EDEC 608 Parent/Family Involvement in Early Childhood Education Department of Instruction and Teacher Education Course Syllabus

Transcription

1 EDEC 608 Parent/Family Involvement in Early Childhood Education Department of Instruction and Teacher Education Course Syllabus I. Descriptive Information A. Course Number and Title: EDEC 608: Parent/Family Involvement in Early Childhood Education B. Catalogue Description: Examine research and practice as related to multiple facets of parent and family functioning and involvement in early childhood education. C. Credit Awarded: Three graduate credit hours D. Prerequisites: None E. Intended Audience: Masters, Education Specialists, and Doctorate F. Instructor: Dr. Kevin J. Swick, Ph.D. Professor, College of Education Wardlaw 106 Phone: or cell phone: Fax: II. Statement of Learning Outcomes: Goals and Objectives A. GOAL: To engage students in increasing their knowledge and skills in designing and using effective parent and family involvement in early childhood education. B. OBJECTIVES: 1. Develop an understanding of: *The multiple meanings of family; *How we learn about families; *Major changes influencing families; *Intra-family changes; *How families learn and develop; *The bases of family differences in functioning. 2. Develop an understanding of the research and application of the knowledge base on building effective family-school relations: *research findings; *critical empowering elements of the partnership; *important teacher and parent behaviors; *the substance of the Comer and Epstein approaches. *Cultural influences impacting family-school relations 3. Develop an understanding of parenting dynamics; and key aspects of parent education/family strengthening programs and 1

2 practices: relating these insights to knowledge, attitudes, and skills needed for effective parent/family involvement. *Culture and family *Key parenting and family programs 4. Develop an understanding of the critical perspectives and elements needed for forming a meaningful family involvement program inclusive of: *An empowerment based decision making process; *Key elements in successful programs; *Challenges and barriers confronting programs; goals and strategies, and evaluation tools/strategies. *Technology and family involvement 5. Develop an understanding of the research bases and effective practices in family-school and parent-teacher communication. III. Required Texts and Key Readings *Kevin J. Swick. (2004). Empowering parents, families, schools, and communities during the early childhood years. Champaign, IL: Stipes. Recommend: *Donna Couchenour & Kent Chrisman. (2000). Families, schools, and communities. New York: Delma Thomson Learning. *Janet Gonzalex-Mena. (2006). The young child in the family and the community. Fourth Edition. Columbus, OH: Merrill. IV. Academic Course Requirements Course Requirements 1. Attend and participate in all class sessions. 2. Complete Reading and Class Reflections Journal 3. Complete the Parent/Family/Community Project in ECE V. Administrative Course Requirements *The University s attendance policy is adhered to in this course *Please completed and turn in assignments on designated due dates *Please use APA style in all written work 2

3 VI. Evaluation and Grading 1. EVALUATION: *Reading/Class Journal 100 *Parent/Fam/Comm Project 100 *Class Attendance / Participation 50 TOTAL GRADING: *A = 225+ *B+= 200+ *B= 180+ *C+= 170+ *C= 160+ VII. Major Course Topics *Understanding Families -Exploring the multiple meanings of family -How we learn about families -Major changes influencing families -Intra-family changes and what they mean -The family as a learning system -Differences in family functioning -Cultural influences and families *Building Effective Family-School Relations -The research base on effective family-school relations -Critical empowering elements of the family-school relationship -Important teacher and parent behaviors -Epstein s multi-level family involvement model -Comer s ecological model for family and community involvement -Guidelines for developing empowering family-school relations *Understanding and Supporting Parents and Families Through Parent Education and Family Support -Parenting as process and growth key roles -Challenges and barriers to effective parenting -Four key components of parental integrity and functioning -Parent/family empowerment as focus -Diverse programs to meet varied cultural and social needs -Comprehensive parent education and family strengthening -Focus on parent and family patterns for healthy functioning 3

4 *Critical Perspectives and Elements Needed for Meaningful Family Involvement -An empowerment approach to decision making -Key elements in successful programs -Meeting the challenges and barriers to success -Developing a family involvement program framework -Issues in building a history of success -Technology and family involvement *Parent-Teacher Communication: Key to Success -Communication as a growth process -Covey s key principles of empathic communication -Hall s research on non-verbal communication across cultures -Proactive parent-teacher communication -Eight communication behaviors that work -Ten questions to guide your communication efforts -A plethora of parent-teacher communication approaches -The barriers to communication and overcoming them VIII. Modes of Instruction *Lecture *Discussion *Video demonstrations *Field work, applying concepts in work settings *Guest lectures *Journaling IX. Bibliography Amatea, E. (2009). Building culturally responsive family-school relations. Columbus, OH: Merrill. Berger, E. (2008). Parents as partners in education: Families and schools working together. Columbus, OH: Merrill. Bronfenbrenner, U. (1979). The ecology of human development. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press. Bronfenbrenner, U. (2005). Making human beings human: Bioecological perspectives on human development. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage. Comer, J. (1997). Waiting for a miracle: Why schools can t solve our problems and how we can. New York: Dutton. 4

5 Lawrence-Lightfoot, S. (2003). The essential conversation: What parents and teachers can learn from each other. New York: Random House. Pipher, M. (1996). The shelter of each other: Rebuilding our families. New York, NY: G.P. Putnam s Sons. Swick, K. (2007). The dynamics of families who are homeless. In K. Paciorek. Annual Editions: Early Childhood Education 06/07. Dubuque, IA: McGraw Hill. 5