“Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.” Galatians 6:9. The Harvest is Coming is a chapter in Dr. Femi Skanes’s book, Encouragement for The School Leader’s Soul. You can purchase a copy on Amazon! Connect with her at:
Dr. Skane is a Principal in Chicago, Illinois, and one of the breakout session speakers provided at the Illinois Principal Conference this year. She held two sessions which were both excellent. My favorite one to help all leaders was her session on Family Engagement Reimagined.
If you follow the news and politics, you know parent involvement and engagement are the centers of conversations. I say amen! Education should always be a priority for everyone. If you noticed, I used two words, involvement and engagement. Why? Great question! There is a difference between the two and you need both!
When we discuss the involvement of parents and families, we mean “doing to” them. While engagement indicates “doing with” families as they bring ideas, thoughts, and actions to collaborate. Let’s look at a couple of examples to see if you can see the difference.
We ask parents to come to school for a meeting. During the meeting, we ask parents to look at the new reading books we received. Please read with your child each week and track it in the reading log.
Is that involvement or engagement?