1. Margaret MacIntosh - GDSS
Rotterdam
Margaret MacIntosh - GDSS

2. What I enjoyed Meeting and getting to know Glasgow colleagues
Experiencing the city of Rotterdam
Learning from European colleagues
Ending on a song

3. The City of Rotterdam
Rotterdam is a beautiful city

4. The Conference
Better Together Family, School and community partnership in urban context

5. Better Together The main focus: Parental engagement
Challenges to Parental engagement
Interventions

6. Barriers to Parental Engagement
Variety of barriers connected to:
Family/home factors
School/teacher factors

7. Barriers to Parental Involvement
Family/Home Factors
Limited or poor educational experiences
Limited language fluency
Poor understanding of the way the school works
Different perceptions of invitations

8. Barriers to Parental Involvement
School/Teacher Factors
School as historically structured institution
Different agendas, attitudes, language – school perceived as hard to reach
Favours middle class families
Teachers are the experts

9. Barriers to Parental Engagement
The first step in removing barriers to parental engagement is the positive relationship created between parent and school

10. Intervention Focused on 3 key areas: Better Communication
Teacher Training
School Climate and Philosophy

11. Intervention Sharing good practice Rotterdam
Parent Mentor Programme: to support vulnerable parents and help them become more involved within the school
Parents’ Day: to celebrate and value parental contribution
Pupil Mentoring: to support at risk pupils. This had a positive impact on pupils’ self- esteem and self- efficacy

12. Intervention
Glasgow – EAL working with parents from migrant backgrounds to understand the Scottish Education and how to support pupils
Birmingham – Adult education classes for migrant parents
Hamburg – Teacher Training

13. Reflection and Evaluation
It is important to have an understanding of the barriers to parental engagement from all perspectives-home/family/school
It is important to engage with and value diversity
The challenges faced by teachers in Glasgow are similar to those faced by European colleagues

14. Reflection and Evaluation
Glasgow being a diverse city has had to respond to a variety of needs of parents and children.
While it is important to continue to strive for improvement it is also necessary to recognise existing good practice.

15. Next Steps Playing with Sounds Training Unit
Include in discussion/training:
How European partners engage and develop parental involvement
Early Years provision in different European countries and the impact on future learning

16. Rotterdam

17. Rotterdam - Out and About

18. Rotterdam - Out and About

19. Rotterdam – By Night