Parental Involvement

Matthew Lynch published in Parental Involvement June 4, 2023

Getting Parents Involved in Schools

Getting parents more involved in their children’s education can be a daunting task, but it’s one that’s essential to success. Here are a few tips to help get the ball rolling:

1. Establish clear goals for getting parents more involved.

It can be helpful to establish specific goals for getting parents more involved in their children’s education. This can help you track your progress and ensure that you’re making the most progress possible.

2. Make it easy for parents to get involved.

One way to make it easy for parents to get involved is to make it easy for them to access information about their children’s education. This can include providing them with easy access to school newsletters, electronic newsletters, and other educational resources.

3. Make it fun for parents.

Another way to make it fun for parents to get involved is to create educational activities that are enjoyable and engaging. This can help to foster a sense of involvement and involvement in the child’s education.

4. Encourage parental involvement.

One of the best ways to encourage parental involvement is to give parents the tools they need to be successful. This can include providing them with education resources, helping to set up family meetings, and providing support throughout the process.

Matthew Lynch published in Parent & Family Tech, Parental Involvement May 22, 2023

Parents Don’t Understand How Far Behind Their Kids Are in School

It is no secret that education is the foundation of a child’s future. However, parents often miscalculate their children’s academic progress simply because they are not familiar with today’s education system. Sure, they check in with teachers during parent-teacher conferences and see their children’s grades, but they might not necessarily understand the curriculum, pacing, and standards for their child’s grade level.

With the COVID-19 pandemic forcing more remote learning, parents have had to take on a more active role in their child’s education. This shift has highlighted the gap between parents’ perceptions of their child’s academic performance and the reality of how far behind their child may be in school.

Parents may notice their child struggling with a particular subject or falling behind in assignments, but they may not realize the magnitude of this academic gap. Teachers design curriculums to build on previous knowledge gained in earlier grades and to prepare students for their next level of education. It is not enough for a student to just pass a class; they must have acquired the necessary skills and knowledge to move on to the next level.

Unfortunately, many children have missed significant amounts of education time due to the pandemic. Even with online classes, children have faced distractions, technical difficulties, and the inability to ask for help on the spot. As a result, children are falling behind in their studies, and parents may not fully comprehend the depth of this problem. For instance, a child who misses two months of school may not understand the fundamental concepts that are vital in their education, putting them behind other children their age.

Additionally, teachers often observe and evaluate each child’s level of proficiency. If a child does not meet the standards set for their grade level, teachers usually implement interventions to close the gap. However, with remote learning, teachers cannot closely monitor each student’s performance. This lack of in-person contact often means that significant gaps in learning can go unnoticed.

In conclusion, it is vital for parents to understand the full scope of their child’s education progress. They must realize that catching up their child’s missed education time is essential to their academic future and attempt to provide support. Being aware of the curriculum, standards, and academic expectations set for their child’s grade level can help parents track their child’s progress accurately. Parents must recognize the existing academic gap to ensure their child receives the best chance for future academic success.

Matthew Lynch published in Parental Involvement, Parenting, Teachers May 21, 2023

Types of Parents That Teachers Secretly Hate

There are many types of parents that teachers secretly hate. Some of these parents are authoritarian, demanding, and judgmental. Other parents are more supportive and understanding. However, all parents have some type of negative effect on the education of their children.

One type of parent that teachers secretly hate is the authoritarian parent. These parents often do not allow their children to have any type of expression other than those sanctioned by them. The authoritarian parent often sets the standard for what is acceptable and unacceptable in education, and their children often reflect this in their behavior and thoughts.

The second type of parent that teachers secretly hate is the demanding parent. These parents are always asking for more from their children than they are willing to give. They often expect their children to do more than they are willing to do themselves. This can lead to tension and conflict between the parents and their children, which can negatively affect the education of their children.

The third type of parent that teachers secretly hate is the judgmental parent. These parents are always critical of their children and their behavior. They often look down on them and their choices, and they often do not enjoy having their children around. This can lead to tension and conflict between parents and their children, which can negatively affect the education of their children.

All parents have some type of negative effect on the education of their children. The type of parent that teachers secretly hate is the authoritarian parent. The demanding parent and the judgmental parent can also negatively affect the education of their children.

