Parent Involvement and Extended Learning Activities in School Improvement Plans in the Midwest Region. Summary. Issues &amp; Answers. REL 2011-No. 115
Author: Kochanek, Julie Reed
Date: 2011-04-00
Type: Reports - Research
Subjects: Parent Participation,Parent School Relationship,Educational Improvement,Summer Programs,After School Programs,Learning Activities,Federal Legislation,Educational Legislation,Limited English Speaking,Academic Achievement

According to the reauthorized Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 2001 (Public Law 107-110), commonly referred to as the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act, Title I schools that fail to make adequate yearly progress for two consecutive years are required to develop or revise school improvement plans aimed at boosting student achievement. Schools must submit the plans, which describe proposed activities, including parent involvement and extended learning activities (a before-school, afterschool, or summer program), to the local education agency for approval. To determine the extent to which such plans included parent involvement activities and extended learning programs, Regional Educational Laboratory (REL) Midwest conducted a content analysis of school improvement plans for schools identified for improvement based on 2007/08 assessment data. This study adopted the methodology of a similar study of school improvement plans in the Northwest Region (Speth, Saifer, and Forehand 2008). Neither this study nor the Northwest Region study assess the effectiveness of particular activities. This study reviewed school improvement plans in five states in the Midwest Region: Illinois, Iowa, Minnesota, Ohio, and Wisconsin. The report's findings include the following: (1) About 90 percent of the school improvement plans included plans to notify parents of the school's improvement status, parents' rights, or both; 57 percent reported having involved parents in developing or approving the plans; and 91 percent included at least one potentially effective parent involvement activity, as required under NCLB section 1116. About half (49 percent) of the plans met all three section 1116 requirements; another 41 percent satisfied two of the three requirements; (2) Very few plans (15 percent) included activities that involved parents in decision-making, but 43 percent of plans included advisory activities for parents. Other activities included developing parent compacts (35 percent); identifying budgetary resources for parent involvement (35 percent); providing assistance to parents in understanding state standards, monitoring their child's progress, or working with educators to improve the student's achievement (32 percent); and educating teachers and staff on the value of parents' contributions (23 percent); (3) Across all five states, about half the schools (49 percent) whose plans were reviewed served English language learner students. Among them, 53 percent reported presenting information to parents in a language other than English; and (4) About 70 percent of school improvement plans included at least one extended learning activity. Just 5 percent of before-school, 20 percent of afterschool, and 5 percent of summer school programs offered tutoring or other academic supports for struggling learners. [For the main report, &quot;Parent Involvement and Extended Learning Activities in School Improvement Plans in the Midwest Region. Issues &amp; Answers. REL 2011-No. 115,&quot; see ED518802.]