| (C) at least half of the hours required by subparagraph
(A) or (B) of this paragraph include experiential learning, practical
application, and direct interaction with specialists in early childhood
education, mentors, or instructional coaches.
(f) A teacher of a bilingual or English as a second
language (ESL) program class provided by an entity with which a school
district contracts to provide a prekindergarten program must be appropriately
certified for the grade and content and with the appropriate supplemental
certification (either bilingual or ESL).
(g) A prekindergarten partnership supervisor:
(1) shall meet the requirements under subsection (d)
of this section;
(2) may supervise multiple prekindergarten classrooms;
and
(3) shall ensure programmatic compliance and support
classroom instruction, the developmental needs of students, and continuous
quality improvement, including professional development
(h) A school district or an open-enrollment charter
school shall develop, implement, and make available on the district,
charter, or campus website by November 1 of each school year a family
engagement plan to assist the district in achieving and maintaining
high levels of family involvement and positive family attitudes toward
education. The family engagement plan shall include a primary point
of contact and contact information. An effective family engagement
plan creates a foundation for the collaboration of mutual partners,
embraces the individuality and uniqueness of families, and promotes
a culture of learning that is child centered, age appropriate, and
family driven.
(1) The following terms, when used in this section,
shall have the following meanings.
(A) Family--Adults responsible for the child's care
and children in the child's life who support the early learning and
development of the child.
(B) Family engagement--The mutual responsibility of
families, schools, and communities to build relationships to support
student learning and achievement and to support family well-being
and the continuous learning and development of children, families,
and educators. Family engagement is fully integrated in the child's
educational experience and supports the whole child and is both culturally
responsive and linguistically appropriate.
(2) The family engagement plan shall:
(A) facilitate family-to-family support using strategies
such as:
(i) creating a safe and respectful environment where
families can learn from each other as individuals and in groups;
(ii) inviting former program participants, including
families and community volunteers, to share their education and career
experiences with current families; and
(iii) ensuring opportunities for continuous participation
in events designed for families by families such as training on family
leadership;
(B) establish a network of community resources using
strategies such as:
(i) building strategic partnerships;
(ii) leveraging community resources;
(iii) monitoring and evaluating policies and practices
to stimulate innovation and create learning pathways;
(iv) establishing and maintaining partnerships with
businesses, faith-based organizations, and community agencies;
(v) identifying support from various agencies, including
mental and physical health providers;
(vi) partnering with local community-based organizations
and early learning programs to create a family-friendly transition
plan for students arriving from early childhood settings;
(vii) providing and facilitating referrals to family
support or educational groups based on family interests and needs;
(viii) communicating short- and long-term program goals
to all stakeholders; and
(ix) identifying partners to provide translators and
culturally relevant resources reflective of the home language;
(C) increase family participation in decision making
using strategies such as:
(i) developing and supporting a family advisory council;
(ii) developing, adopting, and implementing identified
goals within the annual campus/school improvement plan targeting family
engagement;
(iii) developing and supporting leadership skills for
family members and providing opportunities for families to advocate
for their children/families;
(iv) collaborating with families to develop strategies
to solve problems and serve as problem solvers;
(v) engaging families in shaping program activities
and cultivating the expectation that information must flow in both
directions to reflect two-way communication;
(vi) developing, in collaboration with families, clearly
defined goals, outcomes, timelines, and strategies for assessing progress;
(vii) providing each family with an opportunity to
review and provide input on program practices, policies, communications,
and events in order to ensure the program is responsive to the needs
of families; and
(viii) using appropriate tools such as surveys or focus
groups to gather family feedback on the family engagement plan;
(D) equip families with tools to enhance and extend
learning using strategies such as:
(i) providing families with updates at least three
times a year that specify student progress in health and wellness,
language and communication, emergent literacy reading, emergent literacy
writing, and mathematics;
(ii) designing or implementing existing home educational
resources to support learning at home while strengthening the family/school
partnership;
(iii) providing families with information and/or training
on creating a home learning environment connected to formal learning
opportunities;
(iv) equipping families with resources and skills to
support their children through the transition to school and offering
opportunities for families and children to participate in parent/child
learning sessions and visit the school in advance of the prekindergarten
school year;
(v) providing complementary home learning activities
for families to engage in at home with children through information
presented in newsletters, online technology, social media, parent/family-teacher
conferences, or other school- or center-related events;
(vi) providing families with information, best practices,
and training related to age-appropriate developmental expectations;
(vii) emphasizing benefits of positive family practices
such as attachment and nurturing that complement the stages of children's
development;
(viii) collaborating with families to appropriately
respond to children's behavior in a non-punitive, positive, and supportive
way;
(ix) encouraging families to reflect on family experiences
and practices in helping children; and
(x) assisting families to implement best practices
that will help achieve the goals and objectives identified to meet
the needs of the child and family;
(E) develop staff skills in evidence-based practices
that support families in meeting their children's learning benchmarks
using strategies such as:
(i) providing essential professional development for
educators in understanding communication and engagement with families,
including training on communicating with families in crisis;
(ii) promoting and developing family engagement as
a core strategy to improve teaching and learning among all educators
and staff; and
(iii) developing staff skills to support and use culturally
diverse, culturally relevant, and culturally responsive family engagement
strategies; and
(F) evaluate family engagement efforts and use evaluations
for continuous improvement using strategies such as:
(i) conducting goal-oriented home visits to identify
strengths, interests, and needs;
(ii) developing data collection systems to monitor
family engagement and focusing on engagement of families from specific
populations to narrow the achievement gap;
(iii) using data to ensure alignment between family
engagement activities and district/school teaching and learning goals
and to promote continuous family engagement;
(iv) ensuring an evaluation plan is an initial component
that guides action;
(v) using a cyclical process to ensure evaluation results
are used for continuous improvement and adjustment; and
Cont'd... |
