Boost your child’s learning

Increased parental engagement with schools is proving to be an important aspect of boosting a child’s learning and the overall improvement of schools in the Black Country.

The most effective partnerships develop when schools treat parents and carers as equal partners in the education of the children. They are then able to better understand where the child is in their learning and development, while the schools know the child is getting the support they need at home.

Some of the ways this has been achieved is by encouraging parents and children to read together by providing free books to all families through Bookstart, Book Time and Booked Up; by improving access to information through Parent Know How; and by putting Parent Support Advisers into schools.

All these measures – and more – are beginning to have the desired effect, with 51 per cent of parents feeling they are more involved in their child’s school life in 2007, compared with just 29 per cent in 2001.

During a national trial programme, there were five approaches to engage parents, although the schools involved generally focused their work on two or more of them:

1. Sharing outline curriculum plans with parents with suggestions of activities for parents/siblings to work on together as part of homework.
2. Using homework activities to communicate key areas of learning that parents can support.
3. Giving parents access to curriculum materials for current teaching and learning on the school website or the virtual learning environment.
4. Involving parents in their child’s lessons in school.
5. Helping specific parents to work with their child on identified curricular targets.

These are now being rolled out to schools around the country and the benefits are already being seen as parents take a more active role in their child’s education.

For more information and to download the free booklet, click here.