Reaching Beyond the Classroom: Creating Sustainable Learning Opportunities through Home-School Partnership

SK Kunak 2 (SKK2) is a government primary

school located in the small district of Kunak on

the east coast of Sabah, Malaysia. It has

around 400 students and 34 teachers. Parents

of the students mainly work as fishermen,

labourers and factory workers. The community

comprises mainly of Muslims from the Bajau,

Bugis and Suluk ethnicities.

From ‘Family Involvement in English Language Learning’ inNarratives of Teacher Development Vol. 2 (British Council Malaysia), p. 20



FIRST MEETING WITH PARENTS OF LEVEL 1 STUDENTS


The ‘home-school partnership’ is an

initiative by the English Panel of SKK2.

It aims at bridging the gap between the

school and the community around the

school. The main aim is to create better

learning opportunities for the students.

FAMILY INVOLVEMENT IN SCHOOL

READING FOR PLEASURE

MEETINGS WITH PARENTS

HOME VISITS

WORKSHOPS WITH PARENTS

AUDIOBOOK PROJECT

ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE

BUILDING RELATIONSHIPS

MINDSET AND ATTITUDE CHANGES

CREATING LEARNING OPPORTUNITIES

PARENTS’ PERSPECTIVE

STUDENTS’ PERSPECTIVE

CHALLENGES & OBSTACLES

KEEPING IT GOING

How important is family involvement?

Even one or two additional involvement activities per year were associated with meaningful improvements for children.

Matters most for children…

…whose mothers have less education.

…who come from low-income families.

How often?

(Research findings cited by Clark,

Why Families Matter to Reading, 2007)

PARENTS OF SKK2 STUDENTS

Average income:

RM350 – RM600 per month

Education level:

Primary: 10%

College/University: 2%

Upper secondary: 40%

Lower secondary: 48%

Source: Students’ Affairs Unit (Unit HEM),SK Kunak 2 (based on school’s data in January 2014)

BACKGROUND

READING FOR PLEASURE

“Every man who knows how to read has it in his power to magnify himself, to multiply the ways in which he

exists, to make his life full, significant and interesting.” ~Aldous Huxley

READING(According to Children of SKK2)

“If you want your children to be intelligent, read them fairy tales. If

you want them to be more intelligent, read them more fairy

tales.”― Albert Einstein

“Although free voluntary reading alone will not ensure attainment of the highest levels of literacy, it will at least ensure an acceptable level. Without it, I suspect that children simply do not have a chance.”

(Krashen, 1993)

LEARNENGLISH FAMILY (LEF) WORKSHOPS IN SKK2

Parental Involvement in Reading

LEF Handbook

Objectives

• To instill the love of reading in children through parental involvement

• To introduce the concept of ‘reading for pleasure’, both to parents and children

• To encourage collaboration and partnership between teachers and parents

• To improve children’s literacy skills through fun and interesting reading activities

Parents Meeting• September 21, 2012

• Introducing LearnEnglish Family (LEF) Workshops to the parents.

Workshop 1: Sharing Rhymes

• September 28, 2012

• Introduction to rhymes and how it can be done with children at home.

• Parents tried out the activities in small groups.

• Homework for the parents: ‘Share a rhyme with your child at home and share your experience in the next workshop.’

Workshop 2 – Sharing Stories• October 16, 2012

• Story-telling demonstration – how it can be done with children at home.

• Story-telling group task for parents.

• Homework for parents: ‘Tell a story to your child at home and share your experience in the next workshop.’

LEF Workshops in SKK2

BEYOND ELTDP

Workshop 3: Sharing Stories with Picture Books

February 15, 2014

Workshop 4: Fun Learning with Puppets

February 15, 2014

Parents making puppets

Presentation by the parents

Video clips from the workshop

GOING BEYOND THE WORKSHOPS

THE HOMEWORK STORY

The homework incident inspired me

to organise a meeting with the parents ofmy Year 6 students.

