Last Week of School Community Relations Class

I have enjoyed this class.  It is kind of ironic that I just became the PI (parent involvement) representative at my school this year.  The information from this course has came in handy.  Now I know why we do the things we do as a Title I campus. 

4th Week of EDLD 5326 Class

This week focused on advocacy for all students, parental involvement among diverse groups, site-based decision making committees, and overcoming barriers (roles and responsibilities of stakeholders).

The dots are starting to connect.  The information in this class is helping me understand why we do some of things we do at school.

3rd Week of School Community Relations Class

This class is already half over; I took a midterm exam.  The assignment this week was to establish a project timeline.  The timeline answered the questions: what is realistic timeline for your project?  What are the required tasks?  Who will make sure the timeline is followed and that the tasks are complete? (the questions are taken directly from the assignment sheet).  In addition to establishing a timeline, I also established an evaluation process which answered the question, how will you know that the partnership has met those goals?  (the question was taken directly from the assignment sheet).

2nd Week of EDLD 5326 School Community Relations

This week's assignments were to gather data and come up with an initial partnership proposal in order to design or improve community partnerships.

It is apparent after reading several articles and watching this week's videos that partnerships with parents and other members of the community are important factors in students' success at school.

“Evidence shows a strong connection between parent and family involvement in schools and children’s academic achievement, attendance, attitude, and continued education” (Henderson & Berla, 1994; Hickman, 1996).

Reference:

Comuntizis-Page, G. (1996), Critical issue: Creating the school climate and structures to support parent and family involvement.  Appalachia Educational Laboratory/North Central Regional Educational Laboratory. Washington, DC: Learning Points Associates.  Retrieved January 22, 2009, from http://www.ncrel.org/sdrs/areas/issue/envrnment/famncomm/pa300.htm .