Partnering with families to close pandemic learning gaps

It’s an all-hands-on-deck moment. The 2023 National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) showed steep drops for 13-year-olds in math and reading on the long-term trend assessment. Students tested in the fall lost seven points in reading and 14 points in math from a decade ago. Achievement in reading has fallen to levels not seen since the 1970s. The news follows across-the-board declines for 4th and 8th graders in math and reading reported last October (National Assessment Governing Board, 2022), as well as disappointing history and civics results (Kelly, 2023).

When education researchers surveyed U.S. parents last year, only 9% understood the problem of pandemic learning loss and were concerned their children wouldn’t catch up (Peterson, Houston, & West, 2022). The rest believed there was no learning loss or were confident their children would catch up. This is consistent with other research showing that parents think their kids are doing much better in school than is actually the case (Edge Research, 2023).

In other research, only 46% of parents reported that their child’s teacher had worked with them to develop a plan for how their child would make up for lost learning during the pandemic.

Research is clear that family-school partnerships are critical for improving student achievement (Hill & Tyson, 2009), but too often this is an afterthought.

Time to share the story

I’m worried families might not believe these trends impact their child or their school community. These are difficult times in our schools. Scores are down, mental health challenges are up, teachers are leaving, and some school communities are grappling with serious conflict over what our path forward looks like. The education community needs family-school partnerships. And those partnerships depend on giving families the best, most accurate information.

It is critical that we educate parents on the NAEP results and urge them to use these and other data to get a better understanding of where their children are academically so they can better support them and advocate on their behalf. Teachers and schools must provide families with honest information on how their children are doing at school in clear and culturally competent ways, alongside actionable solutions about how to address deficiencies and support learning. And schools and districts must ensure families are at the table for educational policy and funding decisions.

Teachers and schools must provide families with honest information on how their children are doing at school in clear and culturally competent ways, alongside actionable solutions.

At the same time, parents must take steps to better understand what their child is expected to learn at their grade level and where their child is performing academically. They need to talk to their child’s teacher about what they notice regarding their child’s learning and schoolwork.

One of the barriers that sometimes stops schools from pursuing family-school partnership strategies is the perception that families lack the time and expertise to partner in deep and meaningful ways (National Center for Education Statistics, 1998). Schools can share information in a variety of ways, including by email or text message. Schools also can promote parent learning. Chicago Public Schools and the District of Columbia Public Schools, for example, run robust programs to help parents support their kids and educate themselves. They cover topics such as educational standards, supporting children’s learning and development, financial literacy, and job training. And there are more great examples from schools and districts across the country that can serve as models.

As immediate past president of National PTA and a long-time Parent-Teacher Association leader and member at the local and state levels, I’ve seen firsthand how powerful it is when families, educators, administrators, and more come together in meaningful ways for our children.

Finding advocates in families

I’m so passionate about this point because of my own experience getting involved with my local PTA in 2004. My daughter was in 9th grade at Frederick Douglass High School in Oklahoma City. The books used in her English class were old and not available for students to take home for homework. Our principal, Vallene Cooks, was fed up with seeing students sharing tattered and outdated books. She asked me and a few other parents to get involved. She didn’t have to beg. We were happy to be asked.

We wrote letters, made calls, and pushed our school district leaders to do something. Before long, they sent our school new books for the classroom, and a parent was added to a district committee for curriculum. I can still remember when my daughter showed me her new English book. She loved to read, and English was one of her favorite classes. She was happy that someone cared about her education enough to make sure she had new books to read.

The NAEP Long-Term Trend report includes survey data showing adolescents are reading far less on their own than in the past. That’s certainly an area where parents can promote change. While recent headlines have focused on concerns over what children are reading, I think many parents simply want their kids to read more books that interest them.

The best way for parents to encourage more reading is to be role models by reading in front of their kids and talking to their kids about what they’re reading. Letting children choose their own books based on their personal interests increases their engagement and willingness to discuss what they read. Reading should be social, not an individual chore. A friend, for example, started a virtual book club with her eight-year-old son. As other children tuned in, they discussed what they read, opening up to their peers and developing a sincere joy of reading. Authors of books they discussed even joined as guests.

Educating parents to improve school

After our success getting new books for our school, Principal Cooks encouraged me to run for PTA president. When I became the president, she sent me, alongside teachers, to a professional development conference.

At this conference, I learned about our curriculum and all that it took for teachers to implement it. It opened my eyes to what it takes for a teacher to be effective and made me understand how partnering with them would impact the school community. At the next conference I attended, I learned about Title I and what the designation means for a school. I also became aware of how being a Title I school impacts the community and all of the resources and support available to families in the school. This was an amazing professional development opportunity for me and an example of collaboration and power-sharing at its most authentic. Together, we recruited and engaged a full slate of PTA leaders and many volunteers who supported our school and students in important ways. We were able to start a food pantry, clothing closet, a parent resource room with two computers, and a literacy initiative. Principal Cooks not only empowered us to change the trajectory of students’ lives, but my own life as well.

I know that intensive tutoring, academic summer programs, and high-quality curriculum can make a big difference for kids as we fight to close pandemic learning gaps. But informing and engaging parents as partners in powerful and productive ways should be top of the list of strategies too. By linking arms in this way, we can build a better future for our kids, our communities, and our country.

References

Edge Research. (2023). Parents 2023: Go beyond grades. Learning Heroes.

Hill, N.E. & Tyson, D.F. (2009 ) Parental involvement in middle school: A meta-analytic assessment of the strategies that promote achievement. Developmental Psychology, 45 (3), 740-763.

Kelly, P. (2023, May 3). Nation’s Report Card shows kids don’t know U.S. history. As a teacher, I’m not surprised. USA Today.

National Assessment Governing Board. (2022). NAEP Day 2022.

National Assessment of Education Progress. (2023). NAEP long-term trend assessment results: Reading and mathematics.

National Center for Education Statistics. (1998, February). Parent involvement in children’s education: Efforts by public elementary schools. U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences.

Peterson, P.E., Houston, D.M., & West, M.R. (2022). Parental anxieties over student learning dissipates as schools relax anti-COVID measures. Education Next, 23 (1).

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This article appears in the November 2023 issue of Kappan, Vol. 105, No. 3, p. 64-65.