Early care and education professionals and parents want what is best for the child both in and outside of the early care setting. Ongoing, intentional, and meaningful engagement with families is at the core of the bi-directional home to child care relationship and leads to shared goals that benefit the child. Good home-child care partnerships also benefit families; through them, parents and family members feel recognized for their expertise about their child and may be more interested collaborating with providers and programs. Effective family engagement also facilitates the safety, trust, encouragement, and caring that affect the well-being of both the child and the family.
Engagement with families benefits the early care workforce as well. Professionals feel more job satisfaction, experience greater alliances with families, and are more confident and open in their interactions. Established partnerships with families also make it easier for early care professionals to have conversations involving uncomfortable or challenging topics or issues, such as concerns about development or behavior.
So…you may be asking, WHAT IS family engagement and how can families and early care and education professionals (in all positions throughout the child care program operation, such as direct care and education providers, administrative staff, specialists, etc.) DO IT?
Think of family engagement as an interactive process that brings together parents and other family members, children, and early childhood professionals at all levels. Everyone works together in partnership in service of children’s learning, healthy development, and wellbeing. With families in the driver’s seat, families and program personnel share their unique knowledge of the individual children they teach and care for, and the contexts and communities in which they live.
The National Center on Parent, Family and Community Engagement (NCPFCE), a federal early care and education training and technical assistance center, posits the following as key values of quality family engagement:
The NCPFCE also recommends that family engagement efforts be Systemic and Comprehensive. Think of family engagement as being baked INTO the cake, not just as icing on the top of the cake that looks nice. It is best when family engagement is integrated throughout all aspects of programming.
There are four key program areas to consider during the development and implementation of systemic and comprehensive family engagement plan. When considering quality family engagement tactics to employ in programming, integrate of each of the family engagement values noted above (i.e., cultural and linguistic responsiveness, equity, inclusiveness and positive & goal oriented relationships). For comprehensiveness, use the four program areas noted below as a roadmap for planning efforts (professionals) or as a guide for key aspects of the child care program where you should be engaged (families). Examples of family engagement practices are noted following each program area:
The children served through early care and education programs carry with them an evolving and rich background reflective of their family. Early care and education programs that partner with families, engage families as programmatic drivers, employ positive, two-way communication strategies, and make efforts to reflect the culture, values and preferences of families within their program will reap many rewards in the form of maximized child and family outcomes. Family engagement strategies form the basis of partnerships that serve the needs of children, improve quality of care, and support family well-being.
Early care and education professionals - take an inventory of your family engagement practices. Is there room to expand your efforts by thoughtfully integrating more core family engagement values into your programming and practices?
Families – what do you want your child care provider to know about you and your family? What are ways you can communicate your ideas with your child care provider or share your culture with other children in the program?
The family and early care & education partnership is critical to the success of child care programs and family success!
This article was originally published in Kansas Magazine's Fall/Winter 2017 issue.