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Board of Directors (HSCIN) Hoover High School Investigation Archive
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What is Parental Involvement?
Ask an Educator, and you'll get one answer. Ask a Parent, you'll get another. In this new world of Parental Involvement and Parental Engagement, just defining the terms can be a daunting task. HSCIN will attempt to decipher and better define what researchers state is the ideal method of family engagement that promotes student success through providing the latest research and links to the evidence that is mounting for a new kind of Parental Engagement.
Research shows that there are two factors that can predict a child's success in school: the child's socioeconomic status and the level of family engagement in the child's education. While communities may not be able to directly impact a child's socioeconomic status, they can impact and promote his family's engagement in his education by providing paths for engagement and promoting school policies that positively impact family engagement.
The Alabama State Department of Education, in April 2003, adopted a Resolution suggesting that all school districts in Alabama work to develop a District-Wide Parental Involvement Policy. Hoover City Schools currently has the federally-mandated Parental Involvement Policy in effect for its school that receives Title I funding. Work began to develop a District-Wide Policy in April of 2006 with a committee of parents within Hoover City Schools. The Committee met in April and May of 2006, and has not yet completed its work, but has no further meetings scheduled. A District Parental Involvement Plan was discovered at the District Office on Thursday, April 12. We are seeking answers as to who developed this plan, as the Plan is supposed to be developed by not only District Personnel, but also Parents and Families in the District.
Take a few moments to read The Case for Parent Leadership, an excellent paper on why parent leaders are needed to ensure successful schools.
District Parent Involvement Plan - posted 04/12/07
This was discovered at the District Office on Thursday, April 12. The heart of a District's effort to engage families in their children's learning comes from the District Parent Involvement Plan. It should be developed by parents and families and should be shared and available to all within the District.
Because the HSCIN's goal is to engage Hoover's families in their children's education, we have posted it here. Please take a moment to look over the Plan. We are seeking information as to how it was developed and how often it will be reviewed and will post the information as soon as it is available.
A New Wave of Evidence, the Impact of School, Family, and Community Connections on Student Achievement, 2002, is a summary of research studies on the practices of Family Engagement across this country.
Developing a Family Involvement Program - posted 01/21/07
The Hoover City School District does not currently have a formal Family Involvement Program. The School Improvement Process, directed by Mary Veal, School Improvement Specialist, has identified the need to better engage Hoover's families in our children's education. This is also the mission of the Hoover School Community Information Network.
Please take a moment to read the following document to educate yourself on what a meaningful Family Involvement Program would entail.
A Framework for Family Involvement, from the National Coalition for Parental Involvement in Education (NCPIE). Be certain to click on all three tabs to read the full document.
It is the hope of the HSCIN that Hoover City Schools will work to develop a consistent, meaningful Family Involvement Program at the District Level. To begin that process, our community needs to take the time to learn why this is so important and begin the dialogue to "get the ball rolling".
Parent Resources
To become fully engaged in your child's education, HSCIN advocates learning as much as you can about the education environment in which your child is learning. That includes not only how to help your child with homework, but also how to deal with conflict when it arises within your child's school experience as well as facilitate success.
You really can do more about a perceived problem than you think you can. It takes parents and family members to bring problems to Teacher's and Administrator's---and even Superintendent's and Board Member's---attention. It is how you bring that problem to their attention that usually determines the response you get.
If you don't get your problem resolved, TAKE IT TO THE NEXT LEVEL.
Many parents fear retribution towards their children if they are seen as "complaining" about a teacher or a classroom practice or even of a child bullying their child at school.
You are your child's best advocate. You know your child better than school personnel do. Trust yourself enough to take the next step if you believe that your child's experience at school is not what it should be.
Research shows that children succeed when their families are engaged in their education. Sometimes it's hard to know how to engage. The resources that follow should give you some guidance.
If you have a particularly difficult problem that you don't know how to handle, feel free to write to us at HelpMe@HSCIN.org. All correspondence is confidential. The HelpMe Committee will not reveal any personal information in obtaining a resolution.
