Tschappat Portfolio-P C

TSCHAPPAT MASTERS PORTFOLIO 1
Parents and Community
Classroom performance and academic achievements are significantly influenced by the
extent to which a child’s parents become involved in school life, and the interest they take in
their child’s education. Schools that actively involve families in action teams and the planning of
community involvement activities have increased rates of student attendance (Sheldon, 2007). In
order to establish and maintain this interest, there needs to be regular and reliable communication
and sharing of information between the teacher and students’ families. Teachers can achieve this
by creating an open and communicative environment with its wider community, forming a link
between the classroom and the home.
I encourage family and community involvement in my classroom and my school
throughout the school year, beginning with correspondence like this letter that I sent home to
families the first week of school to start building a repoire with families. My families
appreciated the initial communication and this was the first step in creating a shared relationship
regarding the development and growth of their child. These parent-teacher exchanges benefit
both parties involved. Epstein (1987) describes Mead’s (1934) theory of symbolic interactionism
in which the concept of self is the product of one’s interactions with others. Epstein expands on
this theory in the context of the school environment: if a teacher avoids interaction with a parent,
then the teacher is unaware of a parent’s expectations for their child and the teacher. If a parent
does not interact with the teacher, then the parent does not know the school’s expectations of
students and of parents. When parents and teachers interact, they become aware of the
expectations one has for the other and for the child involved.
Full visibility of a child’s interests, strengths and commitments put parents in a stronger
position to help their child’s learning, and ensure children get the most out of the education
system. To further nurture this relationship, I send home newsletters, emails, make regular phone
calls home, and invite parents into the classroom so they can experience their student’s
successes. As Perrone (1991) explains, “If schools are made more accessible to parents, where
their presence in the hallways and in the classrooms is not so uncommon and where their
participation in decision making is significant, the school can assume a more integrated quality
with the world around them” (p.40). Parent co-operation and support can make a real difference
to how children see themselves as learners and engage in learning.
Communication acts as a bridge to engagement and, ultimately, strong parent
partnerships. The greater the overlap of the spheres of influence (school and family), the greater
the benefit is for parent, teacher and child (Epstein, 1987). Additionally, parents respond more
positively to teachers and rate them more highly if teachers make an effort to involve parents in
learning activities and inform them of their teaching practices (Epstein, 1986). Becker and
Epstein (1982) identified five categories of teaching techniques that involve parents in at-home
learning activities: reading books; parent-child discussion; informal learning activities; contracts
in which parents agree to complete an activity; and techniques that develop a parent’s role as
teacher/tutor of their child. My students would not have been as successful without the
cooperation of parents as co-learners, and I was pleased with the result of their intertest and
communication both with me, and their students.

References
Epstein, J. (1986). Parents’ reactions to teacher practices of parent involvement. The Elementary
School Journal, 86 (3), 277-294. Retrieved from https://doi.org/10.1086/461449
Epstein, J. (1987). Toward a theory of family—school connections: Teacher practices and
parent involvement. In K. Hurrelmann, F. Kaufmann, & F. Lösel (Eds.), Social
intervention: Potential and constraints (121-136). Berlin: Walter de Gruyter. Retrieved
from https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ1126169.pdf
Epstein, J. & Becker, H. (1982). Teachers’ reported practices of parent involvement: Problems
and possibilities. The Elementary School Journal, 83 (2). 103-113.
Mead, G.H. (1934). Mind, self and society. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
Perrone, Vito. (1991). A letter to teachers: Reflections on schooling and the art of teaching.
San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass Inc.
Sheldon, S. (2007). Improving student attendance with school, family and community
partnerships. The Journal of Educational Research, 100 (5). 267-275. Retrieved from
https://doi.org/10.3200/JOER.100.5.267-275

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TSCHAPPAT MASTERS PORTFOLIO 1

Parents and Community

Classroom performance and academic achievements are significantly influenced by the

between the classroom and the home.

I encourage family and community involvement in my classroom and my school

to how children see themselves as learners and engage in learning.

Communication acts as a bridge to engagement and, ultimately, strong parent

communication both with me, and their students.

School Journal, 86 (3), 277-294. Retrieved from https://doi.org/10.1086/461449

Epstein, J. (1987). Toward a theory of family—school connections: Teacher practices and

parent involvement. In K. Hurrelmann, F. Kaufmann, & F. Lösel (Eds.), Social

intervention: Potential and constraints (121-136). Berlin: Walter de Gruyter. Retrieved

and possibilities. The Elementary School Journal, 83 (2). 103-113.

San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass Inc.

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