Case Study: Success Middle School

As principal of Success Middle School it is imperative that parents are valued members of my school community. As a school building leader, I understand the need to “collaborate with faculty and community members by collecting and analyzing information pertinent to the improvement of the school’s educational environment” (ELCC 4.1). Therefore, I will make sure to listen respectfully to the concerns of parents and the community, and involve them in our school community as much as I can. As data shows, the community is a diverse one with many lower and middle-income community members. The school consists of 40% Latino, 30% Black (including 10% Caribbean), 15% White and 15% Asian. Of these students, 35% are English Language Learners. Additionally, …show more content…
A major component of the plan will include the creation of a Parent-Community Committee that will spearhead the outreach plan. The committee will be comprised of myself, teachers, the members of the community and parents. It will deal with all concerns in an effective and timely manner. Through the use of surveys, parent-teacher contact and school events hosted to foster parent and community involvement, the plan will become a reality. I will also utilize the assistance of the parent coordinator and parent-teacher organization to gather parent concerns and communicate the school’s goals. Prior to involving the coordinator, I will meet with them to discuss the parent concerns regarding her …show more content…
The aspect of parental involvement that has the greatest impact on student academic achievement is parental expectations. This has to do with parents holding their children accountable in terms of their academic performance. As a result, teachers and school administrators should “guide parents on what steps they can take to become more involved [in their child's education]” (Jaynes, 2005). For example, in “activities such as reading to one's children, communicating with them and subtle involvement activities like parental style and expectations,” parents can have a positive impact on their children's academic achievement (Jaynes, 2005). This is because “parents that know what is going on in the classroom can more effectively support their children in learning and achieving in all aspects of their education” (Zeiger & Tan, 2012). Moreover, studies show that “the majority of the communication that teachers and parents typically engage in is purely informational...” (Zeiger & Tan, 2012). For example, information about school events or the reporting of grades and attendance is what most of the communication looks like. This information is not considered meaningful, in the sense that it would yield higher results in student achievement. Communication that would correlate to higher student achievement would be that in which