Everyone loves family engagement. But far fewer people believe that quality family engagement can lead to increased student learning. In this session, we will talk first about how we define and think about "family engagement” in our schools and districts. And we’ll tackle the research: What kinds of family engagement programs work? What kinds don’t? We’ll then talk about districts that successfully engage low-income parents in academics (with success defined as improved student outcomes) and how they do that. Last, we’ll cover some promising practices from nonprofits that have proven to better involve families in their children’s schools.
Participants will learn to adapt classroom lessons for a diverse group of learners in grades 3-8. The speakers will share evidence-based strategies from the IES Practice Guide (Gersten et al., 2009) such as concrete-semi-concrete-abstract (CSA) and others that emphasize developing a balanced understanding of both concepts and skills. Participants will experience classroom-tested tasks that create more robust learning and focus on ways in which to question students to promote learning and to assess in a formative way. This session will also discuss the use of assessments such as: 1) diagnostic interviews to carefully tailor instruction for students who struggle with learning mathematics and; 2) progress monitoring tools that emphasize conceptual understanding. By sharing a variety of classroom-tested activities, the presenters will show how to link Common Core State Standards to engaging and motivating mathematics instruction.
