Opinion Blog

Classroom Q&A

With Larry Ferlazzo

In this EdWeek blog, an experiment in knowledge-gathering, Ferlazzo will address readers’ questions on classroom management, ELL instruction, lesson planning, and other issues facing teachers. Send your questions to lferlazzo@epe.org. Read more from this blog.

Families & the Community Opinion

How to Make Parent Engagement Meaningful

By Larry Ferlazzo — July 19, 2022 4 min read
family remote ed Opinion
  • Save to favorites
  • Print

During the summer, I am sharing thematic posts bringing together responses on similar topics from the past 11 years. You can see all those collections from the first 10 years here.

Today’s theme is Parent Engagement.

You can see the list following this excerpt from one of the posts:

parentinvolvement

1. Parents Are Among Teachers’ Best Assets

Don’t view parents as obstacles. See them as partners to enhance student learning. Read more.

2. Lessons Teachers Have Learned From Students’ Families

Reaching students comes easier if teachers see themselves as equal partners with families. Read more.

3. Spanish-Language Infographic: ‘7 Tips for Parents Supporting Remote Learning’

Educator Xatli Stox translates into Spanish Lindsay Kuhl’s infographic on helping parents support distance learning. Read more.

4. Spanish-Language Visualization: ‘7 Tips for Parents Supporting Remote Learning’

Educators Wendi Pillars and Xatli Stox collaborate to create a Spanish-language version of Wendi’s original visualization of “7 Tips for Parents Supporting Remote Learning.” Read more.

5. Visualization of ‘7 Tips for Parents Supporting Remote Learning’

Teacher Wendi Pillars shares a visual illustration of the points made in Larry Ferlazzo’s video “7 Tips for Parents Supporting Remote Learning.” Read more.

6. Infographic: ‘7 Tips for Parents Supporting Remote Learning’

Teacher Lindsay Kuhl shares a visual illustration of the points made in Larry Ferlazzo’s video “7 Tips for Parents Supporting Remote Learning.” Read more.

7. Video: ‘7 Tips for Parents Supporting Remote Learning’

Larry Ferlazzo speaks directly to parents and offers seven tips for supporting their children’s learning journey during the school closure crisis. Read more.

8. Don’t Treat Parent-Teacher Conferences ‘Like Trips to the Dentist’

Beth Brady, Carol Pelletier Radford, Rich Czyz, Robert Ward, Jennifer Abrams, and Barbara R. Blackburn share their thoughts on teachers meeting with parents. Read more.

9. The Student’s Role in Parent-Teacher Conferences

Jenny Edwards, Beth Gotcher, Sherri Wilson, Katy Ridnouer, Ryan Huels, Tara Brown, and Sarah Thomas share their reflections on parent-teacher conferences. Read more.

10. Strategies for Effective Parent-Teacher Conferences

Today’s post highlights suggestions from Luz Santana, Leticia Skae, Mandi White, Tara Dale, Sanée Bell, PJ Caposey, and Sarah Kirby-Gonzalez about increasing the effectiveness of parent-teacher conferences. Read more.

11. Building Relationships With Families of ELLs

Rusul Alrubail (who acted as “guest host” for this post), Anna Bartosik, Jordan Lanfair, Anabel Gonzalez, Karen Nemeth, and Judie Haynes offer suggestions on how to engage with parents of English-language learners. Read more.

12. ‘Successful Schools Solicit’ Family Engagement

Debbie Silver, Jenny Edwards, Sean Slade, Judy Bradbury, and Nadja N. Reilly provide their commentaries on family engagement and schools. Read more.

13. Seeing Families as ‘Co-Creators’ of Our Schools

Jennifer Orr, Shane Safir, Karen L. Mapp, Allen Mendler, Mary Tedrow, and Patricia Vitale-Reilly share their suggestions on how educators can engage families. Read more.

14. Listening to Parents With Our Heads and Hearts

Katy Ridnouer, Janice Fialka, and Joe Mazza provide their guest responses. Read more.

15. Parent Engagement Requires ‘Trust, Not Blame’

Jane Baskwill, Julia Thompson, and Bryon V. Garrett share their thoughts. Read more.

16. Parents Can Teach Educators ‘Lessons About Learning and Life’

This post features contributions from Catherine Compton-Lilly, Sherrel Bergmann, Judith Brough, and Maurice J. Elias. Read more.

17. Keys to Parent Engagement—Relationships, Climate, Communication

This post highlights responses from Darcy Hutchins and Mai Xi Lee, along with many readers’ comments. Read more.

