Forsyth County Schools Title I District Parent Involvement Training August 17, 2006

Parent Involvement Defined The term parental involvement means the participation of parents in regular two-way, and meaningful communication involving student academic learning and other school activities, including ensuring that – Parents plan an integral role in assisting their child’s learning. Parents are encouraged to be actively involved in their child’s education at school. Parents are full partners in their child’s education and are included, as appropriate, in decision making and on advisory committees to assist in the education of their child. Other activities as described in section 1118 of NCLB This definition, in conjunction with other provisions in NCLB, sets the parameters by which SEAs and LEAs and schools must implement policies, programs and procedures related to Title I, Part A Parent Involvement.

School, Family, & Community Partnerships: Caring for the Children We Share There are three overlapping spheres of influence that directly affect student learning. With frequent interactions among schools, families and communities, more students are likely to receive common messages from various people about the importance of school, of working hard, of thinking creatively, of helping one another, and of staying in school. There are some practices that schools, family and community conduct separately and some that are conducted jointly to influence a child’s learning and development. Sometimes students are critical to the success of the family, the community or the school. Often, students are the parent’s main source of information about school.

What Research Says Partnerships tend to decline across the grades, unless there is an intentional effort to develop and maintain the partnerships at each grade level Affluent communities currently have more positive parent involvement Schools in economically depressed communities make more contacts with families about the problems and difficulties the students are having Single parents, employed parents, and parents who reside a lengthy distance from the school and fathers are less involved on average Teachers and administrators would like to involve families at a greater level Students at all levels want their families involved and actively participating in communication between the home and the school All research is countered if there is an effort to establish a balance between the spheres of influence

Six Types of Parent Involvement Parenting: Help all families establish home environments to support children as students Communicating: Design effective forms of school to home communications about school programs and their children’s progress Volunteering: Recruit and organize parent help and support Learning at Home: Provide ideas to families about how to help students at home with homework and other curriculum-related activities, decisions an planning Decision Making: Include parents in school decisions, developing parent leaders and representatives Collaborating with the Community: Identify and integrate resources and services from the community to strengthen school programs, family practices, and student learning and development What are your starting points? Identify strengths Identify needed changes Determine expectations Define your community Link you actions to measurable goals

Type 1: Parenting Workshops, videotapes, websites Parent education and other courses or training for parents (GED, Adult ESL, family literacy) Family resource center or designated area in the school Family support programs to assist families with health, nutrition, and parenting Home visits Parent Mentor for Special Education/English Language Learners School Annual Title I Meeting Grandparents’ Day, Muffins for Mom, Doughnuts for Dad Academic Open House

Type 2: Communicating Newsletter with calendar of events sent home and posted online Translations for ELL parents Use of Translation Resource Persons (TRPs) for conferences and school events School/Parent Compact Parent Involvement Policy- Development, Distribution and Feedback Parent/Teacher Conferences Progress Reports, Report Cards NCLB Parent Notifications – TransAct Communication & Compliance Center

Type 3: Volunteering Volunteer hours recognized in the school newsletter and at the end of the year Volunteer tutors Mentors PTA/PTO Parent Support Group Annual survey to identify interest, talents, and availability of volunteers Utilize volunteers for phone trees or other structures to provide all families with needed information

Type 4: Learning at Home Information for families on required skills in all subjects at each grade Information on homework policies and how to monitor and discuss schoolwork at home Information on how to assist students with skills they need to improve Provide appropriate instructional materials through Learning at Home Toolkits Calendars with daily or weekly activities for parents and students to do at home or in the community Summer learning packets or activities Family participation in helping students set academic goals for the year

Type 5: Decision Making School policy handbook District task forces Encourage PTA/PTO participation Title I School/District Parent Advisory Council Networks to link all families with parent representatives Surveys or phone calls to obtain parents’ input and reactions to school policies School policy handbook District task forces

Type 6: Collaborating With The Community Information for students and families on community health, cultural, recreational, social support, and other programs and services Information on community activities that link to learning skills and talents, including summer opportunities for students School-business partnerships to attain school improvement goals Open House Strategic partnerships to support school readiness and family literacy Tutors Mentors

SEA Responsibilities Under NCLB Required to involve parents & other stakeholders in the development of their plans for implementing federal law Collecting and disseminating effective parental involvement practices Technical assistance and monitoring of LEAs and schools Develop a state report card Establish written procedures for receiving and resolving complaints

LEA Responsibilities Under NCLB An LEA receiving a Title I, Part A allocation that exceeds $500,000 must reserve at least one percent of its total Title I, Part A allocation for parental involvement The LEA in conjunction with the parents of participating Title I, Part A students shall develop a written parental involvement policy which should be included in the CLIP. Provide support and technical assistance to Title I schools in planning and implementing effective parental involvement activities to support academic achievement and school improvement. Build capacity of the schools and of the parents for strong parental involvement. Coordinate and integrate parental involvement strategies under Title I, Part A with parental involvement strategies under other programs (Head Start, HIPPY, Georgia Pre-K, and Title III language instructional programs)

Parent Notifications Title III Parents Rights Under NCLB English acquisition program Information on how the LEA will support the IEP or individualized services under Section 504 Private schools Teacher and Paraprofessional qualifications Prepare and disseminate an annual report card related to assessment, accountability and teacher quality The LEA mus disseminate written procedures for receiving and resolving complaints to parents and to appropriate private school representatives

General School Responsibilities Develop a written parental involvement policy jointly with, and agreed upon by, parents of participating students Notify parents of the existence of the policy and make the policy available to the community Develop jointly with parents a school-parent compact Convene an annual meeting to inform parents of their school’s participation in Title I and to explain Title I, its requirements, and their right to be involved Offer meetings using a flexible schedule Provide parents timely information Provide assistance to participating parents on school-related, NCLB and Title I requirements

School Responsibilities Continued… Provide parent involvement materials and training Educate teachers and other district staff on parental involvement Coordinate and integrate parent involvement programs, activities and strategies with Head Start, Even Start, Migrant, Homeless, Vocational Education Develop appropriate roles for community-based organizations and businesses in parent involvement activities Conduct other activities as appropriate and feasible, such as parent resource centers Involve parents in an ongoing and end of year assessment to evaluate the effectiveness of the parent involvement initiatives as a measure of school performance evaluations of the school

Building Capacity Section 1118 of NCLB requires 6 actions and 8 recommended actions to ensure effective Involvement of parents and to support Partners among the school involved, parents and the community to improve student achievement. How can schools assist parents in developing their capacity to support their children’s education: Engage them at school so they understand what their children are learning Give them a voice in what happens to their children Provide information about how to help their children at home, what their children need to learn, and how to plan for college, postsecondary education and a career. Foster social connections between parents and teachers Build families understanding of the education system and how to guide their children through it successfully Offer access to social services and community agencies Identify and build on strengths in the community and among families

Title I Monitoring Documentation School Parent Involvement Policy has been written and evidence that it is updated periodically Evidence that School Parent Involvement Policies have been distributed to all parents of Title I, Part A participating students School-Parent Compact has been developed and distributed to all parents of Title I, Part A participating students Evidence that schools hold an annual meeting to inform participating parents about Title I programs Evidence that the schools have carried out the six requirements to build parents’ capacity to be involved in the schools Evidence that the schools have informed parents about the existence of the Parent-Teacher Resource Center