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Educational Educational PartnershipsPartnershipsAidanfield Christian School

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RationaleRationale

Our school’s special character statement says:• “Education is ultimately the responsibility of parents and the special character is

dependent on their involvement. Therefore parents are expected to be actively involved in school life….”

• “The learning environment of the pupils includes the home, the church and the school. The school recognises the importance of their inter-relationship and will actively encourage, develop and support unity between them.”

• “The school will provide an environment where pupils, parents and staff can experience godly relationships…”

There is a biblical mandate to work together in partnership with the families/whānau and communities and this is further developed and articulated in the school’s special character statement and vision.

Bible – mandate that parents have to educate their children:“These commandments that I give you today are to be upon your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up.”

- Deuteronomy 6: 6-7, NIV

The school vision statement states that:“Aidanfield Christian School exists to serve and work together with families in equipping children in a Biblical community to…”

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More RationaleMore Rationale• Parents want to be involved in their child’s education and they want their children to be successful.

• Biddulph et al (2003) found that effective partnerships between schools and parents, whānau, and communities can result in better outcomes for students. The better the relationship and engagement, the more positive the impact on students' learning.

• The government would go so far to say that “the quality of the relationships which school forge with their students’ families and wider communities is critical to raising student achievement” (MOE, 2001: 30).

• An organised programme of school, family and community partnerships with activities linked to school goals will “improve schools, strengthen families, invigorate community support and increase pupil achievement and success” (Epstein, 2001; Henderson & Mapp, 2002; Sheldon, 2003).

• Hattie (2008) has found that parental involvement has a significant effect (0.55) size on school achievement and the home environment (0.57) also has a significant influence on achievement.

• Mayrowetz (2008) says that parental involvement was essential to school improvement.

• ERO (2008) found that effective partnerships between parents, whānau and families, communities and schools lead to improved educational, social and behavioural outcomes.

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Qualities of Effective PartnershipsQualities of Effective Partnerships• Biddulph et al (2003) found that genuine home/school collaboration can significantly lift children’s

achievement, but for this collaboration to occur, families must be treated with dignity and respect and there must be:

- programmes that add to family practices rather than undermine- structured, specific suggestions rather than general advice- supportive group opportunities as well as informal one-to-one contact

• Timperley and Robinson (2002) state that partnerships are about relationships, and effective partnerships provide mutual support, increase commitment and integrate the relationship and task elements in ways that allow partners to work together, and learn from each other about how to achieve their tasks.

• Epstein and Salinas (2004) offer a framework of types of involvement that are used to focus partnerships on school improvement, summarised as six types of involvement. These are: parenting; communication; volunteering; learning at home; decision making; and, collaboration with the community.

• ERO (2008) also offer six factors that emerge as critical to enhancing and strengthening engagement between schools and families. These are: leadership; relationships; school culture; partnerships; community networks and communication.

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ProcessProcess

• From our school’s parent email list, twenty five parents were randomly selected to participate in the internet survey titled ‘Partnership in Learning Self-Review 2009’. Each of these parents was sent an email with an attached consent letter inviting them to participate in the survey by visiting the surveymonkey website using the link provided in the email.

Consultation occurred in two forms:1) An internet based survey titled ‘Partnership in Learning Self-Review 2009’2) A face-to-face consultation with our Pasifika families.

Internet Survey:

• Ethical clearance was sought and gained from the course coordinator before email invitations were sent out. Ethical considerations were considered and addressed through the consent letter where parents were assured that no names would be used and were reminded that participation was entirely voluntary.

• The internet survey consisted of twenty four questions. These questions were selected from the ERO’s (2008) suggested review questions. These questions covered the following areas of school’s engagement and partnership with parents: Leadership; Relationships; School Culture; Partnerships with parents and families; Partnerships focussed on well-being; and Community networks.

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ProcessProcess

• Approach:- I personally rang each Samoan and Tongan family to invite them to our consultation evening. - I briefed them on what the evening was about by saying “what we need is your feedback on what we are doing well and what we need to do better. This information will help us improve as a school learning community.” - I informed them that some food and drink would be provided and also invited them to bring a plate of food to share. - Each family was encouraged to bring their children.

Pasifika Consultation

• When planning to consult with Pasifika communities it is important to think ‘family’ rather than ‘parent’. It is worth noting that from our internet survey, we received no responses from parents who identified as Māori, Samoan or Tongan. Data was collected through an internet survey, yet many of the Maori and Pasifika families from the school community have limited access to the internet and/or are not confident users of computer technologies. Maori and Pasifika groups respond better to face-to-face consultation.

