Improving Parent Engagement in the Nashville Promise NeighborhoodJoanna GellerOctober 29, 2012

Rationale for improving parent engagement in the NPN

Volunteering at school

Attending events at school

Interested in becoming more involved

Kirkpatrick (n=17) 47% 88% 76%

Ross (n=10) 10% 60% 50%

Warner (n=18) 33% 100% 78%

Bailey 21% 67% N/A

Stratford 4% 50% 46%

• Focus Group Data: Parents and school staff who participated in focus groups during Spring 2011 frequently cited parent engagement as a key challenge

• School principals who belong to NPN Working Groups have identified improved parent engagement as one of their school’s most pressing needs

• Neighborhood survey data:

What are different types of parent engagement?

Parenting

Learning at Home

Communicating

Volunteering

Decision-Making

Collaborating with Community

How do we define parent engagement?

Parenting

Learning at Home

Communicating

Volunteering

Decision-Making

Collaborating with Community

Why does parent engagement matter?

Academic achievement

School attendance

Behavior

Positive perceptions of school

Higher educational aspirations

Each of these outcomes makes it easier for teachers to teach and for parents to parent!

What are barriers to parent engagement?

For Parents

Low levels of efficacy for helping their children learn

Unwelcoming school environment and negative past experiences with school

Lack of different ways to be involved

Difficulties attending school events due to obstacles regarding transportation, childcare, and time

For Teachers

Low levels of efficacy for teaching

Negative past experiences with parents

Inadequate school support for parent engagement

Lack of time/energy

Teachers Involving Parents (TIPS) Program

Evidence-based, theory-driven in-service teacher professional development by Vanderbilt professor, Kathy Hoover-Dempsey, and colleagues

Creates a safe and trusting environment where teachers can engage in dialogue related to parent engagement and learn and share effective strategies

Goals are to improve teachers’: Personal sense of teaching efficacy Beliefs about parents’ efficacy for helping children learn Attitudes toward parent engagement in general Beliefs about the importance of specific involvement practices Professional community

Components of TIPS program

6 one-hour modules to be held after school, on the topics of: Teachers’ experiences of parental involvement Addressing and coping with obstacles Perceptions of parents Communicating with parents Working with hard-to-reach parents Enacting strategies beyond the program

Teachers will be invited to participate in NPN schools, and program will be implemented by Communities in Schools (CIS) coordinators and PhD student

Teachers will be valued as experts and encouraged to develop a professional community that will be sustained after the program

Evidence for program effectiveness

Program evaluation at two MNPS elementary schools revealed significant improvements in: Teacher self-efficacy, teacher perceptions of parent efficacy, and teacher

reports of personal practices for inviting involvement Sense of professional community Improvements in teachers who did not participate in the program as

participants shared strategies they learned

For more information, see Hoover-Dempsey, K.V., Walker, J.M., Jones, K.P., & Reed, R.P. Teachers Involving Parents (TIPS): An in-service teacher education program for enhancing parental involvement, http://www.transaction.publiceducation.org/pdf/Publications/Standards/TIP_paper.pdf

Potential next steps

Train parents to take on advocacy and leadership roles in their child’s school

Implement Touchpoints program

Create a whole-school culture that facilitates a welcoming environment for families

For further information or to get involved:

Joanna Geller

Joanna.d.geller@vanderbilt.edu