Families take the initiative to actively support their children's development and learning through family-school-community partnerships, which are a process of shared responsibility and reciprocity in which schools and other community agencies and organizations engage families in meaningful and culturally appropriate ways. Schools and community organizations work hard to encourage and listen to parents and make sure they have the tools necessary to be actively involved in their kids' education.
While parent and community involvement has always been a cornerstone of public schools, more acknowledgement and support of these cooperative efforts is required if we are to ensure that students reach their full potential.
According to research, when communities, families, and schools collaborate, students:
· Receive better grades;
· Attend classes more frequently;
· Continue to study; and
· Have higher motivation
Students of all ages, from all backgrounds, and of every color and nationality can agree with this. For students to succeed in school, a range of supports covering the gamut of social, health, and academic requirements may be required. High-quality schools have a track record of collaborating with families, the community, and other organizations to enhance student outcomes across the board. Families have a significant impact on their children's success in school and throughout life, according to consistent, uplifting, and convincing research. Evidence's fourth edition attests to the fact that the body of knowledge is expanding and getting stronger. Children typically do better academically, remain in school longer, and enjoy learning more when schools, families, and community organizations collaborate to encourage learning.
How do schools with higher performance involve the community and families?
Schools that are successful in involving parents from a wide range of backgrounds have three crucial strategies. They put a lot of effort into fostering relationships of trust and cooperation between educators, families, and neighbors.
• Acknowledge, respect, and take into account the needs of families as well as differences in class and culture.
• Adopt a shared-power, shared-responsibility partnership mentality.
What effect does community and parent organizing have on elevating schools?
This form of involvement, which is located outside of schools and is directed by parents and community members, is expanding across the country. These initiatives are directed at underperforming schools. Different from traditional parent involvement, community organizing strategies publicly prioritize empowering low-income families to exert political influence and hold schools accountable for their performance.
These developments in schools, according to a recent series of research, were made possible by community organizing:
• Modernized school facilities.
• Better staffing and leadership at the institution.
• Student learning programs of higher caliber.
• New tools and initiatives to enhance curriculum and instruction.
• Additional funds for family assistance and after-school programs.
THE KEYS TO SUCCESSFUL SCHOOL-FAMILY-COMMUNITY PARTNERSHIPS EPSTEIN’S SIX TYPES OF INVOLVEMENT.
PARENTING: Parenting involves assisting families with parenting and child-rearing techniques, knowledge of child and adolescent development, and creating a home environment that supports kids' academic success at every age and grade level help schools better understand families.
COMMUNICATING: Communicating with families about school initiatives and student development through efficient home- and school-school correspondence.
VOLUNTEERING: Recruiting, training, work, and schedules should all be improved so that audiences and families from the school or other areas can assist students and educational programs.
LEARNING AT HOME: Include families with their children in learning activities at home, such as homework and other decisions pertaining to the curriculum.
DECISION MAKING: Through PTA/PTO, school councils, committees, action teams, and other parent organizations, involve families as stakeholders in educational governance and advocacy.
COLLABORATING WITH COMMUNITY: Organize community services and resources with businesses, organizations, and other groups for the benefit of students, families, and the school.
School Factors That Promote the Development of Strong Community Partnerships
All different kinds of community partners mentioned school aspects that they thought helped make their school-community collaborations successful. Effective school leadership, a welcoming school climate, a teacher commitment to student success, and collaboration and communication among partners were the four school elements that appeared to have the biggest impact on the promotion of strong community partnerships.
Strong School Leadership
Community partnerships were formed as a result of effective school leadership. Community members discussed the importance for the principal to have a clear vision for the institution and the community's support of dependable alliances. "[The principal] sees a vision that includes the community and the school as well as inclusion of students with disabilities in the classroom." The ability of the principal to inspire his or her team and involve the community was also seen to be "vital to the success of this or perhaps any school," along with having a clear vision. Partners saw the principals' "buy-in" and activities as crucial to "getting the community interested" in the community partnerships.
Strong school leaders were also described as going above and above to establish and maintain ties between the school and the community, to the extent that it caused a board member to exclaim, "Oh my God, what has [the principal] done this month? "[He/She] is worn out!" due to the extensive "community involvement," which includes participating in activities like visiting events hosted by university partners, chamber of business gatherings, and PTO meetings, and "actively developing relationships in the community." One participant said the principal of the school where they were partnered had a "unique aptitude for building relationships with parents, with teachers, with community partners."
