By Request.... | March 1999

Walking the Talk: Implementing a Parent-Involvement Program

Because an effective parent-involvement program is tailored to the unique qualities of the school-community it serves, a set formula for implementing a successful program is not practical. There are however, certain considerations that should be made by any school or district wishing to enhance an existing program or implement a new one. Following is a brief overview of these considerations and suggested steps for implementing them.

Planning and Preparation

The first order of business is to form a planning team to be in charge of designing the program and getting it off the ground. To ensure adequate representation of the total school community, the group should include teachers, parents, administrators, and members of the community. Teacher buy-in is critical at this stage of the process because without their support, program success can be next to impossible. Teachers, after all, will have the majority of contact with parents and volunteers. Buy-in can be made possible by involving teachers in the planning process, soliciting their input about the design and scope of the program, and allowing them flexibility in how they choose to implement it. For example, don't require teachers to use a certain number of volunteers each week for a specified number of hours; let them determine what will fit best with their schedules. The support of building administration is also necessary during initial planning and throughout implementation. A supportive administrator will put the staff at ease and provide them with the reinforcement that they will need along the way. Other important steps to take in the planning process are as follows:

Research parent involvement. If possible, members of the planning team should visit schools known to have exemplary parent involvement and explore how such efforts might be adapted to their school environment.

Hire or designate someone to coordinate the program. A successful effort will not be haphazard—it will be the result of a concerted effort of a team dedicated to the idea and a coordinator willing to go the extra mile to engage parents and staff. Many successful programs have enlisted parents to coordinate the effort.

Assess school needs. Consider how your school could best benefit from increased parent involvement (Cotton & Wikelund, 1989). For example, does your school need more help in each classroom? Is a tutoring or mentoring program something that you are interested in? Have budget shortfalls caused you to cut back on office staff or school supplies? Parents can assist in all of these areas.

Determine what the scope of the program will be (Epstein, 1995). Will it be a comprehensive, schoolwide effort? Or will it be a targeted program focused on one grade or classroom? Will teachers decide how parent involvement will play a role in their classrooms? Or will there be a common program and procedures for all classrooms?

Take inventory of parent volunteer strengths, their likes and dislikes, their special skills and talents, and their occupations and community connections (MDET, 1994). Capitalize on these things to make the program uniquely your own.

Consider student and parent diversity when developing the program, and be sensitive to daily constraints that make it difficult for some parents to spend time at school (e.g., job schedules or single-parent schedules) (Liontos, 1992).

Write a clear policy that lays out the parent-involvement procedures in an organized and concise fashion. Make the policy readable and easily available to staff and parents (Williams & Chavkin, 1989).

Secure adequate funding for program development and administration, teacher training, and parent recruitment. If classroom teachers are involved in planning or staffing the program, ensure that funds are available to pay for substitutes and compensate teachers for their time and contributions to the program (Epstein, 1995).

Engaging Parents

The next step is to reach out to parents and solicit their involvement. Unfortunately, this is easier said than done. One of the biggest stumbling blocks schools face in implementing parent volunteer programs is engaging significant numbers of participants (MDET, 1994). In addition, lower-income, minority, and non-English speaking individuals are frequently underrepresented in parent-involvement activities (Decker, Gregg, & Decker, 1996). The challenge is to design parent-involvement activities that are both attractive and accessible to the entire parent population. The following list details a few steps schools can take to reach out to parents and support their involvement in education.

Consider parents' needs and interests when planning parent-involvement activities, and provide a variety of ways and times for parents to get involved. Providing child care for parents of young children and conducting activities in multiple languages are two ways to make parent-involvement activities more accessible and inviting to diverse parents (Decker, Gregg, & Decker, 1996).

Ensure that the program coordinator or parent liaison actively recruits and communicates with parents. Having a staff person available to meet with parents in their homes or out in the community ensures that parents who are unable to come to school are included in parent-involvement efforts (MDET, 1994; Decker et al., 1996).

Concentrate on making parents feel comfortable in the school. Creating a room in the school building that is specifically for parents is a good way to let parents know they are welcome (MDET, 1994).

Offer orientation and training activities for parents (Decker et al., 1996). Cotton and Wikelund (1989) note that "parents generally want and need direction to participate with maximum effectiveness." However, they caution that "a little [training] is better than a lot."

To attract parents from diverse cultures, get one or two strong parent representatives from each target group to serve as school liaisons.

Training Teachers

Training teachers to effectively utilize parent involvement is critical to the success of any program (Williams & Chavkin, 1985; Shartrand et al., 1997; Liontos, 1992). Surprisingly, however, most preservice and inservice teachers never receive any formal training that shows them how to involve parents effectively (Chavkin & Williams, 1988). The Harvard Family Research Project (1995) identifies the following key areas on which teacher training efforts should focus:

Bridging gaps between home and school culture

Assuming the best intentions on the part of parents

Helping families with limited financial resources and support networks to meet their basic needs

Empowering families by providing them with encouragement, respect, and a voice in decisionmaking

Providing opportunities to build "social capital" by engaging individuals in the life of the school, building trust among teachers and parents, and agreeing on mutual values and expectations for children

Additionally, schools must find a way to establish an "open door" policy while maintaining a professional work environment for teachers. Parents need to feel welcome in their children's schools and classrooms, yet teachers need to be afforded jobs that allow for autonomy and flexibility. Parents aren't spies, and teachers aren't foes. Mutual trust is the foundation of successful partnerships. And finally, schools need to be sensitive to teachers' time constraints. Requiring teachers to have more contact with parents increases their responsibilities and workload (Chavkin & Williams, 1988).

Ongoing Program Management

Depending on the type of parent-involvement program your school chooses to implement, different issues may arise over the course of the school year. General steps for keeping any parent-involvement program running smoothly include the following:

Commit to a policy of open communication. Communications between school and home must occur frequently and on a regular basis (Williams & Chavkin, 1989).

Recognize and celebrate the contributions of parents and any other volunteers that take time out of their schedules to assist at the school (Decker, Gregg, & Decker, 1996).

Regularly evaluate the program to ensure it is positively impacting teachers, students, and parents (Epstein, 1988). Look for ways the program can be improved and keep an eye out for opportunities to involve even more stakeholders (Williams & Chavkin, 1989).

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