Strengthening Home, School, & Community Partnership: Improving Discipline Policies in American Schools | LFA: Join The Conversation - Public School Insights

Strengthening Home, School, & Community Partnership: Improving Discipline Policies in American Schools | LFA: Join The Conversation - Public School Insights:

Strengthening Home, School, & Community Partnership: Improving Discipline Policies in American Schools

By National PTA on February 18, 2014

By Joshua McIntosh, for the National PTA

In a recent address to parent leaders, U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan called on parents to take education more seriously and be active in partnering with schools as we seek to raise expectations for students. The week prior, the Department of Education released new guidelines around improving climate and discipline policies in schools showing how suspensions, arrests, and expulsions can lead to negative outcomes for students and contribute to the phenomenon known as the school- to–prison pipeline. Given this, the high prevalence of out-of-school suspensions in our schools -- even for non-violent behaviors – is a serious concern.

As a teacher leader in New York City, I believe school discipline policy is the perfect example of an issue that allows parents and teachers to work together and prompt systemic change that can improve our schools.

The federal guidance package presents a solid argument for a long-known fact in educational communities around the country: school discipline policies and practices are in drastic need of reform - particularly in the way we work with minority students and students who receive special education services, like the students at my school. .  The task of improving school discipline policies and school climates provides new opportunities for parents and teachers to work together.

The guidance package outlines three guiding principles of reform and related action steps that states and districts can consider as they undertake local reform efforts.  Several of those action steps speak directly to the critical role of parents as partners in the discipline process, including the needs for:

1. Regular communication between parents and educators.
2. Parent involvement in school climate based teams.
3. Parent and teacher involvement in developing school discipline procedures, codes of conduct, and positive support roles

Considering the complexity of navigating the home-school-community, there are a few noticings