My area of practice is using technology in the classroom to enhance the students learning outcomes, but also helping families make the transition by developing a strong and meaning full home/school relationship. I have spent a large portion of this year adapting my practice in order to cater to the changing environment in the classroom. A major consideration in my area of practice is how the whānau feel about this change and ensure they are as comfortable with it as the students in my classroom.
Ally Bull, Keren Brooking & Renee Campbell - Authors for an Education Counts research project, inquired in to successful home school partnerships by asking the following questions:
- What are the main features of successful home–school partnerships and how do they operate in practice?
- What are the barriers and enablers to successful home–school partnerships?
- Are the success factors unique to the context?
- What is the impact of successful home–school partnerships on student presence, engagement and achievement?
They concluded that because the idea of actively building home school relationships is relatively new to New Zealand, they were limited in the observations they were able to make, therefore they could not establish a definite impact of building this. However, they have found positive feedback with many schools who are applying the Ministry of Education Home-School Partnership model in ways that suit their own school community. Homework and parent teacher interview structures were changed to encourage more interactive and inclusive tasks that require input from the family to complete. Overall, building the home-school relationship should not be an add on to an already demanding workload, but rather including it in our current practice in any way we can.
When considering my own personal practice, I approach this by maintaining a classroom blog on a weekly basis that contains student work, homework, photos from the week and details of any upcoming events. I also keep a reflective blog, where the community is able to see from my perspective how the classroom is going, progress we are making and challenges we face along the way. All students and their families are encouraged to check the blog regularly and post comments about the blog or ask any questions when they require clarification. The homework is designed to be inclusive of others at home, ranging from having discussions with family members to sharing and reflecting on activities from school. In addition to this, the school hosts curriculum evenings where families are able to participate in a range of workshops that can help them support their child’s learning at home.
A challenge of this, is that not all families have easy access to the blog. We have received feedback suggesting that some members of the community have not used blogs previously and require more information on how to navigate it before they feel comfortable using it. This is where the curriculum evenings the school hosts for the parents area an excellent opportunity to see how it fits in to school life, and how it is possible for it to fit into their lives at home too.
The context of my practice is in a small, central Auckland primary school where the roll is more than 70% English Second Language Learners. Many of our students have very busy home lives. It is not uncommon for them to have a different extra curricular activity on each evening, or for parents to work long hours that restrict their ability to visit the school or talk to their child regularly about their learning. The purpose of my practice is to enable all students to have a level playing field and these parents to have access to a platform that allows them to see what their child is doing during the hours they are at school. For parents, it is imperative to give them a way to contact the teacher at a time that suits them, as well as ask any question or voice any concerns they have without having to make time to come in to the school. This simply is not possible for some of our busy parents.
The values that underpin my area of specialization come down to simply listening to the feedback we receive from the school community. Parents and other whānau want to be involved with school life, they want to know what is going on and now not only what their child is learning but how they’re learning it. The registered teachers criteria clearly states that as teachers we must engage in ethical, respectful, positive and collaborative professional relationships with whānau and other carers of ākonga and acknowledge and respect the languages, heritages and cultures of all ākonga. By constructing an environment that is open to all languages and families both of these criteria and perhaps others are being thoroughly met. With this and the other criterion in mind, I inquire in to an aspect of my practice each year using the Ministry of Education Inquiry model.
This year my focus is on building those home - school relationships by making learning visible and clear to students and their whānau. In order to do this it is important to regularly gather and action feedback from the community. My core values are articulated within my organisational culture within the school quite clearly. With such a diverse range of students and home lives, we must work hard to build lasting connections with our families. This means we must be able to listen to and cater to their needs. As stated by Ally Bull, Keren Brooking & Renee Campbell in the 2008 research project into the impact of a home - school relationship, this must be incorporated in to our practice rather than creating 'additional work' that will not be sustainable long term. This doesn't just apply to the teacher but also to the students and their families as well. I have adapted my inquiry to confront this and what it means for my own practice.
To summarise: My practice surrounds the importance of technology in the classroom, but also using it to bridge the gap between home and school. I believe that the whānau understanding what goes on in the day to day life at school, it will be easier for them to support their child's learning at home, resulting in a positive impact on the students learning. However, in order to make this work, I must invest time in to delivering workshops and assistance to those families who need extra support when navigating the blog and other online tools, whether it be due to language barriers or technological capabilities. The New Zealand Registered Teacher Criteria, the Ministry of Education inquiry model and feedback from the community is what supports my view and works as a guildline to my own personal practice.
Resources used:
Bull, A., Brooking, K., & Campbell, R., 2008: Successful Home - School Partnerships. Retrieved from https://www.educationcounts.govt.nz/publications/schooling/28415/2
Ministry of Education, 2015. New Zealand Registered Teacher Criteria. Retrieved from: http://www.teacherscouncil.govt.nz/content/registered-teacher-criteria-1
Ministry of Education, 2009: Teaching as Inquiry. Retrieved from: http://nzcurriculum.tki.org.nz/Curriculum-stories/Case-studies/Teachers-as-learners-Inquiry/Teaching-as-inquiry
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