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With Equal Step
  • 2 min

Sharing the Pedestal

Parents hug your children this morning. It may be the last good thing they experience till they return home from school. Can you imagine reading this? How would you react? I suspect that educators everywhere would become enraged. Parents would start asking what was going on in the classrooms? Certainly a campaign to counter the anti-school sentiment would begin. And rightfully so. Yet, in recent months I have seen a number of tweets from educators implying the same attitude t
With Equal Step
  • 3 min

What's a Butcher Got to Do with It?

As I left my butcher shop, I was smiling, a warm feeling running through me. I live in a very large city. With that comes anonymity. It can be isolating. The relationships I have at some of the places where I shop break that solitude. I know their names and they know mine. We share jokes and life stories. We support each other. For the moments that we are together, I no longer live in a metropolis. I live in a community. Walking to my car, it occurred to me that this is what
With Equal Step
  • 3 min

The Blame Game Must Stop

CBC's “The Sunday Edition” on March 17th looked at increasing incidents of violence against teachers. To be sure, this is an important topic, and warrants attention and analysis from a national news programme. Hence my disappointment that both the host - Michael Enright - and one of the guests - Wayne MacKay - seemed to believe that much of the blame lay at the foot of parents.This is an insulting and ridiculous insinuation, rooted in downright boring stereotypes and myths su
With Equal Step
  • 3 min

Stop the Addiction to Fundraising

Family engagement and its positive effects on student achievement have very little to do with a school’s ability to fundraise. However, over the years, school councils, educators and parents have come to believe that the amount of money they raise in a year will directly impact the academic potential of their students. The pundits say that the fundraising disparity between schools in high socio-economic areas and those living in poverty is linked to inequity in education. The
With Equal Step
  • 3 min

Rec•i•proc•i•ty

Rec·i·proc·i·ty noun 1 the practice of exchanging things with others for mutual benefit I was listening to “Ideas at 50” on CBC radio. One of the segments involved the late Dr. Ursula Franklin - Canadian metallurgist, research physicist, author and educator. She was speaking about communication technology and its effect on reciprocity, which she described as “some manner of interactive give and take” or “genuine communication”. I was intrigued as the programme continued and I
With Equal Step
  • 3 min

It's Okay, They Come in Peace

I was recently speaking with Derek Rhodenizer on his blog “Beyond the Classroom” about engaging families in learning. He asked me why new teachers were afraid of parents. I know many experienced teachers are leery but it was disheartening to hear the fresh ones were, too. I don’t believe we prepare our pre-service teachers for the beneficial world of home-school partnerships. Family Engagement training is not embedded in the pedagogy of teaching, as it should be. In how many
With Equal Step
  • 2 min

Everyone Have a SIP!

The beginning of school brings with it one of the most important projects of the year. It’s something that puts stress into the hearts of educators and puzzled looks onto the faces of parents - the creation of the School Improvement Plan. A daunting task, the SIP is, unfortunately, often ignored as an avenue to family engagement. “A school improvement plan is a road map that sets out the changes a school needs to make to improve the level of student achievement, and shows how
With Equal Step
  • 2 min

Imagine If...

Parents as partners wasn’t thinking outside the box; it was just making the box bigger Parents were not perceived as hovering helicopters When principals heard “engagement” they thought “welcome in” and not “run for the hills” Parent engagement meant more than council meetings, going on trips and donating money Schools did not see ‘parent knowledge’ as an oxymoron Schools wanted to call you back - and vice versa Parents were asked “What are the outstanding things you do with
With Equal Step
  • 2 min

Engagement or Contact?

Stephen Hurley recently wrote a blog - “Back to School - A Family Context” - that I appreciated. In it, he talks about the need for schools to view families as a vital part of children’s lives and learning. His suggestions for supporting engagement are welcome. Family engagement is an important component in student success. Years of research tell us that. Making parents, guardians, grandparents etc., feel welcome in a school is vital. Providing space that says “You belong her