• Christenson and Sheridan (2001) suggested that the four key elements for enhancing parental involvement are:

1) approach2) attitudes3) atmosphere4) actions

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ProcessProcess

• With significant help from two of our student leaders who are Tongan, we then worked on the atmosphere:

- We prepared the room for the meeting with lots of pacific decorations and colour and selected appropriate music.

- I prepared a short video that showcased Pasifika pupils’ achievement, service, and community, which we played during the evening.

Atmosphere:

• When the families arrived I greeted them in their language, briefed everyone on the plan for the evening, and then one of our students opened in prayer before we shared a meal together.

• The consultation was in family groups with discussion as people were eating. The families had to jot down comments relating to three questions only:

- What is good about Aidanfield Christian School?- What is not so good about Aidanfield Christian School?- Suggestions?

• The responses were then collated by a teacher and recorded on the whiteboard. To collate the data, each adult was given two stickers for each column and then had to stick them up on the board beside the statements that they agreed most strongly with.

Actions:

Through this process I was seeking to provide opportunities for parent voice, with the intention of strengthening the school community by providing opportunities for the development of leadership capacity in our parent community. I was also seeking to develop leadership capacity in our staff and students by giving them specific responsibilities as part of the consultation process.

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ResultsResultsThe findings from the internet survey show that the school’s partnership strengths are in the areas of:

- leadership, - relationships, and - school culture.

In all these areas the responses to the internet survey were positive. Some comments made by parents in the internet survey:

- “Maximum benefit to the children when the family is involved with the school - sense of cooperation; reinforcement of principles and values”. - “It's wonderful for parents to be involved as it builds both community and friendship within the school whilst giving parents a feel of what is happening from an education, cultural and learning perspective.”- “There are many ways we can be involved and feel part of the community.”- “Parent help is encouraged [and] functions organised throughout the school year always include family”- “I feel privileged to be able to help in the classroom, and I feel by doing my little part I can help support the teachers”- “We both want our children to learn academically well and also grow and develop their relationship with God in a real and meaningful way”. - “We have welcomed the transparency and accessibility that new teachers have brought with them.”

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ResultsResults

The consultation was a very successful evening and the two major suggestions were:

1) Scholarships for Pasifika pupils

2) More social events

Pasifika Consultation:

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Areas to DevelopAreas to Develop

We could improve parental involvement in the school by:

1) Consulting in appropriate ways to ensure responses from all ethnic groups.

2) Facilitating more social events.

3) Getting fathers involved.

4) Involving parents in their child’s goal setting process.

5) Develop strategies to increase parental involvement in the Middle School

6) Clear reporting of achievement

A detailed action plan has been developed to increase parental involvement.

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ReferencesReferences• Aidanfield Christian School Vision Statement.

Retrieved 3rd October 2009 from http://www.aidanfield.school.nz

• Biddulph, F. Biddlulph, J. and Biddulph, C. (2003). The complexity of community and family influences on children’s achievement in New Zealand: Best Evidence Synthesis (BES). Wellington: Ministry of Education. Retrieved October 3rd 2009 from www.educationcounts.govt.nz/publications/series/2515/5947

• Christenson, S.L. & Sheridan, S.M. (2001) Schools and families: Creating essential connections for learning. New York: Guildford Press. Eric Digest: ED456941. Abstract retrieved October 3rd 2009 from ERIC - http://www.eric.ed.gov

• Epstein, J.L. & Salinas, K.C. (2004) Partnering with families and communities. Educational Leadership 61 (8), 12-18.

• ERO (May 2008). Partners in learning: Schools’ engagement with parents, whanau and communities. Retrieved September 1st 2009, from http://ero.govt.nz/ero/publishing.nsf/Content/pil-schls-engmnt-may08

• Hattie, J. (2008). Developing potentials for learning: evidence, assessment and progress. • Powerpoint Presentation – 2008 EHSAS (Extending High Standards Across Schools) Conference, Wellington, New

Zealand.

• Mayrowetz, D. (2008). Making sense of distributed leadership: Exploring the multiple uses of the concept in the field. Educational Administration Quarterly, 44 (3), 424-435.

• Ministry of Education (2001) New Zealand Schools Nga Kura o Aotearoa. Minister of Education. A report on the compulsory schools sector in New Zealand 2000. Wellington: Ministry of Education. Retrieved October 3rd 2009 from http://www.educationcounts.govt.nz/publications/series/2523

• Special Character Statement. Retrieved 3rd October 2009 from http://www.aidanfield.school.nz/Special%20Character%20Policy%20ACS.pdf

• Timperley, H. and Robinson, V. (2002) Partnerships: Accomplishing important work together. SET 3. Research Information for Teachers. (3) 41-43