Parent Involvement and Family-School Partnerships: Examining the Content, Processes, and Outcomes of Structural versus Relationship-Based Approaches. CYFS Working Paper No. 2012-6
Author: Kim, Elizabeth Moorman
Date: 2012-11-00
Type: Reports - Research
Subjects: Academic Achievement,Outcomes of Education,Intervention,Educational Research,Caregivers,Parent Participation,Parent Teacher Cooperation,Family Role

Research examining the role families play in children's education has investigated a variety of activities or methods through which parents participate in learning. These programs are typically characterized as "parent involvement models," which are defined as the participation of significant caregivers (including parents, grandparents, stepparents, foster parents, etc.) in activities promoting the educational process of their children in order to promote their academic and social well-being (Fishel & Ramirez, 2005). "Family-school partnerships" are distinct from parent involvement models. The authors define family-school partnerships as child-focused approaches wherein families and professionals cooperate, coordinate, and collaborate to enhance opportunities and success for children and adolescents across social, emotional, behavioral, and academic domains (Albright & Weissberg, 2010; Downer & Myers, 2010; Lines, Miller, & Arthur-Stanley, 2010). Despite general support for parent involvement, some large scale reviews have indicated little to no effect on student achievement or parent or teacher behavior, student grades, or educational outcomes for students with and without disabilities. Previous research has failed to operationalize the variables of interest, or failed to differentiate between general "parent involvement" models (focusing on "structural" activities that parents implement) and "family-school partnership" models (focusing on "relationships" between family members and school personnel for supporting children's learning and development). A review of "family-school partnerships" apart from parent involvement may uncover distinct contributions of approaches that promote joint parent-teacher relationships and cross-system supports for broad student outcomes, and operative intervention components (structural and relational) that influence outcomes. The present study is an extension of a previously reported (Sheridan et al., 2011) investigation of two distinct intervention approaches--i.e., those that are relational in nature and strive to strengthen family-school partnerships and those that are structural in nature and attempt to promote parent involvement activities. The following are the research questions: (1) To what degree do family intervention studies espouse involvement versus partnership approaches?; (2) Which structural and relational components are most prevalent in involvement and partnership interventions?; (3) What outcomes are most commonly assessed in parent involvement and partnership interventions?; (4) What sample and setting characteristics are most prevalent in the literatures on parent involvement and family-school partnership interventions?; and (5) What methodological features characterize the literature? The coding scheme is appended. (Contains 6 figures and 2 tables.) [This paper was presented originally by the authors at the 2012 annual meeting of the National Association of School Psychologists.]