Family School Partnership

This family-school action team would:
• audit existing arrangements and practices and collect information on the views,
experiences and wishes of teachers, parents, school leaders and students;
• confirm that the school leaders and the parent network endorse the concept of
partnership and inform the school community;
• develop plans for implementation, setting goals, timelines and success indicators
against the Key Dimensions of the Family-School Partnerships Framework;
• arrange training for action team members;
• implement agreed activities;
• evaluate the effectiveness of the partnership activities;
• continue to improve and coordinate practices against the Key Dimensions of the
Family-School Partnerships Framework; and
• explore options for new partnerships.
Key Dimensions of Family-School Partnerships

The Family-School Partnerships Framework identifies seven dimensions as guidelines
for planning partnership activities. These seven dimensions are:
A. communicating;
B. connecting learning at home and at school;
C. building community and identity;
D. recognising the role of the family;
E. consultative decision-making;
F. collaborating beyond the school; and
G. participating.
A brief description of each dimension is provided below.

A. Communicating
This key dimension emphasises that effective communication:
• is active, personal, frequent and culturally appropriate;
• is where schools go out of their way to make families feel welcome and valued;
• is a two-way exchange between families and schools;
• involves not only an exchange of information, but also an opportunity for schools
and families to learn about each other;
• makes clear that families are genuine partners and can help solve big problems;
• builds bridges across cultural and language divides including actively seeking
access to these families;
• needs to take into account cultural and linguistic diversity and not assume that all
families communicate in the same way;
• is open to families’ needs and attitudes;
• acknowledges and celebrates the families’ input;
• is multi-dimensional – it may:
• be formal or informal,
• happen in different places (both in the school and in other sites such as
community centres), and
• use different methods (oral, written, face-to-face, phone, email, etc).
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Family-school communication needs to be taken seriously and must be valued,
recognised, and rewarded by schools and education systems. It is essential to provide
teachers and school leaders with education and training programs to prepare them
to communicate effectively with families in an approachable manner. It is equally
important to empower and encourage families to communicate effectively with
schools.
B. Connecting Learning at Home and at School
This key dimension emphasises:
• understanding by families and schools of the overlap between the home and school
environments;
• the connection between successful partnerships and the child’s learning, including
the importance of high expectations from both teachers and parents to the child’s
success at school;
• families and schools working together to create positive attitudes to learning in
each child;
• ensuring families are informed about and understand their child’s progress;
• families and schools valuing and using the skills and knowledge children bring both
from the home to the school and from the school to the home;
• families and schools recognising and using learning opportunities in the home
environment;
• parents working with teachers in the educational decision-making process for their
individual child; and
• schools becoming a venue and agent for parental self-growth, learning and the
development of new skills.
C. Building Community and Identity

This key dimension emphasises activities that improve the quality of life in a
community while honouring the culture, traditions, values and relationships in that
community. By including activities that shape students’ sense of identity and culture,
schools can build a sense of community in each student. The work of schools includes
aspects of the social, emotional, moral and spiritual development of young people.
Thus schools have a role to play in promoting both personal growth and cultural
renewal. Schools can act as a focal point for communities to come together and
engage in capacity-building.
D. Recognising the Role of the Family
This key dimension emphasises that as primary educators of their children, parents
and families have a lasting influence on their children’s attitudes and achievements at
school. They can encourage their children’s learning in and out of school and are also
in a position to support school goals, directions and ethos. Parents look to schools to
provide secure and caring environments for their children.
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Families and schools can reach mutual understanding of each other’s roles and
priorities in partnerships by:
• exploring the nature of parent and family’s role in the education of children to
develop mutual understanding;
• offering strategies for family support and encouragement of children’s learning at
school;
• organising workshops/discussions/meetings and demonstrations around areas
such as literacy and numeracy, home and classroom work, raising resilience and
confidence in young people, transitions and careers and so on, depending on local
needs and priorities;
• ensuring families understand school goals, curriculum and the social objectives of
schooling;
• ensuring schools understand family, parent and community priorities;
• ensuring schools are sensitive to parents’ sensibilities;
• ensuring schools are realistic, patient and brave;
• establishing an environment where schools show leadership which is visible and
available;
• helping schools become a place that parents can call their own including creating
real roles for parents who come into the school;
• building relationships; and
• developing skills, such as communication, collaboration and conflict management.
E. Consultative Decision-Making
This key dimension emphasises that parents are entitled to be consulted and
participate in decisions concerning their own children.
Parents can play meaningful roles in the school decision-making processes. Training
and information to make the most of those opportunities can be provided as part of the
partnership activities.
An inclusive approach to school decision-making and parental involvement creates
a sense of shared responsibility among parents, community members, teachers and
school leaders. In turn, shared responsibility:
• ensures that parents’ values and interests are heard and respected;
• makes the school more accountable to its community;
• ensures that the values and opinions of families are sought outside the formal
school structures; and
• ensures that contact with Indigenous parents from within the community is sought
to ensure their engagement in school decision making.
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F. Collaborating Beyond The School
This key dimension emphasises identifying, locating and integrating community
resources. The wider community provides services which can strengthen and support
schools, students and their families. Schools, families and students can assist the
community in return. Schools are increasingly collaborating with partners such as:
• local businesses;
• after-school care providers;
• higher education;
• foundations; and
• other community-based agencies.
G Participating
This key dimension emphasises that families’ time, energy and expertise can support
learning and school programs in many ways. This may involve family members:
• working with students on learning activities in classrooms;
• participating in other school activities outside the classroom; or
• participating in activities outside the school itself; and
• supporting and valuing teachers.
Families participate in the school in a wide variety of ways and all contributions are
valuable. Participation may involve families having the opportunity to do something
that interests them and including activities that are not directly education-related.
Suggested Strategies for School Communities in

Developing Partnerships
Outlined below are suggested strategies to develop partnerships based on each of
the key dimensions. They are designed to support school communities in developing
family-school partnerships, to assist them to reflect on their existing practices and plan
for improvement. These strategies provide practical guidance for schools about how
to initiate partnerships, how to help families to initiate partnerships, and how to have
families’ perspectives on issues represented in partnerships overall.
The different strategies are designed to build on each other with none of them being
a ‘cure-all’ by itself. They are not intended to be exhaustive but are examples of good
practice to help school communities build partnerships. Strategies can be added or
modified for each key dimension and will also overlap across key dimensions.
Skills-building for families, school leaders and teachers is a crucial strategy for each
key dimension.

Family School Partnership

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This family-school action team would:

Key Dimensions of Family-School Partnerships

A brief description of each dimension is provided below.

C. Building Community and Identity

Suggested Strategies for School Communities in

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