The Steps for Resolving a School Problem:
STEP #1: Make sure your child has fully explained the problem. If it is a highly emotional problem, discuss it again after initial emotions have subsided. You must fully understand the situation before proceeding. If it involves more than your child, take the initiative to contact the parents of other children involved.
STEP #2: Figure out the protocol, or path, for resolving your problem. If it is a student causing problems in the classroom, or some other classroom issue, your first contact should be your child's teacher. Even if the problem is with the conduct of the teacher, it is best if you can first attempt to resolve the problem with the teacher.
STEP #3: Make contact with the teacher and ask for his/her help in resolving this problem. Placing blame on the teacher is never productive. Remember, there are two sides to every story. Having said that, make sure that the teacher understands the urgency to resolve the problem. Set a timeline in your initial contact for which you need to hear back from him/her.
STEP #4: If you decide that a meeting with the teacher is necessary, never go into a meeting with teachers or administrators alone. Bringing a friend along for moral support (and another set of ears) is always a good idea.
STEP #5: If, after discussing the problem with the teacher, you feel the problem has not been resolved or even given enough attention, make contact with the teacher's principal, which could be the School Principal at the Elementary level, or a Unit Principal at the Middle or High School level. You need to work your way up through the ranks to be able to prove that YOU are not the problem.
PLEASE NOTE: If the issue is one of security or of such a serious nature that you simply cannot take the time to work your way through the system, trust your instincts and address the issue directly with the Principal or Superintendent. Proving the urgency of a problem is often difficult and sometimes time is not on your side.
STEP #6: If you still do not get the problem resolved to your satisfaction at the Principal level, take it to the next level: the Assistant Superintendent. Currently the Assistant Superintendent, Mrs. Jan Dennis, is the Parent Liaison and will take these types of calls. Again, if a meeting is necessary, take a friend or other family member with you if your spouse is unavailable. (It amazes me how quickly a problem can be resolved if you take a man with you....)
STEP #7: If the issue is still not resolved at the Assistant Superintendent/Superintendent level, take it to the School Board. As long as the issue does not involve an attack on a person's character, it may be publicly discussed at a Board meeting. Issues of job performance may be discussed in Open Session as well.
This list is not meant to get you 'riled up. It is meant to lay a logical path for you to travel when conflict arises and you need help to settle the situation. Remind those along the way that what you are asking for is their help in resolving the problem. Laying blame usually gets you nowhere. Try to figure out how you would like the situation to be resolved and share that solution with school personnel. Oftentimes school personnel have built barriers that make it difficult for them to actually hear what you are asking of them. Make certain your message is clear. And keep an open mind.
Remember that keeping open lines of communication is what best benefits your child's education. Forming partnerships with the adults in their education world is the ultimate goal.
Reports to Help You Help Your Child
The HSCIN is working to compile reports on the following subjects:
How to Talk with Your Child's Teacher
How to Attend a Parent-Teacher Conference
How to Help Your Child Succeed in School
How to Get Involved in Your Child's School
How to Build Trust with Your Child's School
What to
Do If You Believe Your Child Has a Disability
If you have a suggestion for a report you'd like to see or would like to contribute material for these reports, please e-mail us at SpecialReports@HSCIN.org.
Links for Parents and Community Members
This section has been reorganized into Categories.
Categories
School Improvement
Parent Involvement - General Articles and Information
Parent
Involvement - What You Can Do
Organizations
How Families
Can Help Their Children Succeed
Communicating
with Schools and Teachers
Homework
Curriculum and Standards
Other Online Resources
The Case for Parent Leadership - From the Center for Parent Leadership, affiliated with the Prichard Committee for Academic Excellence. Required reading for anyone interested in affecting real change in their child's school system.
Did You Know? - posted 03/10/07. This was prepared by Arapahoe High School in Littleton, Colorado, to illustrate the need to step up the Technology investment in schools and students. It is an 8-minute video with eye-opening statistics. The first minute or so pertain strictly to Arapahoe High School, but stay tuned. The author has a blog called the Fischbowl. Here is where he gives the reason for creating the presentation. If you have trouble seeing the video, try this link from YouTube.
