Implementation
New Approach to Parent Involvement
Parent involvement is the single most important factor leading to success in school for children. The traditional way to generate parent involvement is to seek parent support for their child's learning. We have learned that it is more effective to appeal to the parents as deeply curious people with their own needs to dream, grow and learn.
In Learning Dreams, parents of students who are struggling in school identify and pursue their own learning dreams. Once the parents are making progress on their own learning, they are helped to support their children's education and learning
History
Learning Dreams was developed by Dr. Jerry Stein, now at the University of Minnesota's School of Social Work in the College of Education and Human Development.
The initial three-year pilot project was implemented in a Minneapolis, Minnesota public housing community. It led to outstanding family and community participation in learning as well as school success for children most in need.
At the conclusion of the pilot project the truancy rate had fallen to zero, and the parents participated in the school at the remarkable rate of 100%. The correlations between this program and positive outcomes at the school generated significant interest in testing the applicability of the model in other communities.
Current Sites
Learning Dreams is presently being replicated in:
- North Minneapolis and Southeast Minneapolis with the support of Hennepin County and the Phillips Foundation
- Worthington, Minnesota with the support of The Mardag Foundation and the Southwest Initiative Foundation
- Belfast, Northern Ireland is planning an implementation
The Neighborhood Educators at the Learning Dreams sites are:
Jocinda Gaynor, Southeast Minneapolis
tel: 612-232-2314
email: jocinda@learningdreams.org
Andria Daniel, North Minneapolis
tel: 612-720-6867
email: andria@learningdreams.org
Vanessa VanDam, Worthington
tel: 507-360-1531
email: vanessa@learningdreams.org
Program Summary
Premises
A culture of learning:
- Is the foundation for educational success
- Is family and community centered
- Can be significantly strengthened through community-based support
- Leads to improved learning and school outcomes
Program Activities
A community-based educator:
- Advocates for parents' learning dreams
- Follows-up with support for children's learning
- Builds relationships with community institutions
- Acts as a bridge between families and schools
Anticipated Outcomes
- Increased parent and child participation in learning
- Better school outcomes
- Increased social capital
- Increased community capacity to support learning
- Increased participation in learning by other members of the community
Program Activities
Learning Dreams has two main streams of activity. First, it provides family learning support. A community-based Neighborhood Educator provides individual, home-based mentoring to parents in a face-to-face personal relationship. The Neighborhood Educator helps parents identify their learning dreams and locate the resources to realize their dreams. Once the parents are making progress, the Neighborhood Educator helps the parents create a plan to support the learning of their children. This work changes the traditional relationship of the parents to the institutions of learning. The traditional parent/school relationship is one-way. The parent is always asked to come to the school to help support learning at the school for the students. But through Learning Dreams, the parents seek and find new relationships with the school and other institutions in the community.
The second main activity of Learning Dreams is building community capacity to support learning. The Neighborhood Educator works with institutions in the community to help them respond in new and more creative ways to family and child learning needs.
Principles of Practice
The following principles of practice are based on the experience of Learning Dreams pilots projects and current research in education and community development:
- Learning is fundamentally anchored in the home and community (not school)
- Parents must be involved in their own learning (not simply supporting their children)
- Parents and children can learn, even in troubled homes
- Support for learning leads to increased family and community capacity to support learning
- Building community capacity to support learning leads, over time, to improved school outcomes
- Schools must respect and support the home and community as places of learning
- A local neighborhood-based educator is crucial to involving families successfully
- Organizing a community around learning usually threatens no one and therefore receives enormous support
- People from all cultures are inherently curious and love to learn, therefore Learning Dreams is adaptable to diverse cultures
- Success in education leads to poverty reduction