Inviting School Culture
Focus group participants said that fostering community partnerships was made easier by having a welcoming school culture. The "open door policy" highlighted by community partners meant they felt welcome to contribute to the school on numerous levels. Additionally, community partners thought that their relationships with the school gave them the freedom to start new initiatives for supporting the institution through their preferred projects.
It was acknowledged that community partners truly loved visiting their partner schools because of the welcoming school culture. One participant observed that "the whole school was affected" by the school culture. Everyone is incredibly hospitable.
Teacher Commitment to Student Success
Partners from the community believed that teachers in the partner schools were dedicated to the success of their kids and that this dedication made partnerships, especially those that extended into the classrooms, that much more successful. Community partners' desire to support the teachers' work was influenced by their readiness to go above and beyond what is generally expected of them. Community stakeholders were inspired to remove obstacles to student success by this strong commitment. A community partner praised the hiring practices of the principal of one school, noting that she "doesn't accept anything less than that from her instructors" and that she "believes that every student can learn." The teachers were to "push every pupil along as far as you possibly can when you're working with them," according to the principal. The community partner was motivated by the school's devotion to offer "any support I can to help the school reach that goal."
Collaboration and Communication
In addition to the previously mentioned elements, participants emphasized the importance of teamwork and communication in creating good partnerships. Working on projects together, contributing your ideas, and bringing something fresh to the table were all examples of collaboration. The only person who can limit your ability to collaborate is you, so down your guards, share, and work together when you meet, as one participant put it. As previously indicated, collaboration also involved making sure that community partners benefited reciprocally. Collaboration, of course, is only as effective as partner communication. The parents "are involved, they're communicated with, and they receive information from the school and the community," according to the description of communication as being "open" and taking place between partners. Some schools communicated with all partners on a weekly or monthly basis family and community. Listening to one another and family members was another aspect of communication. Additionally, schools anonymously surveyed community members as part of their yearly online surveys about school climate. All community partners recognized and saw the importance of communication, especially those who worked to meet unmet family needs such as clothing, food, and shelter and keep kids in school and out of juvenile jail. The relationship "needs communication to work," to put it simply.
Recommendations for School Leaders (
1. Engage with the community
• Develop a relationship with the owner/proprietor of nearby businesses and service organizations by visiting them frequently and asking about the products or services they provide.
• Choose a staff person to serve as the school's "community liaison" and allot time for that staff member to establish and maintain relationships with the community.
• Attend social and cultural events in your town and network with other attendees.
2. Jointly identify mutual interests and goals
• Invite representatives from nearby businesses and services to a school function (such as a lunch prepared by students or an evening social) to discuss shared interests and objectives.
• Form a site council and ask local leaders to participate in initiatives to improve the school and the neighborhood.
• Consult with community partners to determine the needs of the families and students in the area
• Connect shared interests and objectives to student learning.
3. Ensure reciprocity in the partnership
• Identify ways the school can give back to the community (for example, by using open buildings or participating in service learning projects);
• Identify ways to utilize community resources and services to support families and children in the school setting.
• Meet regularly with community partners to identify and update shared interests and goals for the partnership.
4. Maintain an “open door policy”
• Request insightful comments about school rules, practices, and goals from parents, teachers, and community people.
· Invite specific local company and service representatives to visit the school, observe classes, and take part in a lesson or school-wide activity.
· Arrange meetings with community members to address the needs of the students, families, school, and community.
· Make school facilities accessible to the general public
5. Invite community members to serve in various roles within the school
• Ask locals to join committees and leadership teams so they can participate in making decisions about governance.
• Include community people as active participants in projects, field excursions, classroom teachings, and celebrations.
• Request feedback from community members regarding the performance of the school and personnel.
Conclusion
Many studies show that school-community collaborations can offer local schools the strong and necessary support they require while also benefiting the community partners. From big colleges and corporations to tiny local businesses and organizations, schools have a wide range of partners and relationships. Each community partner gave special, tailored assistance to the neighborhood school while also gaining tangible, emotional, and social advantages. The fact that community partners use what they learn from an inclusive culture and practices at a school to encourage the inclusion of all people with disabilities in their community outside of the school was a particularly compelling finding of reciprocal benefit. Strong school leadership, a welcoming school culture, educators committed to student success, and the capacity for collaboration and communication with community partners are all school qualities that support these relationships. The advantages to the community may last for a very long time, and strong community relationships assist schools now.
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