Date of Award
1-1-1991
Document Type
Practicum
Degree Name
Doctor of Education
Department
Child and Youth Care Administration
Advisor
Georgianna Lowen
Committee Member
Sammie Tomblin
Keywords
academic learning, children's behavior, community-school interaction, home instruction, home-school communication, observation, parent cooperation, parent involvement, parent participation, parent role, parent-school relationship, parent teacher partnership, parent training, school-family partnerships, take-home computer programs, workshops
Abstract
This practicum was aimed at increasing parents’ participation in their children’s academic learning through training. Two corollary aims were to increase demonstration of Community/school interaction and to encourage attendance of the parents in the workshops or home instruction.
A pre-assessment questionnaire was used to determine family needs and interests. Several workshops were developed. A take-home computer program was used during the twelve-week period to bridge the classroom instruction with the parent involvement at home. Software was directly correlated with the individual child's learning level. Reporting of time spent by parents working with their children on school-related activities was done by the lead teacher and home/school liaisons through various forms of communication. Attendance of the parents in the training sessions and at school related programs and functions was recorded using sign-in sheets specifically for the targeted group. A post-assessment questionnaire was done to determine to what extent the participants felt the program was successful.
All six objectives of this practicum project were met or exceeded due to the design of the project itself. Careful attention to the target population and their prior pattern of involvement were analyzed and strategies were developed to insure participation of even the most reluctant parent. The overwhelming parental support for this project and the success of every objective indicates a high degree of correlation between the results of this practicum and the results described in related literature.