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CREATING MEANINGFUL Counselor - Parent relationships. Created and developed by Mary Louise Silva. What has been your past experience working with parents?. What was the outcome? What would you do differently?. Goal:.
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CREATING MEANINGFUL Counselor - Parent relationships Created and developed by Mary Louise Silva
What has been your past experience working with parents? • What was the outcome? • What would you do differently?
Goal: Provide research-based strategies to help counselors effectively work in partnership with parents.
Expected Outcomes: You will learn: • How to increase parent engagement at your site • Ways to help parents successfully support their child’s studies and pathway to college.
Alliance Core Values: • High expectations for all students • Small, personalized schools and classrooms • Increased instructional time • Highly qualified principals and teachers • WORKING WITH PARENTS AS PARTNERS
Effects of family/school partnerships: • Creates a welcoming and collaborative school environment • Improves student attendance • Improves student attitudes about school, motivation to learn, behavior, and homework completion • Increases parents’ confidence about guiding their children’s school work and curricular decisions • Leads to higher student achievement and college-going rates
ASCA defines counselors as….. Leaders, advocates, and collaborators in schools, who no longer just deliver services to individual students and families, but also collaborate with other educators, share leadership in developing school programs, and involve all parents in their children’s learning and development.
Counselors play an integral role and should: • Lead the efforts of the school’s Action Team for Parent Partnerships (ATPP). • ATPPs plan, implement, and evaluate parent programming. • Devote 20% of their time each week • Build relationships and collaborate with parents and community partners. • Oversee/carry-out parent engagement programming
Counselors can increase the school’s capacity to work in collaboration with parents by: • Addressing attitudes of school personal • Creating a welcoming school environment • Increasing multicultural competence • Encouraging teachers to connect with families • Making it a priority to keep parents informed • Offering multiple opportunities for parents to volunteer (Educational workshops series focusing on parenting, school success, and the college-going process)
Counselors can increase parent involvement by: • Communicating the importance of parent involvement and meeting the 40-hr volunteer commitment • Preparing parents to effectively communicate with teachers and school leaders (facilitate dialogues if necessary) • Making parents feel important and comfortable in the school • Advocating for the inclusion of parents in the decision-making process • Organizing student-family activities • Connecting families to school and community resources • Leading parent educational workshops
Effective Counselor Communication = Strong Trusting Relationships with Parents Alliance-wide Summer Conference 2010
Communication Strategies: Before or at the beginning of the school year: • Contact every parent and get to know parents informally • Schedule “Coffee with the Counselor” and if necessary home visit so parents can get to know you • Send a letter and/or email introducing yourself (include a description of your role and when and how you can be reached) • Each month prepare tips for parents to be included in your school’s monthly newsletter.
Communication Strategies: During the school year: • Use TeleParent and/or email to keep in contact with parents • Promptly return calls and respond to email messages or notes • Set up meetings to alert parents regarding a potential problem (credit deficiency) • Attend monthly parent advisory meetings (make sure you are on the agenda)
Communication Strategies: During school year: • Encourage parents to visit the Counseling Center to utilize resources (beyond scheduled parent-teacher conferences) • Use the school’s website or create a blog to share important information with parents • Host a webcam or podcast session (create a link for parents to login live to watch a lesson or highlight important reminders) • Organize a Family College Night or College Fair
More Communication Strategies: When meeting with parents: • Remember to smile and shake hands • Be mindful of your tone of voice and mannerisms • Be willing to truly listen and answer questions • Avoid sharing too much information Communication Materials: • Ensure handouts given to parents are translated • Be consistent with terminology used • Keep things simple • Check for learning • Don’t be afraid to repeat message
Action Plan • Describe the activity • Indicate resources needed • List the steps you are going to take to complete the activity
Questions/Comments Please visit my wordpress site: allianceworkingwithparentsaspartners.wordpress.com