Family engagement has been shown to improve student success. Here are ways to incorporate family engagement as a high impact strategy to have an impact on students’ overall success. 

A New Wave of Evidence: The Impact of School, Family, and Community Connections on Student Achievement is a recent publication which includes 51 studies that shed light on the positive relationship between parent and community engagement and student achievement. 

Among the studies reviewed, the benefits for students include: 

• higher grade point averages and scores on standardized tests or rating scales
• enrollment in more challenging academic programs
• more classes passed and credits earned, • better attendance
• improved behavior at home and at school 
• better social skills and adaptation to school

This publication provides evidence-based & effective strategies to connect schools, families, and communities and parent and community organizing efforts to improve schools.

Examples of high-impact family engagement in education strategies and their impacts on students:

1. Parent Teacher Home Visits: This research by Johns Hopkins University and RTI International includes three rigorous studies that show ‘Home Visits’ significantly strengthen school-family relationships, improve teaching, and bolster student outcomes. These findings validate the experiences that teachers and families have long reported. You can also access the Full Report on “The Student Outcomes and Parent Teacher Home Visits.” (For safety and due to the ongoing circumstances of the pandemic, virtual home visits are an amazing alternative to ‘home visits’. Try to implement ways to connect with families virtually to stay informed and engaged) 
2. Academic Parent Teacher Teams: Academic Parent Teacher Teams is a new model of classroom-level parent-teacher conferences. In this model, teachers provide parents with real-time data on their child’s academic performance relative to the grade-level standards and their peers. Teachers also share learning activities with families and facilitate goal-setting for their child’s progress. See the above link for more on the impact this model has for a child’s academic success, including videos and reports!