1st Edition
Parent Partnership in the Primary School A practical guide for school leaders and other key staff
Parent partnership is a powerful tool in maximising children’s outcomes in the primary school. Parent Partnership in the Primary School will enable you to evaluate your current practice in this crucial area of school life and provides practical, easy-to-follow steps to plan and deliver improvements successfully. The book explores five key principles for leaders, managers, teachers, support staff, volunteers and governors to focus on in their drive to engage all parents and carers as genuine partners in their child’s learning.
Pulling together recommendations from a wide range of international sources, this book builds upon 20years of research evidence highlighting the importance of parent involvement and engagement. Bishop also brings his own broad experiences from a 32-year career in primary education, as a teacher, school leader, consultant and trainer, to bear on the many challenges facing schools as they seek to welcome, encourage, inform and support those whose children they educate.
Detailed case studies from six carefully selected schools, with which Bishop has worked as a consultant, exemplify some of the most successful techniques and programmes currently in use to facilitate parent partnership. Suggestions for further reading are included, and for leaders and managers there is an easy-to-use audit tool to support their strategic thinking and school improvement activity.
Chapter 1. Research evidence
Chapter 2. A suggested model for parental engagement
Chapter 3. Principles for practice in parental involvement and engagement
Chapter 4. Case studies
Chapter 5. Respect
Chapter 6. Knowledge
Chapter 7. Understanding and empathy
Chapter 8. Relationship
Chapter 9. Trust
Chapter 10. Conclusions and next steps for schools
Appendix
Biography
Nigel Bishop is a former primary headteacher who provides training and consultancy to schools, primarily on using the Pupil Premium. He is also a person-centred counsellor and school governor. His experience and enthusiasm allow him to equip those who learn with him to continue moving mountains.
COVID teaching showed us parents want more understanding of their children’s learning in school (not the typical school reports), and we leave parents behind at our and the students’ peril. But how to engage them, with high trust, respect, mutual relationships, and knowledge? This is the book for evidence based, practical, and real school examples that deliver on building partnerships between schools and parents.
John Hattie, Emeritus Laureate Professor at the Graduate School of Education, University of Melbourne, Australia, and author of the Visible Learning book series.