Matthew Lynch published in Child Development, Parental Involvement May 21, 2023

What to Do When You’re a Parent Contemplating Suicide

When you’re a parent contemplating suicide, there are some things you need to do to keep yourself safe and healthy. You need to talk to your doctor, therapist, and social worker about your situation, and you need to make sure that you’re taking steps to protect your children. Here are some tips for keeping yourself safe and healthy when you’re a parent contemplating suicide:

1. Talk to someone about your situation. Talking to someone can help you to get some understanding and support.

2. Take steps to protect your children. Make sure that you’re taking steps to protect your children from harm.

3. Seek help. There are many resources available to you if you need them.

4. Don’t put yourself in a position to harm yourself. If you’re thinking of suicide, don’t do anything that could put you in a position to harm yourself or your children.

Matthew Lynch published in Parental Involvement, Teachers May 10, 2023

The Parent-Teacher Association (PTA): Everything You Need to Know

This is a formally organized association of teachers and parents who work together towards improving education for the students by identifying areas that need changes within the school and implementing those changes. Some PTAs are federally funded.

PTA’s history can be traced back to 1897, when Phoebe Apperson Hearst and Alice McLellan Birney established the National Congress of Parents and Teachers. Its goal was to improve students’ lives in terms of academics, health, and safety. Later, in 1926, the National Congress of Colored Parents and Teachers was set up by Selena Sloan Butler to advocate for African American students in segregated communities. On June 22, 1970, the two associations unified to make up what’s known today as the National PTA.

PTA’s mission is to make each student’s potential a reality by getting their families and communities involved and empowered to advocate for all children. PTA’s key values are:

· Commitment: It’s dedicated to students’ academic success, health, and well-being via strong engagement of their families and communities while remaining accountable to the principles that serve as the foundation of the association.

· Collaboration: It will work in partnership with different organizations and individuals to widen and enhance its ability to serve and support all students and their families.

· Diversity: The association acknowledges the potential of everyone, irrespective of their educational background, culture, age, financial status, gender, ethnicity, legal status, geographic location, marital status, national origin, mental ability, organizational position, physical ability, parental status, political philosophy, religion, race, work experience, and sexual orientation.

· Respect: It values the individual contributions of employees, members, partners, and volunteers as it functions collaboratively to accomplish the association’s goals.

· Accountability: All PTA employees, members, partners, and volunteers have a shared responsibility to line up their efforts to accomplish the association’s strategic plans.

Studies have shown that students’ performance gets a significant boost when their parents are engaged in their learning. Thus, it becomes important for parents to join a local PTA and get involved in their children’s school, their learning process, and the education of everyone in their community.

Today, schools face challenges like the lack of educational equity and shrinking budgets. This makes the PTA role’s more crucial than ever. This association provides programs on fortifying family-school partnerships. Additionally, it makes available free resources for members on subjects and areas like STEM, health and safety, etc. By joining the PTA, parents can become part of a powerful association that can advocate for educators and students at the national, state and local levels.

Matthew Lynch published in Parental Involvement March 27, 2023

Helping School Districts and Families to Better Engage With Each Other

The relationship between school districts and families is a crucial one. But often, it can be fraught with misunderstandings, lack of communication, and frustration. Yet, research shows that when families are engaged in their children’s education, students do better academically, have fewer behavioral problems, and are more likely to graduate.

So how can school districts and families work together more effectively? Here are some tips for improving communication and engagement:

1. Make communication a priority: School districts should establish clear and consistent communication channels with families, including school websites, email updates, and regular parent-teacher conferences. Families, in turn, should make a point to regularly check these channels and stay informed about school news, policies, and upcoming events.

2. Involve families in decision-making: School districts can invite families to participate in committees and focus groups that give input on key decisions, such as curriculum changes, budget allocations, and school policies. This not only gives families a voice in the process, but it also helps build trust and transparency.

3. Engage families in their children’s learning: Schools can provide family-friendly resources, including reading materials, homework help, and information on extracurricular activities. They can also encourage families to attend school events, such as open houses, concerts, and sports games, to see their children in action.

4. Provide resources for non-English speaking families: Many school districts have a significant population of non-English speaking families. To improve engagement, schools can offer translation services, language classes, and bilingual materials to communicate more effectively with these families.

5. Recognize and celebrate family involvement: Parents and families who are engaged in their children’s education should be recognized and celebrated. School districts can offer awards, certificates, and other forms of recognition to families who are actively involved in their children’s academic lives.

