Movements for the building of the Black community are increasing throughout the nation. Motivation on an individual level and a little extra time could make a huge difference in one child's future.

Below are a few ideas and organizational structures that could help the Black community. A collective effort of no more than two or three parents can begin this type movement on limited resources and help many people, in the schools and community. Sitting with the local school principal for a few minutes can open a door to you doing your part in strengthening the future of Black America.

Afromerica acts as a liaison for any one who wants to begin such a venture. We will supply the organizational groundwork and supply the necessary resources and information in assisting a grassroots movement of this sort in any city or town. Contact information below

Bridge the Gap between Parents and School Staff

Without the information and skills to communicate with each other, misperceptions and distrust can flourish between parents and school personnel. In fact, most parents and school staff receive little training on how to work with one another.

For example, almost half of principals (48 percent) in K-8 schools report that lack of staff training in working with parents is a great or moderate barrier to parent involvement (U.S. Department of Education, 1997). Initiatives to bridge the information gap between parents and schools are at the center of a local grassroots movement organization.

Through workshops and a variety of outreach activities such as informative newsletters, handbooks, and home visits, parents and school staff across these programs can learn how to trust each other and work together to help children succeed in school.

These approaches would include helping parents support learning at home, preparing parents to participate in school decision-making, and providing teachers, principals, and school staff with strategies for reaching out to parents and working with them as partners.

They also share an emphasis on training and information that is grounded in the needs and goals of families and school staff, and that focus on changing the negative attitudes that parents and school staff may hold towards each other.

Training to Inform and Involve Parents

Open communication in local schools can offer parents training and information through workshops held weekly, monthly, or several times throughout the year. Parent training activities would focus on one or more of four areas of parent involvement: parenting, learning at home, decision-making in schools, and volunteering.

Parenting Workshops

Workshops on parenting help families learn about child development and how to support student academic learning. Parenting workshops would cover a number of different issues, such as children's language development and learning styles, parent nurturing and discipline strategies, child abuse prevention, and nutrition and health practices.

Other topics such as the relationship between child achievement and parent expectations, "protective parenting" skills to prevent children from engaging in unhealthy behaviors, and anger management. Also training for "mentor parents" that can help other parents learn about strategies for helping children learn; and outreach strategies that build partnerships between schools and families.

Movements can also help build parenting skills by assisting parents in reaching their own academic and vocational goals. In collaboration with local community colleges, many programs connect parents to adult education courses to receive a General Educational Development (GED) credential, college credit, or develop job-related skills.

Helping Parents Support Learning at Home.

Every family functions as a learning environment, regardless of its income level, structure, or ethnic and cultural background. In this respect, every family has the potential to support and improve the academic achievement of its children. When parents hold high expectations for their children and encourage them to work hard, they support student success in school.

Grassroots parent programs can offer workshops, hands-on training opportunities, or conduct home visits that help parents support their children's learning at home. These sessions would offer ideas to families about how to help students with curriculum-related activities, homework, and other academic decisions and planning.

These parent programs would inform parents how to develop study skills to prepare for required tests; parents also learn how to interpret test results to identify the areas in which their children may need further assistance. In addition, parent workshops offer parents important information to help them plan for their children's educational future.

Preparing Parents to Participate in School Decision-making.

Many programs encourage parents to join school committees that make decisions on curriculum policies, parent involvement activities, the school budget, and reform initiatives. In school wide program schools, administrators and teachers can play crucial roles in keeping parents informed about the program and the guidelines they need to follow.

Source from http://www.ed.gov/pubs/SER/index.html

© 2004 by AfroStaff

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