Connecting on Education
PROGRESS ON FAMILY ENGAGEMENT TRAINING FOR EDUCATORS
In 2020, the Parent Organization Network (PON) released a series of three reports addressing the complex question of how best to prepare tomorrow’s educators to effectively build relationships and partner with families in their day-to-day work. We're pleased to share that the final report which focused on pre-service requirements has led to promising results.
Key Concepts on Parent-Engagement Information for CTC Work Groups

 In July, PON produced the final installment of a three-report series. This report provided an overview of California and federal laws, examined and compared requirements for five educator preparation programs in California, and offered a preliminary landscape analysis on how future and current educators are prepared to engage families.
The report called upon California lawmakers and other officials to prioritize family engagement training both for administrators and for teachers now in the classroom, as well as those about to enter the profession.

The need for better trained educators is particularly timely right now because they must work collaboratively with parents who are being thrust more and more into playing a greater “teacher” role at home. Staff from the Commission on Teacher Credentialing (CTC) responded positively to this call.

The report’s publication resulted in a dialogue and collaboration among PON, Public Advocates, the Center for Family and Community Engagement at San Diego State University, and CTC staff. Together we discussed how to strengthen pre-service and induction standards and strategies so educators can work effectively with all families. This collaboration produced the following outcomes:
  • Development of the document Key Concepts on Parent Engagement Information for Work Groups to Consider as Standards are Reviewed and Revised. This Key Concepts document identified the points in the PON report that are central to learning about, understanding, and being able to develop strong family-school partnerships for both pre-service and induction programs. These recommendations will be considered by the CTC Work Groups in updating and revising teacher-training standards for years to come.

  • Two teams within the CTC have reviewed, or will review, these recommendations during Fall 2020: The Bilingual Authorization Work Group, and the California Standards for the Teaching Profession (CSTP) Work Group. Should the CSTP Work Group adopt the recommendations, we expect this action to lead to the updating of requirements for all teacher pre-service and induction programs statewide. 
“These outcomes mean that we are now on the path to transforming what teacher and administrator candidates learn about family engagement in pre-service training and during induction. This transformation will impact not just the candidates themselves but also those preparing the candidates and mentoring new teachers and administrators: institutions of higher education and county offices of education.” - Araceli Simeón, PON Project Director
PON believes that academic achievement can only be attained — both now and after the COVID-19 pandemic subsides — when teachers work in true collaboration with families to assess each student and their educational needs, adapt instructional plans and strategies accordingly, and monitor student learning together.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS:
PON is thankful to its partners, Public Advocates and SDSU's Center for Family, School and Community Engagement, for standing by us to advocate for clear and consistent requirements in educator-preparation programs across California.

Special thanks to CTC staff for being incredibly prompt and receptive, modeling the openness, two-way communication, positive collaboration, and transparency we seek to achieve through the changes proposed in the Key Concepts document and our concluding report, Family Engagement Training for Educators in Pre-Service: Common Sense but No Common Practice.
How can you help? We need partner organizations to assist PON in monitoring the introduction, passage, and implementation of the CTC work group recommendations. We also seek funding for additional PON staff to undertake this important work. Please let us know how you can help.