1. Special Education and Parent/Teacher Home Visits: building effective partnerships with parents in special education
Our passion is empowering families by equipping parents and students with disabilities with the tools they need to be their own advocates.
AJE’s mission is to empower families, youth, and the community to be effective advocates to ensure that children and youth, particularly those who have special needs, receive access to appropriate education and health services.
Molly L. Whalen, Director of Parent Engagement
Advocates for Justice and Education, Inc.
The Parent Training and Information Center for the District of Columbia │

2. What do you hope to learn today?
Personal Goal
What do you hope to learn today?
Who do we have in the room? Parents? Special Needs? Gen Ed Teachers? Special Ed Teachers? Administrators 2

3. Parents’ Perspective
“Parents of special-needs children have to look at schools differently. We can’t just send our children to any school.”
Unique Schools Serving Unique Students, 2010 3

4. What Parents Want?
What parents want may be the same for typical children, but it is more so for children with special needs:
They want the school to fit their child so that the he/she can be part of the school community with all the social and emotional benefits of community membership.
They want the school to want their child, not to view their different child as a burden that interferes with educational typical children.
They want the right academic program for their child, one that will strike a balance between ensuring any necessary accommodations and ensuring that their child achieves his/her potential.
They want consistent and thorough communications with and among all staff who have responsibility for their child, including classroom aides, teachers, principals and district staff.
Unique Schools Serving Unique Students, 2010 4

5. The Rule about Parent Partnership:
The Parent is always right…
WRONG!
The Parent is NOT always right, but the Parent does have a right to be HEARD!
People don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care.
“I don’t understand my teenage son. He never listens to me”.
“That’s interesting. I thought to understand someone else you had to listen to them”.
We’ve all been taught the importance of being “active listeners”. We’ve learned the techniques of asking questions, paraphrasing, looking the person in the eyes, etc. After attending a class we might go back to the workplace and try our new skills. And the feedback we get is that we sound false or mechanical. We can even come across as being manipulative. “Don’t use that active listening stuff on me!”
That’s because such classes teach us the mechanics but not the spirit of listening. Good listening is authentic. A good listener communicates that they are genuinely curious or that they genuinely care. If you are only pretending to listen your “techniques” will only carry you so far.
The question then is:
Are you curious?
Do you care?
People don’t care how much you know till they know how much you care. 5

6. Accountability
Establishing accountability and credibility with parents:
Listen and acknowledge
Craft your response and seek acceptance
Perform as agreed
Summarize results and report back to parent 6

7. Parents’ Perspective – Crucial for Successful IEP teams
Common belief system among teachers and staff
Strict confidentiality
Acting in a non-judgmental manner
Reflective listening practices
Timeliness and keeping appointments
Visibility & Accessibility
Honesty – especially with admitting mistakes or mis-steps
Sharing information and resources beyond the school
Follow the Parent: A Manual for Engaging Parents of Students with Special Needs, 2009 7

8. What makes them EFFECTIVE? What makes them INEFFECTIVE?
Parent Partnerships
What makes them EFFECTIVE?
What makes them INEFFECTIVE?

9. Care: “We’re in this together.”
4 Distinctions of Trust
Sincerity: “I mean what I say, say what I mean, and act accordingly.”
Telling the truth
Aligning words and actions
Aligning words with words
Reliability: “You can count on me to deliver what I promise!”
Clarifying requests
Responding to requests
Following through on commitments
Competence: “I know I can do this. I don’t know if I can do that.”
Know yourself & your organization
Welcome assistance
Care: “We’re in this together.” 9

10. Circle of Influence and Circle of Concern
Wide range of concerns we all have
Circle of Influence
Those concerns that we can do something about or have control over
Circle of Concern
Circle of
Influence
The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, Stephen R. Covey

11. Parents and Teachers are Proactive When…
Responsible for our own lives, behavior and decisions
Focus on issues within Circle of Influence
Nature tends to be positive, magnifying, collaborative, “problem solving”
Circle of Concern
Circle of
Influence
The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, Stephen R. Covey

12. Parents and Teachers are Reactive When…
Neglect those issues that are under their control and influence
Focus on Circle of Concern with no results
Circle of Influence shrinks
Circle of Concern
Circle of
Influence
The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, Stephen R. Covey

13. Establish Effective, Long term Parent Partnerships
Encourage/Guide parents to focus on Circle of Influence concerns
Realistic and Reality
Circle of Concern
Circle of
Influence
The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, Stephen R. Covey

14. Characteristics of Effective Communication

15. Establishing Strong Partnerships
Why would a family member trust you?
What are the fears of these parents?
To help – you need to decipher and balance what they want and what the student needs?
How do you “show” value and special needs friendly?
How do you handle disagreement
How do you show solidarity for the student’s needs
How do you utilize trust-building tools

16. Resources:
Parents and Schools – Inclusion resources:
Inclusive Schools Network
Questions Often Asked by Parents about Special Education
Follow the Parent-Engaging Parents of Students with Special Needs:

17. Advocates for Justice and Education The federally designated Parent Training & Information Center for Washington D.C. Educate. Advocate. Empower.
AJE’s mission is to empower families, youth, and the community to be effective advocates to ensure that children and youth, particularly those who have special needs, receive access to appropriate education and health services.
Our passion is empowering families by equipping parents and students with disabilities with the tools they need to be their own advocates.
25 E St. NW, 3rd Floor
Washington, DC 20001
Hours: Monday-Friday, 9:00am-5:00pm
Phone: (202)
@AJEinc
Mary’s Center Location
3912 Georgia Ave. NW
Washington, DC 20011
Hours: Tuesday & Thursday
9:00am-5:00pm