Dr. Timothy Mitchell Rapid City Area Schools 12/16/11

A study to get a better understanding of American Indian parent involvement and consider it as a possible solution to narrowing the achievement gap for American Indian students

 Barriers-School Oriented ◦ Unwelcoming school environment ◦ Previous negative experience with education ◦ Perceptions of the school’s lack of cultural sensitivity ◦ Different styles of interpersonal communication

 Barriers-Home Oriented ◦ Scheduling ◦ Transportation ◦ Childcare ◦ Financial Difficulties

 Strategies that parents perceived that encouraged involvement: ◦ Printed and electronic correspondence ◦ Communication about children ◦ School staff respectful of parents’ educational and cultural values ◦ Open-door policy ◦ Culturally respectful environment ◦ Cultural activities and resources

 Why do American Indian parents get involved: ◦ To help children succeed and build confidence ◦ To stay connected with the school ◦ To monitor children’s progress ◦ To address a problem ◦ To respond to schools’ invitation or welcoming environment

Many aspects of American Indian parent involvement were largely consistent with the literature on parent involvement in the general population

The challenges of increasing American Indian parent involvement are complex, residing in the overlay and sometimes clash of cultures in the public school

Schools and parents need to focus on creating partnerships that will help ALL students reach high levels of social and academic achievement

This is practical and achievable: Research Many Examples

 How should schools ensure: ◦ A welcoming school environment ◦ A positive experience ◦ Cultural sensitivity ◦ Good communication

All parents have dreams for their children and want the best for them

All parents have the capacity to support their children’s learning

Parents and School staff should be equal partners

The responsibility rests primarily with school staff, especially school leaders

 What would stimulate this improvement: ◦ A more welcoming school building and front office ◦ Positive phone calls home at least once a month ◦ A center stocked with learning materials that families can take home ◦ Workshops on reading and math ◦ More time allotted to meet with parents

1) Building Relationships 2) Linking to Learning 3) Addressing Differences 4) Supporting Advocacy 5) Sharing Power

All families and communities have something great to offer-we do what ever it takes to make every single student succeed

Building Relationships

 School is open—interesting learning materials are available to borrow  Home visits are made regularly  Activities honor families contributions  A wide variety of services are available to families

The ability to establish, grow, extend, and restore trust is not only vital to our personal and interpersonal well-being; it is a key leadership competency.

 Respect-mutual esteem that recognizes the important role each person plays in a child’s education  Competence-a feeling that colleagues work together to create effective working environments and get the job done

 Integrity-a feeling that colleagues keep their word and do what they say they’re going to do  Personal Regard-a feeling that colleagues care about one another and are willing to go out of their way to help

Talk Straight Demonstrate Concern Create Transparency Right Wrongs Show Loyalty Deliver Results Get Better

Confront Reality Clarify Expectations Practice Accountability Listen First Keep Commitments Extend Trust

Linking to Learning

 All activities connect to what students are learning  Parents and teachers review student work and assessment results regularly  Tutoring and homework programs are available

 Do More: ◦ Displaying of Student Work ◦ Contact parents about student progress regularly ◦ Hold Math, Literacy, Health and Ask a Question Nights ◦ Offer Student-led Conferences ◦ Hold Workshops for families based upon need

 Do Less: ◦ Contact of parents only when student misbehaves ◦ Offering of parenting classes ◦ Focus on behavior and shortcomings at Parent-Teacher conferences

Addressing Differences

 Teachers use books and materials about different cultures  Parent organization include all families  Local cultural groups work with staff to reach families

All families, no matter what their income, race, education, language or culture want their children to do well in school and can make an important contribution to their children’s learning

 The Culturally Competent Classroom ◦ All students are respected and responded to in warm and accepting ways ◦ All students have opportunities to find connections between their lives and what they are studying ◦ All students prior knowledge, culture and learning styles are considered and incorporated into class instruction ◦ Teachers and school staff are familiar with their students culture and know how to work in multicultural situations

 Addressing Racial Tension: ◦ Use the power of the school to promote positive relations and open dialogue ◦ Determine the results you want- maintaining a safe and productive learning environment free of intimidation, threats or harassment

 Addressing Racial Tension: ◦ Identify Vital Behaviors-Elimination of racism and all intimidating, threatening or harassing behavior ◦ Promote Inclusive Actions-behaviors that support diversity ◦ Reward Respectful Behavior and have consequences for inappropriate behavior

 Addressing Racial Tension: ◦ Leaders need to evaluate, endorse and partner to lead the enforcement of positive social norms ◦ Build Awareness, share experiences and teach skills ◦ To change behavior-emphasize this is a moral issue

Supporting Advocacy

 Clear and open process for resolving problems  Regular contact by teachers about student progress  Student-led parent teacher conferences  Training and use of effective advocacy skills

The more parents feel that they have the power to influence their children's future positively, the better children tend to do in school

 Parents have to understand how the school works  Parents need to know how to resolve problems that their children are having in school ◦ Chain of command-who to contact ◦ Where do they go next? ◦ How do they work with teachers to define and solve problems

 What’s Good ◦ Requesting a teacher, with the needs of your child in mind ◦ Questioning the placement of your student ◦ Requesting a change in placement-with rationale ◦ Talking to school staff about a problem, policy, or program ◦ Suggesting curriculum or instructional modifications ◦ Question discipline policies and methods ◦ Requesting the excuse of your child on religious or cultural grounds

Definition A discussion between two or more people where (1) stakes are high (2) opinions vary, (3) emotions run strong

How are they handled ? 1) We can avoid them 2) We can face them and handle them poorly 3) We can face them and handle them well The results can have a huge impact on the quality of your success in the classroom!

Sharing Power

 Parents and teachers work together to research how to solve critical issues  Parents are focused on improving student achievement  Families are involved in decision making

Provide workable mechanisms for teachers, parents, and students to take part in decision making

 Give families information about how the education systems and local government work  Encourage families to lobby local and state officials as to the programming needs in your school  Involve families in action research-ask them to develop, conduct, and participate in collecting information on problems in the community  Make it as easy as possible for parents to meet with school staff to discuss concerns

 When problems arise, openness about the matter from the start is usually the best approach  People who are involved in making the decisions tend to support those decisions

Schools and parents need to focus on creating partnerships that will help ALL students reach high levels of social and academic achievement