Family-School Relationships Are the Missing Link in COVID-19 Era Education

Authors

Leticia Alvarez Gutiérrez, University of UtahFollow
Laura Hernández, Learning Policy Institute, Palo Alto, CA
Taeyeon Kim, University of Nebraska-LincolnFollow
Paul J. Kuttner, University of UtahFollow
Gerardo R. López, Michigan State University
Jennifer Mayer-Glenn, University of Utah
Amadou Niang, Salt Lake City School District
Almaida Yanagui, University Neighborhood Partners

ORCID IDs

Alvarez Gutiérrez 0000-0002-8750-7327

Hernández 0000-0002-0372-937X

Kim 0000-0002-2020-9851

Kuttner 0000-0002-4739-1358

López 0000-0002-9986-2553

Niang 0000-0001-5624-6446

Date of this Version

10-6-2020

Citation

Education Week (October 6, 2020)

Opinion/Families and the community

Comments

Copyright 2020, Education Week

Abstract

Historically, family involvement has been defined narrowly, judged mainly by the physical presence of families in schools—which is impossible during a shutdown. The education profession has rarely asked families how they define “engagement” (or “family”) and consistently devalues many less visible ways that families support education at home and in the community, such as passing along cultural norms and building educational passion through real-world experiences. Overall, engagement has been marred by broken trust, racial bias, and educators’ cultural assumptions about what a “good” family does.

Re-envisioning this dynamic requires centering the families traditionally left out by those cultural assumptions. COVID-19 can be a catalyst for us to jettison old, school-centered ways of doing things that haven’t worked well. Below are some recommendations based on what we learned through our project and through decades working with families and schools.