ERIC Number: EJ932182
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2011-May
Pages: 6
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0013-1784
EISSN: N/A
Available Date: N/A
Making the Most of School-Family Compacts
Henderson, Anne T.; Carson, Judy; Avallone, Patti; Whipple, Melissa
Educational Leadership, v68 n8 p48-53 May 2011
Wouldn't it be great if a school's administrators and teachers could sit down with parents and exchange ideas about what part each might play in supporting students' learning--especially in schools with at-risk students? Henderson, Carson, Avallone, and Whipple describe how they helped three elementary schools in Connecticut do just that, through guiding the schools in revising their school-family compacts. Under No Child Left Behind, all schools receiving Title I funds are required to create "compacts" that outline how parents, school staff, and students will share responsibility for improving students' achievement. Compacts are meant to give parents information about a school's goals and strategies and how the home environment might support learning. But most schools create formulaic documents that parrot general language about parental responsibility. Connecticut's Department of Education initiated a program to improve compacts in urban schools throughout the state. The article describes how participating schools used this process--and district support--to build relationships, spark dialogue with parents, and make parents more aware of and involved in their children's school work. (Contains 1 endnote and 5 online resources.)
Descriptors: Urban Schools, Federal Legislation, Academic Achievement, At Risk Students, Family Environment, Parent School Relationship, Parent Participation, Educational Legislation, Parents, Parent Responsibility, Administrators, Teachers
ASCD. 1703 North Beauregard Street, Alexandria, VA 22311-1714. Tel: 800-933-2723; Tel: 703-578-9600; Fax: 703-575-5400; Web site: http://www.ascd.org
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Descriptive
Education Level: Elementary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Connecticut
Identifiers - Laws, Policies, & Programs: No Child Left Behind Act 2001
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A
Author Affiliations: N/A

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