Education Reform: The Problem....A Solution - posted 03/11/07. For all of you big thinkers out there, here's a mind-blowing, eye-opening look at what the real problem is in education. By Marion Brady. If you have trouble downloading it, try this link.
Good Schools Can Happen. From Parade magazine. An outline of how five areas turned their schools and live around. Published August 2006. Posted 11/25/06.
What Makes a School Successful? From Family Friendly Schools. Posted 11/25/06.
The Role of the School Site Council. Posted 10/24/06. While Hoover does not currently use School Site Councils to make decisions in Hoover Schools, the use of these Councils is growing. From Greatschools.net.
What Makes a School Successful? A+ Education Foundation
Parent and Family Involvement - General Articles and Information
Results from Parent-Teacher Relationships Survey -
posted 03/03/07. This survey was conducted by the Capital Survey Research Center (CSRC), the research arm of the Alabama Education Association (AEA) back in 2000. The director of the CSRC, called it the "most important research" they had ever conducted with regard to the relationships between parents and teachers, yet nothing was ever done with the results.The results are eye-opening, especially when you view the results of the questions posed to teachers---"what do you wish parents would do" compared with what parents claim they do, and then the question to parents---"what do you wish teachers would do" compared to what teachers claim they do.
The HSCIN is considering conducting an offshoot of this survey here in Hoover City Schools, to gather information and to make a comparison of Hoover City Schools and the larger Alabama school community. Stay tuned.
Family Engagement Survey from Family Friendly Schools - posted 03/03/07. Take a moment to complete this survey from Family Friendly Schools. When you complete it, a report will be generated to let you know how much, if any, work needs to be done to make your child's school more family-friendly. We encourage you to share the results with your school's principal and teachers.
Parent
Involvement Survey from Project Appleseed -
posted 02/23/07
Click the link to take you to a quick survey---no
results are compiled, it's for your use only--to help you rate your
contribution to your child's success at school. Many of us ask how we can be more involved and
engaged in our children's education. Here's a great way to
begin!
A Shared Responsibility: Recommendations for Increasing Family and Community Involvement in Schools. Posted 02/16/07. Maryland's Parent Advisory Council (M-PAC), Final Report to the Maryland State Board of Education, August 2005.
A Framework for Family Involvement. Posted 01/21/07. From the National Coalition for Parental Involvement in Education (NCPIE).
Coalition for Community Schools. Posted 02/16/07.
Eight Lessons of Parent and Family Involvement in the Middle Grades (6-8). Posted 12/09/06. From Middleweb.com.
Strong Families, Strong Schools. From the U.S. Department of Education. Originally published in 1994. Posted 12/09/06.
Family Friendly Schools Blog. From Family Friendly Schools. Dr. Constantino writes a weekly blog on Family Engagement. Put on your thinking caps. Posted 11/24/06
12 Truths That We Know About Parent Involvement. From It Takes a Parent (see below). Posted 11/23/06.
10 Things Any School Can Do to Build Parent Involvement...and 5 Great Ways to Fail. From the Parent Institute. Posted 11/23/06.
It Takes a Parent: Transforming Education in the Wake of the No Child Left Behind Act. From Appleseed. Affirms the importance of Parental Involvement in the student success. "Parents are a crucial -- and often overlooked resource -- in the quest to raise student academic performance." Posted 11/23/06.
We are Way Past Reading Together - Why and How Does Parental Involvement in Adolescence Make Sense - Posted 11/23/06. From the Family Involvement Network of Educators (FINE) Family-School Relations Conference in July 2006. Confirms parent involvement in their children's education shouldn't stop at elementary school. Gives examples of real outcomes of engaging families in their adolescent's education.
High School Students Have Parents, Too. Interesting study of the importance of parent involvement at the High School level. Conducted by the Youth News Team of the Kentucky Conference for Community and Justice and the Prichard Committee for Academic Excellence.
