Working with parents to support children's learning

Abstract

This guidance report aims to help schools considering how they can work with parents and carers to improve children’s learning.* Schools work with parents and families in many ways and with a range of aims, for example, to involve parents in school decisionmaking, to be proactive about safeguarding, and to engender relationships of trust and respect between school and home. In this report, we focus mostly on activities that aim to improve children’s learning directly. So, when we refer to ‘parental engagement’ we mean ‘schools working with parents to improve children’s academic outcomes’. This guidance report draws on a recent review of the evidence about parental engagement in children’s learning funded by the Education Endowment Foundation (EEF). It is not a new study in itself, but rather is intended as an accessible overview of existing research with clear, actionable guidance. The guidance also draws on a wider body of evidence and expert input. Relative to other areas in which the EEF has produced guidance to date, for example related to literacy, there is, as yet, less rigorous evidence for what constitutes effective parental engagement in children’s learning, so an over-arching message for schools is to plan and monitor their work in this area carefully. In addition to the evidence review, the EEF commissioned a survey of what schools in England are currently doing to engage parents in children’s learning. This information is used to provide context for the recommendations, and to identify where there are gaps between current practice and the evidence. More information about the review and how it was produced is provided at the end of this guidance report. Some key references are included for those wishing to explore the subject in more depth. The full evidence review and research on current practices that underpin this guidance will be published separately, and will contain a more comprehensive reference section.