EDU655 Year Long Action Plan: Angee Mutter

Goal & Rationale

The principle I have chosen is #2: Communicate Effectively and Build Relationships.

Specifically, California Administrator Performance Expectations (CAPE) 11.2, 11.3, and 11.4

(2016, p.15). I picked this focus because it is the principle that most resonates with me and the

work I do as an Education Specialist. While reading Hill & Taylor (2004), I was specifically

struck when they wrote, “Consistently, cross-sectional (e.g., Grolnick & Slowiaczek, 1994) and

longitudinal (e.g., Miedel & Reynolds, 1999) studies have demonstrated an association between

higher levels of parental school involvement and greater academic success for children and

adolescents''p. 161). Over the years I have learned the importance of having communication that

is “welcoming, respectful, and conducive to family engagement.” I feel that it is the school’s

responsibility to set the tone for communication, as the school is perceived to have more

“power.”

When first establishing communication with new families, I like to have authentically

positive contact. As we develop our communication relationship it is helpful for those moments

if/when I have to deliver a negative message, as the parents know it is coming from an open and

honest space. Additionally, this principle also reflects the importance of how each parent prefers

to communicate, since everyone is an individual and their needs/preferences should be

considered. I have learned to overcome my fear of calling parents or talking to them in person, as

it is often more personal and causes less confusion than emails as times. As Hoover-Dempsy &

Sandler (2012) mention in their research, “Effective family-school communication influences

students’ academic progress. The value of effective communication is generally strongest when

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the communication is consistently characterized by mutual respect, careful listening, and school

responsiveness to parents’ questions, ideas, suggestions and concerns” (p.4).

Through this process and the readings, I have encountered a sentiment that once children

are out of elementary school, the parents are supposed to be less involved. Hill & Taylor (p.

161) points out their research, “For example, one study demonstrated that parental school

involvement was associated with adolescents’ achievement and future aspirations across middle

and high school (Hill et al., in press). Moreover, although direct helping with homework declines

in adolescence, parental school involvement during middle and high school is associated with an

increase in the amount of time students spend on homework and with an increase in the

percentage of homework completed (Epstein & Sanders, 2002)” (as cited in Hill and Taylor,

2004).

After giving the checklists to various stakeholders, there are a lot of bright spots for

HTMMA’s school-family communication:

○ The teachers/teams regularly report to parents about what is happening in the

classrooms (via newsletters), as well as consistently updating grades in

Powerschool.

○ Teachers and families have regular opportunities to meet face-to-face (meetings

by request, SLCs, POLs, Exhibitions)

○ Teachers make personal contact at least monthly (several Advisors work with

students to email parents weekly)

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○ The school is open and accessible -- all stakeholders might not be available when

the parent wants, but the school’s community is open and working on making

parents feel welcome

○ Families learn the school system and how to advocate for their child

Conversely, based on the checklists I also have found some areas of growth:

○ Friendly signs in and around the school welcoming parents and helping them

navigate the building

○ Teachers learning effective approaches to working with families of diverse

cultural backgrounds.

○ Giving families transparent access to attendance rates, test results and how the

school is making improvements.

My goals are to use this data to improve HTMMA’s overall communication with families.

Additionally, I should also take Hoover-Dempsey & Sandler Model of the Parental Involvement

Process (2012) into consideration, as it would help put into context the ways in which parents

view their roles within schools and how they may respond to invitations to be involved. I was

most struck by the notion that parents have two personal motivators around school involvement

(p.3):

● Role construction is parents’ beliefs about what they are supposed to do in

relation to their children’s schooling. In essence, it is their job description from

their own viewpoint.

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● Self-efficacy for helping their children succeed in school refers to parents’ beliefs

about whether or not their involvement is likely to have a positive influence on

their children’s education.

I found this incredibly helpful to keep in mind while developing a year-long plan. If these

are the two main motivators for parents, I need to tap into that in order to enact long term

solutions.

Three Family Engagement Actions

One goal I have is to work with my school’s Director and Exploratory teachers in

creating welcome signage and a reference of how to get around the building (both in English and

Spanish). Following this I could interview staff (especially Naiby, our Front Office Manager) and

families about the effectiveness of these items, as well as anything I could do to improve them.

During Fall Student Led Conferences (SLCs) I plan on attending as many as possible, as

well as encouraging my Inclusion Team to do the same. Afterwards, I will meet with each

Inclusion member and go through an empathy interview to gauge: their thoughts, experiences

and feedback. The purpose is to get their insights around current SLC structures, with the lens of

parent involvement. The Hill & Taylor article addresses the idea that when structures like SLCs

are in place, parents, teachers and students all benefit. They call this “Social Control;” which,

“occurs when families and schools work together to build a consensus about appropriate

behavior that can be effectively communicated to children at both home and school (McNeal,

1999). Parents’ coming to know one another and agree on goals—both behavioral and

academic—serves as a form of social constraint that reduces problem behaviors (p. 162).”

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While several teachers/advisors are sending home regular communication with parents

(i.e. weekly grade checks, newsletters, etc.), I could specifically support any Inclusion staff to

make sure they are involved with these as well. Additionally, I can work with my grade level

team (6th grade) to ensure all messages are able to be translated and viewable on a phone, as that

can be a lot of parents only digital device to receive communications from school.

Necessary inputs & resources

I need to meet with my Director, the PTA, various teachers and parents (from various

socioeconomic and cultural backgrounds) to get their input on the changes/goals I have in mind.

Additionally, I wonder if some of these goals can be met working in conjunction with High Tech

Middle and/or High Tech Middle Mesa, specifically regarding the parent information sessions. I

will also need to work with the GSE leadership (i.e. Katie, Kelly, etc.) to see if those before me

have done anything similar, and what has and has not worked before.

Intended short term and long term impacts and performance measures

● Short Term:

○ Ensure all of 6th grade is giving weekly communication to all parents. Make sure

we have working emails and phone numbers for students. During our weekly

meetings, are we celebrating students and sharing that with parents?

○ Ensure all Inclusion Staff is communicating with all caseload parents. Progress

Reports and SLCs are coming up, which are wonderful times to authentically

connect with parents.

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● Long Term:

○ Have welcome signage and easy to use guides for how to get around our building

and get in touch with teachers/faculty/staff

○ Hold info sessions (or something else) to inform parents about testing, school

culture updates, etc.

● How will you know if you’ve met your goals? What evidence will you collect?

○ I will know if I’ve met my goal through parent and Inclusion staff feedback,

which I will solicit through 1:1 conversations, Google feedback forms, and

observations.

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Resources

Culturally Responsive Family and Community Engagement: Education leaders collaborate with

families and other stakeholders to address diverse student and community interests and

mobilize community resources. (CAPEs 11-12)

Hill, N. & Taylor, L. (2004). Parental school involvement and children’s academic achievement.

American Psychological Society, 13(4), 161-164.

Hoover-Dempsey, K. V., & Sandler, H. M. (2012). Model on parent involvement. Retrieved from

http://www.parent-institute.com/pdf-samples/h-d-and-s-model.pdf.