MEETING WITH PARENTS OF YEAR 6

HOME VISITS

LEARNING ENVIRONMENT AT HOME

PARENTAL SUPPORT

FAMILY SITUATIONS

COMMUNITY

• Students record audio or video of themselves reading aloud a story, a passage or a poem.

• Recording can be done either in school or at home –using camera, smart phones, recording devices etc.

• The audio and video files are burned in CD.

• Students bring the CD home and share it with their family.

• The audio and video are also shared online - on our book club blog: (http://skk2readingfamily.blogspot.com)

http://skk2readingfamily.blogspot.com/

From ‘Reaching Beyond the Classroom – The Reading Family Book Club’ inBeyond Chalk & Talk (http://cindyjbj79.blogspot.com/2014/12/reaching-beyond-classroom-reading.html), December 12, 2014

http://cindyjbj79.blogspot.com/2014/12/reaching-beyond-classroom-reading.html









MINDSET AND ATTITUDE CHANGES

Reading & Learning

Home Support

Roles & Responsibilities Mutual Understanding

BUILDING RELATIONSHIP

Cultivating Passionfor Reading &

Learning

Nurturing Creativity

Encouraging Discovery &

Collaborative Learning

BETTER SUPPORT DUE TO INCREASED AWARENESS

BETTER LEARNING ENVIRONMENT

SOME NUMBERS

LBI Achievement for 2013 Enrolment

Year Screening Failures Passes % Passes

2013(Y1)

1 49(37 + 12)

10 16.95%

2 47(15 + 32)

13 21.67%

2014(Y2)

1 41(10 + 31)

20 32.8%

2 37(8 + 29)

37 39.34%

Percentage of Passes in LBI for 2013 Enrolment (2013 – 2014)

0.00%

5.00%

10.00%

15.00%

20.00%

25.00%

30.00%

35.00%

40.00%

45.00%

2013 2014

Screening 1

Screening 2

LBI Achievement for 2014 Enrolment

Year Screening Failures Passes % Passes

2014(Y1)

1 38(5 + 33)

12 24%

2 47(0 + 34)

15 30.61%

Percentage of Passes in LBI for 2014 Enrolment

0.00%

5.00%

10.00%

15.00%

20.00%

25.00%

30.00%

35.00%

2014

Screening 1

Screening 2

20

26.3

17.4

26.4

18.7

24.6

17.415.9

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

2007 2008 2009 2010

Percentage of Passes in UPSR for SKK2 in Phase 1 (2007 – 2009)

20.6

37.2941.51

33.9318

28.81

35.85

30.36

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

45

2011 2012 2013 2014

Percentage of Passes in UPSR for SKK2 in Phase 2 (2011 – 2014)

22.53

33.33

19.15

28.26

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

PHASE 1 PHASE 2

Comparison between the average % of passes in UPSR for SKK2 in Phase 1 and Phase 2

PHASE 1 PHASE 2 DIFFERENCE

ENGLISH 22.53% 33.33% +10.8%

OVERALL 19.15% 28.25% +9.11%

CHALLENGES & OBSTACLES

PARENTS’ PERSPECTIVE


STUDENTS’ PERSPECTIVE


Can be downloaded at: http://emse.com.my/

http://emse.com.my/

http://teacherasresearcher.weebly.com/

http://teacherasresearcher.weebly.com/

http://cindyjbj79.blogspot.com/






ReferencesBritish Council. (2012). LearnEnglish Family Workshops:

Parental Involvement in Reading. British Council.

Clark, C. (2007). Why Families Matter to Literacy - A Brief

Research Summary. London: National Literacy Trust.

Clark, C., & Rumbold, K. (2006). Reading for Pleasure: A

Research Overview. National Literacy Trust.

Close, R. (2001). Parental Involvement and Literacy

Achievement. London: National Literacy Trust.

Krashen, S. (1993). The Power of Reading. Englewood, Col.:

Libraries Unlimited, Inc.

National Union for Teachers (NUT). (n.d.). Reading 4 Pleasure.

United Kingdom: National Union for Teachers (NUT).

E-MAIL:[email protected]

‘BEYOND CHALK & TALK’http://cindyjbj79.blogspot.com
