7.2.2 The findings of inspections on partnerships with parents

7.2.2 The findings of inspections on partnerships with parents

Early learning and care settings and schools shared relevant information well with parents

Sharing information with parents about their child, and building up good communications between parents and settings/schools are essential for good partnership with parents.

Aistear: the Early Childhood Curriculum Framework (2009) highlights the importance of parents and early years educators working together to enhance children’s learning and development. Features of good practice observed in ELC settings during early years education inspections (EYEIs), conducted between September 2016 and December 2020, included informal communication with parents on their child’s daily experiences, and the sharing of details relating to the curriculum and early years educators’ planning.

In primary schools, special schools and post-primary schools, inspection findings indicated that schools used a broad range of strategies to share information with, and involve, parents, for example through open evenings, the school website, newsletters and texts. The findings from parent surveys, administered during whole-school type evaluations in the September 2016 to December 2020 period, indicated that schools shared information in relation to pertinent school polices effectively with parents. For example, almost all parents (95% in primary and special schools; 95% in post-primary schools) agreed that they had been informed of the school’s code of behaviour/school rules. Most (89% in primary and special schools; 88% in post-primary schools) agreed that they had been informed of the school’s anti-bullying policy (Table 7.1).

Table 7.1: Parental responses to survey statements related to communication of policies in wholeschool type evaluations in primary (P) and special (S) schools, and post-primary (PP) schools: September 2016 - December 2020

	Strongly agree		Agree		Don’t know		Disagree		Strongly disagree
	P&S	PP	P&S	PP	P&S	PP	P&S	PP	P&S	PP
I have been informed of the school’s code of behaviour/ school rules	64.0%	51.3%	30.9%	43.9%	3.2%	2.3%	1.5%	1.9%	0.4%	0.6%
I have been informed of the school’s anti- bullying policy	58.2%	45.2%	30.7%	43.2%	6.8%	6.0%	3.5%	4.4%	0.8%	1.1%

Source: Inspectorate, Department of Education

Digital technologies were used to build and maintain good relationships with parents

Examples of effective practice regarding the use of digital technologies to engage with parents were noted in an evaluation of digital learning that was conducted by the Inspectorate in ELC settings during 2019. These examples included the effective use of digital technologies to share children’s learning experiences and samples of their work with their parents. During the period of school closure in 2020, there was similar digital engagement by teachers with parents in relation to the sharing of learning activities and the forwarding of completed work, particularly in the case of younger children. During whole-school evaluations in primary schools, special schools and post-primary schools in the September 2016 to December 2020 period, inspectors observed very effective use of digital technologies, such as apps, websites, learning platforms, social media and email, to facilitate regular communication between school and home.

There was scope to enhance the formal sharing of information about children’s progress in early learning and care settings

Clear channels of communication can facilitate parents’ meaningful involvement in their child’s education and their child’s development as a learner. By maintaining regular contact with parents about their children’s learning, ELC settings and schools can help parents to support their child’s learning and progress. Meetings with early years educators can provide valuable opportunities for parents to discuss their child’s progress, and to understand how they can work best with the early years educators to help their child to learn.

Relationships with parents were found to be generally very good in ELC settings, with many settings operating an open-door policy where parents were welcome in the setting throughout the day and included as part of the daily life of the setting. Inspection findings indicated that early years educators frequently used drop-off and collection times to informally share children’s achievements and learning experiences with parents. Early years educators also invited parents into the learning room to view photographs and samples of the children’s creative work. Examples of practice observed in highlyeffective settings included enabling children and parents to look at learning journals together, take them home, and comment on and add to the content regularly. While commending these informal approaches, inspectors highlighted the potential for settings to provide more formal opportunities for the sharing of information with parents in relation to their child’s progress and the next steps to be taken to progress their learning, for example, more frequent sharing of records of children’s learning with their parents.

Parents indicated satisfaction with how schools reported to them on their child’s progress

In their responses to surveys administered by the Inspectorate during whole-school evaluations (WSEs), most parents (93% in primary and special schools; 83% in post-primary schools) reported that they were satisfied with the arrangements for parent-teacher meetings (Table 7.2). During these inspections, most respondents (92% in primary and special schools; 89% in post-primary schools) also agreed that school reports gave a good picture of how their child was doing. At post-primary level, inspection reports commented favourably on the mechanisms that were in place in many post-primary schools to report on student progress to parents.