Improving engagement between school districts and families requires effort from both sides. But by prioritizing communication, involving families in decision-making, engaging them in their children’s learning, providing resources for non-English speaking families, and recognizing and celebrating family involvement, school districts and families can work together to support student success._{9:23 AM}

Matthew Lynch published in Parental Involvement, Parenting August 31, 2022

What Parents Need to Know About Credit Recovery

Credit recovery is used to explain a wide variety of educational strategies and programs that give high school learners who have failed a class the chance to redo coursework or retake a course through alternate means, thereby avoiding failure and earning educational credit.

Online credit recovery was introduced over a decade ago, and it has since become a trend in education and a cash cow for education companies. School districts have experienced soaring graduation rates, leaving companies competing to sell virtual courses to districts across the nation.

The problem is that credit recovery courses lack quality control. Typically the content is not rigorous, and, according to critics, these courses serve as a poor substitute for in-class instruction. In a rush to raise graduation rates, schools put the learners who most need educator intervention the most in front of a computer screen, leaving them to their devices.

In some cases, learners are being “pushed through the system” and earning educational credit for having passed mediocre substitutes for the real thing. Also, a credit-recovery program may or may not be well aligned with the course’s learning expectations or assignments that a learner has failed.

Some credit-recovery options may be customized to address the distinct learning needs of a specific learner, some may consist of intensive oversight and support from an educator, and some may be hybrids—learners may work part of the time with an educator or specialist.

Also, online programs usually provide highly detailed info that teachers would not obtain in a traditional educational setting. For instance, software applications may track precisely how long learners worked through a problem or how many attempts it took a learner to complete a learning activity—data that teachers may use to identify specific learner-learning needs or deficits.

There is more good news; competency-based credit recovery programs, in which learners must show mastery of a subject to enroll, are beneficial. These programs, based on mastery instead of completion, show a positive direction for online credit recovery.

What did we miss

Matthew Lynch published in Parental Involvement, Parenting August 25, 2022

A Parent’s Guide to Accommodations

Accommodations are tools or processes that gives equal access to the teaching and learning process for learners with disorders. Kids with cognitive challenges often face barriers to learning. For instance, if your kid is hyperactive they may not be able to sit still long enough to do math problems. If they have reading issues, they may struggle to learn history from a traditional textbook. Fortunately, there are changes in the class—called accommodations—that can remove these barriers.

Accommodations Defined

Accommodations are alterations that remove obstacles and provide your kid with equal access to learning. Accommodations don’t change what your kid is learning. Rather, they change how your kid is learning.

Here’s a classic example. Let’s say your kid is taking an American history class, but they struggle with reading. As an accommodation, the educator lets them listen to an audiobook version of the textbook.

By utilizing an audiobook, they can learn history without their reading issues getting in the way. This has removed a barrier to their learning.

Accommodations don’t change what your kid is expected to know or learn. They don’t lower expectations. Your kid may utilize an audiobook in American history, but they’d still be expected to learn about events like the Civil War. And they still must finish all assignments and take exams just like their peers. The accommodation simply helps them work around their challenges.

This is what makes accommodations distinct from modifications. A modification changes what your kid is expected to know or learn. For instance, in American history, a modification may be that a kid only needs to learn half of the textbook’s content.

Forms of Accommodations

Accommodations work at an optimal level when they target a key barrier or challenge. For instance, for the kid who can’t sit still to do the math, an accommodation may be frequent breaks. For the kid who struggles to write out answers on tests, an accommodation may be to give answers verbally. The accommodation matches the need.

Here are four categories of accommodations for distinct needs.

Presentation: An alteration in the way information is presented. Example: Letting a kid listen to audiobooks instead of reading printed text.
Response: An alteration in the way a kid finishes assignments or tests. Example: Providing a keyboard to a kid who struggles with handwriting when they write an essay.
Setting: A. alteration in the environment where a kid learns. Example: Allowing a kid with ADHD to take a test in a separate room with fewer distractions.
Timing and scheduling: An alteration to the time a kid has for a task. Example: Providing extra time on homework assignments for a kid who has a slow processing speed.

Requesting Accommodations for Your Child

If you think accommodations may help your kid, talk to their educator. Often, the educator may agree to informal supports. These simple changes don’t mandate paperwork. For example, it is easy for the educator to move your kid’s seat away from a noisy class door that’s distracting.