18. Embracing & Celebrating Diverse Families

Two author/educators, Cindi Rigsbee and Darcy J. Hutchins, provide guest responses in this post, which includes contributions from readers. Read more.

19. The Difference Between Parent ‘Involvement’ & Parent ‘Engagement’

I describe the differences between the two models, and author Katy Ridnouer and Assistant Principal Mai Xi Lee also contribute their thoughts. Read more.

20. Ways to Build Trust Between Parents & Teachers—Part One

Betsy Landers, National PTA president, and Carrie Rose, executive director of the Parent/Teacher Home Visit Project, provide guest responses in this post. Read more.

21. A Conversation About Building Trust Between Parents & Teachers

Superintendent and author Steve Constantino and Principal Joe Mazza engage in a conversation about parent engagement. Read more.


Explore other thematic posts:

Related Tags:
Parents Opinion

The opinions expressed in Classroom Q&A With Larry Ferlazzo are strictly those of the author(s) and do not reflect the opinions or endorsement of Editorial Projects in Education, or any of its publications.

Events

This content is provided by our sponsor. It is not written by and does not necessarily reflect the views of Education Week's editorial staff.
Sponsor
Student Achievement Webinar
Student Success Strategies: Flexibility, Recovery & More
Join us for Student Success Strategies to explore flexibility, credit recovery & more. Learn how districts keep students on track.
Content provided by Pearson
This content is provided by our sponsor. It is not written by and does not necessarily reflect the views of Education Week's editorial staff.
Sponsor
Artificial Intelligence Webinar
Shaping the Future of AI in Education: A Panel for K-12 Leaders
Join K-12 leaders to explore AI’s impact on education today, future opportunities, and how to responsibly implement it in your school.
Content provided by Otus
Student Achievement K-12 Essentials Forum Learning Interventions That Work
Join this free virtual event to explore best practices in academic interventions and how to know whether they are making a difference.

EdWeek Top School Jobs

Teacher Jobs
Search over ten thousand teaching jobs nationwide — elementary, middle, high school and more.
View Jobs
Principal Jobs
Find hundreds of jobs for principals, assistant principals, and other school leadership roles.
View Jobs
Administrator Jobs
Over a thousand district-level jobs: superintendents, directors, more.
View Jobs
Support Staff Jobs
Search thousands of jobs, from paraprofessionals to counselors and more.
View Jobs

Read Next

Families & the Community An Unusual Consequence for Late School Pickups: Fees for Tardy Parents
School and district leaders struggle when parents are regularly late to the pickup line.
4 min read
Photograph of a sign that says this is the student drop off and pick up area at a school.
KaraGrubis/Getty
Families & the Community Q&A Family Engagement Isn’t One-Size-Fits-All. Here’s How to Do It Right
This Kentucky district leader emphasizes meaningful family engagement training for educators.
4 min read
Miranda Scully, Director of Family and Community Engagement (FACE) for Fayette County Public Schools, stands for a portrait outside the Family Connection Center northern facility on Dec. 12, 2024, in Lexington, Ky. The Family Connection Center offers programs like ESL classes, college preparation, and household budgeting and money management classes.
Miranda Scully, the director of family and community engagement for the Fayette school district, Public Schools, stands outside one of the district's family connection center's on Dec. 12, 2024, in Lexington, Ky. The center offers programs like ESL classes, college preparation, and household budgeting and money management classes.
Michael Swensen for Education Week
Families & the Community Leader To Learn From From Haircuts to Home Language, One District’s Approach to Family Engagement
Miranda Scully takes an all-hands-on-deck approach to parent engagement in her Kentucky district.
8 min read
Miranda Scully, Director of Family and Community Engagement (FACE) for Fayette County Public Schools, assists students during a ACT prep class held at the Family Connection Center on Dec. 12, 2024, in Lexington, Ky. The Family Connection Center offers programs like ESL classes, college preparation, and household budgeting and money management classes.
Miranda Scully, the director of family and community engagement for the Fayette school district in Kentucky, helps students during an ACT prep class held at the Family Connection Center on Dec. 12, 2024, in Lexington. The Family Connection Center offers programs including English classes for non-native speakers, college preparation, and household budgeting and money management classes.
Michael Swensen for Education Week
Families & the Community Parents Think Their Kids Are Learning a Lot at School. What Do Students Say?
The perception gap between parents and their kids widens as students get older. Does it matter?
5 min read
A student sits quietly, contemplating life while others chat nearby in a bustling school hallway.
iStock/Getty