Family engagement in schools is a shared responsibility between Educators, Social Workers, Child and Youth Workers, parents and families, Administrators, school board staff, government, public health and community partners. For engagement to be effective, all parties should be committed to reaching out in meaningful ways. Family engagement has a significant impact on children’s academic and developmental goals, as well as their health and well-being.
Home-Based Engagement
Parent/family engagement is not limited to School Council or Parent Involvement Committee but can include supporting students with schoolwork, communicating with teachers, reading together etc. Focusing on home-based activities may begin to help address the current achievement gap between students. To learn more about home-based activities visit, People for Education.
Resources for Schools
- Parent Engagement: Strategies for Involving Parents in School Health – Centre for Disease Control and Prevention. This toolkit describes strategies for increasing parent engagement in school. To increase parent engagement schools must 1) connect with parents; 2) provide activities and opportunities to engage with parents; and 3) work with parents to sustain their engagement by addressing barriers and challenges.
- Parenting in Partnership – Ministry of Education. In this policy document you will find information to support school staff in implementing parent/family engagement strategies at school.
The Ontario Teachers’ Federation (OTF) Parent Engagement modules cover 7 different parent engagement topics with resources, tips and learning opportunities for school staff.
- Establishing Positive Relationships
- Modelling Effective Communication
- Supporting Students’ Academic Success
- Contributing to School Life
- Engaging in Wellbeing and Safety Issues
- Addressing Equity Issues and Concerns
- Managing and Resolving Conflicts
Resources for Families
- Your child’s education: a parent guide to our school system – Ministry of Education
- Parent Toolkit – What Parents can do to help their Child Succeed in School – Ontario Directors of Education
- Parent Toolkit – What Parents can do to help their Teen Succeed – Ontario Directors of Education
- 5 Tips to Help Your Teen Succeed in High School – HPEPH
- Let’s go to Kindergarten! – HPEPH.
