Family role in education sought
Only so much of the work to improve early learning and reform failing schools can play out in boardrooms and classrooms. Living rooms, family advocates know, are another front in the battle.
“Children don’t live in silos,” said Carla Thompson, vice president of program strategy for the W.K. Kellogg Foundation. “Unless you’re bringing the families along, you’re not going to get the outcomes you want.”
The Michigan-based philanthropic foundation, one of the nation’s largest, is pushing for better efforts to involve low-income families in the educational success of their children.
Many current approaches don’t engage parents, Thompson said. When kids are simply dropped off at educational programs, for example, the family might not be drawn in. And criticizing families for their lack of involvement can create “us-and-them” attitudes that are counterproductive.
“We want to change that,” Thompson said. “Really, what we want to do is