If your kid needs bigger changes, however, you may want to seek formal accommodations. Under federal law, kids with disorders have the right to equal access to learning. This means accommodations for their disorders, which can include cognitive challenges. To exercise this right, you must request that the school assess your kid.

The evaluation results can mean an IEP or a 504 plan for your kid. You and the school decide what accommodations to write into the plan. Legally this must also cover any accommodations on state tests.

However, just because an IEP or a 504 plan lists accommodations doesn’t mean they’re always followed in the class. It’s still essential to check in with the educator. And it’s essential to talk with your kid about how the accommodations are working.

Schools are open to providing accommodations. The larger challenge is choosing the right accommodations and keeping track of which ones are most helpful.

If accommodation is in place, but your kid isn’t utilizing it, find out why. If your kid gets accommodations on state tests, it’s essential to utilize them regularly in class. This helps them get familiar with the accommodations.

Accommodations Away From the Classroom

Cognitive challenges don’t just create challenges in school. They also affect life outside of school. That’s why accommodations also exist outside the class. Instead of allowing an equal opportunity to learn, they provide an equal opportunity to be involved.

Accommodations can apply to many activities and events. You may see them implemented in driver’s tests, the workplace, summer camps, sports clubs, and even Six Flags.

Some of these accommodations are given informally. During and away from the school, kids with disorders have a legal right to reasonable accommodations.

Matthew Lynch published in Early Childhood, Parental Involvement August 17, 2022

Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA): Everything You Need to Know

This law ensures that internet sites, edtech applications, and other digitally available learning tools for children incorporate the protection of privacy for children aged 13 years or less. Their personal data have to be concealed and be unavailable for harvesting or monetary gain. The law implements rules on the use of data about and from children under 13 that are more stringent than the laws governing data about older people. It also gives the parents the ability to monitor and approve some of the information shared by their children. COPPA adds a distinguished layer of privacy protection that organizations that traffic in personally identifying information have to deal with. Some websites try to avoid adhering to COPPA by completely banning young users. Other websites might not consider themselves to be appealing to children under the age of 13 and hence, not subject to COPPA’s rules. However, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) may take a different approach based on a website’s content.

Business owners, who’re thinking about complying with COPPA, first need to figure out whether or not the law applies to them. If children under 13 aren’t a business’s primary audience, but its website still meets some of the criteria established by the FTC, the business needs to determine individual users’ age if it’s going to collect personalized data from them.

If a website is subject to COPPA’s regulations, it needs to do the following:

· Post a comprehensive and clear online privacy policy mentioning its information practices for personal information (PI) collected online from under-13-year-olds

· Make reasonable efforts to provide parents with direct notice of its practices concerning the collection, use, and/or disclosure of PI from children under 13, including notice to any material alteration to practices to which the parents have previously provided their consent

· Get verifiable parental consent, with limited exceptions, before any collection, use, and/or disclosure of personal information from children under 13

· Offer a reasonable means for parents to review the personal information collected from their children, and for them to refuse to allow its further use

· Establish and maintain reasonable processes to protect the security, confidentiality, and integrity of the personal information collected from children under 13, including by following reasonable steps to release and disclose such personal information only to parties able to maintain its security and confidentiality

· Retain personal information collected online from under-13-year-olds for only as long as it’s required to fulfill the objective for which it was collected and delete the data using reasonable measures to safeguard against its unauthorized use or access

Matthew Lynch published in Parental Involvement, Parenting July 26, 2022

What School District Am I In?

As a parent, your biggest concerns are your child’s health, safety, and education. When it’s time for them to begin kindergarten, you will have to start deciding what type of school your child will attend. If you decide to go with your local public schools, you will want to know the school district your home is located or “zoned” in and what elementary, middle, and high school they will attend.

This is very important because if you have bought a home in a subpar area with a sub-par school district, your child’s education will most likely be substandard and so will the environment they grow up in. That’s why most people think about these things before they start having kids and purchasing a house.

If you are wondering what school district your home is currently located in, here are some sites that can help. In most instances, you must input your address and receive the name of the school district you are zone for and the individual elementary, middle, and high school.

Great Schools

https://www.greatschools.org/school-district-boundaries-map/

Niche

https://www.niche.com/k12/schools-near-you/?center=-79.98065150000002,40.431337657622095