents.!
Background !!
• Boarding schools are increasingly featuring in policy and media discussions about Indigenous education in Australia, e.g.!
!• NT Indigenous Education Review (Wilson, 2014) !• The Australian, 17 September, 2012, Boarding
gives kids view outside the box!• The Australian, March 8, 2012, BP donates $1m
for boarding scheme!• The Australian, 26 January, 2014, AIEF founder
Andrew Penfold appointed AM!!
• However, little empirical or qualitative research to determine actual outcomes or experiences of boarding for Indigenous students, families and communities!
!
Parent involvement in Education !!!
• Internationally shown to contribute to improved outcomes for: !• Students (attitudes, mental health, behaviour,
attendance, achievement)!• Teachers (improved relationships with parents,
higher ratings, teacher morale)!• Schools (improved school programs, better overall
school climate)!• Parents (increased confidence/satisfaction with
parenting, increased interest in own education)!!!
(Christianakis, 2011; Cox, 2005; Froiland & Davison, 2014; Jeynes, 2012) !
!
!
What is parental involvement ?!
• Younger children !• Home literacy (reading with child)!• Cognitive stimulation!• Counting objects!• Playing with puzzles !
• Teenage years !• Checking on grades!• Helping with homework !
• General !• Responding to notes from teachers!• Committee membership !!!!
(Froiland & Davison, 2014; Powell, Son, File, & San Juan, 2010) !
What is parental involvement?!
• Other, less visible forms of involvement can also be occurring, such as:!• Cooking or volunteering for events behind scenes!• Getting child up and ready for school!• Negotiating language barriers !• Organising child’s travel to school!
!
Parent communication !!
Formal communication!
• Written !• forms!• permission notes!• report cards!• school calendars!!
• Oral !• parent-teacher
conferences!• open days!
Informal contact !
• Casual conversations before/after school!
• Emails!• Phone calls!• Meetings after school!
(Symeou, Roussounidou, & Michaelides, 2012)!
So what about boarding? !In reviewing the literature on parental involvement and communication with schools, some major questions are raised about the context of boarding in Australia… !!1) What are the barriers to parental involvement in the context of Australian boarding? !!2) Are there further barriers that relate to remote Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander families that should be considered?!!3) How can schools and boarding residences begin to overcome these barriers? !!
!!1) What are the barriers to parental involvement in the context of Australian boarding? !
Remoteness structure of Australia!
(Australian Bureau of Statistics, 2011)!
Barriers to parental involvement in boarding !!
• Depending on the circumstances, parents are often living far away from their child’s boarding school!
!• The basic/ traditional ways that parents are involved
with schooling are prohibited/ restricted !• Homework help!• Taking child to/ from school!• Informal conversations with teachers !• Volunteering for school events!
!!2) Are there further barriers that relate to remote Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander families that should be considered?!!
Remoteness structure in Australia !
25% of Aboriginal and !Torres Strait Islander
population!
In South Australia alone, extreme diversity between ‘very remote’ community and urban centre…!
Travel!
• Large distances!
• Poor road quality!
• Extreme weather !!• Expensive !
School Environment (?)!
• Large!
• Unfamiliar!!• Limited visits!
• Own history with schooling!
(Goldkind & Farmer, 2013; Lea et al., 2011)!
Teacher/ boarding staff perceptions!
• Loss of/ no access to opportunities to understand student background!
• Remote communities likely to be foreign to staff background/ experiences!• Travel cost/ time restrictions!!
• Perception of parental involvement therefore often based on assumptions or inaccurate representations!• Frequency of contact with parent!• Range of parenting styles, can be varied between/ within
cultures!! ! ! ! !!! ! ! ! !(McKenna and Millen, 2013) !
• McKenna and Millen (2013) !
!!3) How can schools and boarding residences begin to overcome these barriers? !
The three C’s:!
Communication! Common Understandings!
Community!
Communication!
• Good communication between schools and communities!
!• Cultural responsiveness throughout whole school
environment!!• Listening hearing and understanding remote
contexts takes more than a single conversation/visit!!!!!
!! ! ! !(Mutch & Collins, 2012; Osborne, 2012; Perso, 2012)!
Common Understandings!
• Common understandings and expectations of:!
• Benefits and challenges of parental engagement!!• When and how parents want to/can be involved and
communicate!!• Complications of engagement for remote Aboriginal
and Torres Strait Islander families!!
Community!
• Aboriginal or Torres Strait Island education committee or council!
!• Empowerment models!
• Neutralise power imbalance!• Build on children’s home cultures, strengths!• Families can then assist in shaping school practices and
policies!
• The school itself !• Must take responsibility!
! ! ! !!!
! ! ! !(Lea et al. 2011; Perso, 2012)!
Other potential strategies? !!
• Mobile and video technologies!• Regular visits !• Teachers!• Boarding staff!
• Regular visits from parents and carers!• Facilitate where possible?!
• Social media to connect schools and families!• School exchanges!
!
!!!
The main point…. !
• Need to hear from …!!• Parents!• Boarding !• Schools !• Residences !
• Communities!
???!
Disclaimer !The work reported in this presentation was supported by funding from the Australian Government Cooperative Research Centres Program through the Cooperative Research Centre for Remote Economic Participation (CRC-REP). The views expressed herein do not necessarily represent the views of the CRC REP or Ninti One Limited or its participants. Errors or omissions remain with the author!
27!
References!• Carreón, G., Drake, C., & Barton, A. C. (2005). The importance of presence: Immigrant
parents' school engagement experiences. Education and Educational Research, 42(3), 465- 498. !
• Christianakis, M. (2011). Parents as "Help Labor": Inner-City Teachers' Narratives of Parent Involvement. Teacher Education Quarterly, 38(4), 157-178. !
• Froiland, J., & Davison, M. (2014). Parental expectations and school relationships as contributors to adolescents' positive outcomes. Social Psychology of Education, 17(1), 1-17. doi: 10.1007/s11218-013-9237-3!
• Goldkind, L., & Farmer, G. L. (2013). The Enduring Influence of School Size and School Climate on Parents' Engagement in the School Community. School Community Journal, 23(1), 223-244. !
• Lea, T., Wegner, A., McRae-Williams, E., Chenhall, R., & Holmes, C. (2011). Problematising school space for Indigenous education: teachers’ and parents’ perspectives. Ethnography & Education, 6(3), 265-280. doi: 10.1080/17457823.2011.610579!
• McKenna, M. K., & Millen, J. (2013). Look! Listen! Learn! Parent Narratives and Grounded Theory Models of Parent Voice, Presence, and Engagement in K-12 Education. School Community Journal, 23(1), 9-48. !
• Mutch, C., & Collins, S. (2012). Partners in Learning: Schools' Engagement with Parents, Families, and Communities in New Zealand. School Community Journal, 22(1), 167-187. !
• Perso, T. (2012). Cultural responsiveness and school education with particular focus on Australia’s first peoples. Darwin: Menzies School of Health Research, Centre for Child Development and Education.!
• Symeou, L., Roussounidou, E., & Michaelides, M. (2012). "I Feel Much More Confident Now to Talk with Parents": An Evaluation of In-Service Training on Teacher-Parent Communication. School Community Journal, 22(1), 65-87.!
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