Kuranda District State College
Queensland
Families as first teachers
Kuranda District State College’s Families as First Teachers program has had a profound impact on engaging Indigenous families in their children’s early learning and preparation for school.
Student enrolments in preschool and primary school have increased, record literacy and numeracy results have been achieved by Year 2 students and there is greater parent participation in school activities. There are also fewer behavioural problems and better relationships between the school and community.
The school takes learning opportunities into the community where people feel at ease and comfortable engaging with education processes. Interactions between the school and geographically dispersed families have increased and many families have gained confidence and the skills to support their children’s learning.
Greenwich Public School
New South Wales
Family-school community
Greenwich Public School’s partnership initiatives have created a united school community across a dual campus. Teacher, family and school cooperation is a strong feature of daily school activities.
Parents participate in school life through a highly effective volunteer system, which supports literacy learning in the classroom and provides adults to accompany students walking to and from school. This program also allows students to enjoy stimulating learning opportunities through extra curricular programs in literacy, sport and creative and performing arts.
The open communication between school and families, the collaborative decision making processes and the involvement parents have in student learning is valued by the whole community.
Longreach School of Distance Education
Queensland
Quality education for isolated families
The positive partnerships established between Longreach School of Distance Education and its families have led to improved learning outcomes and opportunities for isolated students.
The families of students have a significant influence on the learning programs and social experiences of their children. They are involved in school decision making and share responsibility for their children’s academic and social development.
Regular communication strategies, stimulating learning programs, as well as face to face events such as camps, sports carnivals, home visits and mini schools support families and home tutors in their delivery of quality learning opportunities for students.
St Michael’s Parish Primary School
Victoria
Building family-school partnerships through literacy
Together parents and teachers of St Michael’s Parish Primary School have played a significant role in assisting families from a range of cultural backgrounds to actively participate in their children’s learning.
Parents’ confidence has increased as they develop understandings about the learning process, participate in their children’s classroom and join in family events hosted by the school. Increasing parent involvement has given rise to significant improvements in literacy achievement, reduced absences and positive relationships between families and the school.
The turn-around of perceptions about the role of non-English speaking families in children’s literacy learning has played a significant role in shaping the future learning opportunities for students.