A New Wave of Evidence. The Impact of School, Family, and Community Connections on Student Achievement, 2002. Analyzes many studies over the past decade on Family Involvement.
Parent and Family Involvement - What You Can Do
Resources from the U.S. Department of Education - How to Help with Your Child's Academic Success - posted 06/03/07
How Do Asian Students Get to the Top of the Class? - posted 04/06/07 from Greatschools.net. This article takes a look at the strategies that Asian families use to reinforce their children's education. Worth the time to read.
Ten Ways to Help Your Child's School. Posted 10/24/06. From Greatschools.net.
Decisionmakers, Policymakers, Advisors. Parents for Public Schools Parent Press issue on parents who participate in governance of their school systems.
Be Your Child's Advocate, Become a Part of Your Child's School Solution. From Scholastic.
Parent Power! Helping You Make Sense of Schooling Today. From the Center for Education Reform. Great series to help parents interpret the education climate.
100 Ways for Parents to Be Involved. Developed by the National PTA.
Parents. The Anti-Drug. Website. Full of good information about how to talk to your children about drugs. Offers a free subscription to their weekly newsletter as well. Posted 12/20/06
Bluffparkal.org. Web-based group serving the Bluff Park neighborhood. Posted 02/16/07
Citizens for Better Schools. The Birmingham-based Citizens Group working to improve education in Birmingham City. Posted 11/24/06
Alabama Department of Public Safety Community Information Center website This informative website allows you to search for registered sex offenders as well as lists missing persons and fugitives. Posted 01/20/07
National Coalition for Parent Involvement in Education (NCPIE). Promoting family-school partnerships.
Give Kids Good Schools. Great site. Lists actions you can take to improve your child's school and school system.
Family Friendly Schools. Full of information for educators and families to get us on the same page when discussing the bigger concepts of "family involvement" and "family engagement".
The Prichard Committee for Academic Excellence. A Kentucky-based group working since 1982 to engage citizens in the discussion about Public Education and reform of the public school system.
Public Education Network. Vast collection of resources on No Child Left Behind and other timely education issues. Distributes a weekly "news blast" that you can sign up for on their home page.
Center for Public Education. An initiative of the National School Boards Association.
KPIRC. The Kansas Parent Information Resource Center's website is a great example of an engaging and useful website. The PIRC program was funded under the Parent Involvement provisions of No Child Left Behind. This PIRC serves the entire state of Kansas.
Alabama Parent Information Resource Center. This is the federally-funded PIRC program for Alabama.
How Families Can Help Their Children Succeed
What Principals Would Tell Parents to Help Parents Help Their Children. From the Parent Institute. Posted 11/23/06.
Tips Parents Can Use to Help Their Children. From the Parent Institute. Posted 11/23/06.
What Makes a Great Parent? Posted 10/24/06. From Greatschools.net.
Communicating with Schools and Teachers
Report Cards and the Parent-Teacher Conference---Are You Prepared? Posted 11/23/06. From The Parent Leadership Exchange. Checklist of questions to ask about your child's classroom experience.
Tips for a Better Parent-School Relationship. From The Washington Post, October 17, 2006.
Making a Difference at Your Child's School. Posted 10/24/06. From Greatschools.net.
Does My Child's Homework Meet High Standards? From the Education Trust Foundation. Two-page brochure designed to help parents determine the purpose of their children's homework.
Center for Public Education Q & A: Homework. Posted 04/15/07. Great list of questions and answers regarding "why homework" and what kind of homework is beneficial.
Understanding Report Cards. Posted 10/24/06. From Greatschools.net.
Links from the Alabama State Department of Education. Posted 12/09/06. Exhaustive list of resources in Alabama.
Online Resources for Parent Involvement in Schools. Posted 10/24/06. From Greatschools.net.
Parents for Public Schools, Parent Resources. An exhaustive list of resources for parents and community members divided into categories. This list includes excellent resources for research on why family engagement is so important.
The Education Trust, Publications for Parents.
Got some good links you'd like to see here? E-mail Links@HSCIN.org.