Parental responses to the Inspectorate surveys administered during WSE inspections also indicated that, overall, parents knew who to talk to in the school if there was a problem (96% in primary and special schools; 88% in post-primary schools).

Table 7.2: Parental responses to survey statements related to feedback in whole-school type evaluations in primary (P) and special (S) schools, and post-primary (PP) schools: September 2016 - December 2020

	Strongly agree		Agree		Don’t know		Disagree		Strongly disagree
	P&S	PP	P&S	PP	P&S	PP	P&S	PP	P&S	PP
I am satisfied with the arrangements for parent teachers meetings	57.3%	31.9%	35.5%	51.4%	3.0%	4.1%	3.5%	9.7%	0.8%	3.0%
I know who to talk to in the school if there is a problem	62.4%	39.3%	33.2%	48.7%	2.7%	6.6%	1.1%	3.9%	0.5%	1.5%
School reports give a good picture of how my child is doing	56.7%	37.1%	35.7%	51.6%	4.4%	3.8%	2.8%	6.2%	0.5%	1.2%

Source: Inspectorate, Department of Education

Figure from page 209

Schools and early learning and care settings employed a range of approaches to facilitate parental involvement in their child’s learning; there is scope to develop the potential of meaningful parental involvement in learning further

To support children’s learning, ELC settings generally provided parents with key information in relation to the curriculum and learning approaches. Other positive practices observed included enabling parents to spend time in the setting to engage in activities, and inviting them to contribute to activities that support their child’s sense of identity and belonging, for example sharing photographs and information about their cultural background and community. Highly-effective practice included early years educators integrating children’s interests from home into their learning in the settings, and working in partnership with parents to implement specific learning goals.

In primary schools, where effective partnerships between parents and the school in relation to learning were noted, a feature of good practice was parental involvement in curricular activities in the classroom. Examples of good practice included coding lessons being co-delivered by the teachers and a parent with expertise in this area.

Where effective practice was noted in Delivering Equality of Opportunity In Schools (DEIS) schools, parents were very aware of their child’s progress and of the many DEIS initiatives being implemented. These interventions were aligned explicitly with targets for partnership with parents. Parents were also encouraged to participate actively in a range of activities, for example Maths for Fun, Reading for Fun, Children and Parents Enjoying Reading (CAPER) and ‘station work’ with small groups. While partnership with parents was reported to be generally good in Gaeltacht schools, inspectors reported the need to strengthen links between schools and their local school communities through the greater use of local language-planning initiatives.

The parent association is a valuable and practical support for the school’s work; its advisory role can be strengthened

Parent associations or parent councils provide a valuable and practical support for the work of schools. Examples of parent association activities noted in inspections included the organisation of external speakers, fundraising, and supporting school-related activities. In some schools, inspectors identified scope to foster closer collaboration between the parents’ representatives on the board of management and the parent association, and the need to provide the parent association with greater opportunities to contribute to policy development.

Parent associations and parent councils may choose to be affiliated with the National Parents’ Council- Primary (NPC-P) or the National Parents’ Council-Post-primary (NPC-PP). Both NPC-P and NPC-PP are recognised in the Education Act 1998 and they can provide advice and support to parents’ associations and parents’ councils in schools. Affiliated associations can receive training and support from NPC-P and NPC-PP to enable them to provide better services to parents, including training for the committees of parent associations and parent councils to help them participate fully in whole-school evaluations and in school self-evaluation.

In 2019, over 50% (1,667) of parent associations in primary schools and special schools were affiliated to the NPC-P. This represented a steady increase in membership since 2016 when 1571 parent associations in primary schools and special schools were affiliated. There was a decline in the membership to 1351 in 2020; this may be attributed to the COVID-19 pandemic when some parent associations were less active, either because of school closures or due to the impact of public health restrictions. At post-primary level, affiliation to the NPC-PP reached 48% of schools in the 2019/2020 school year. As in primary schools, this declined over the 2020/2021 period due the effects of COVID-19 on the school community and the difficulties school closures brought to the NPC-PP’s engagement with the parent associations.

During inspections in the period to which this report refers, inspectors recommended frequently that parent associations and parent councils affiliate themselves to the national parents’ councils, as the bodies that officially represent parents of pupils/students in primary and post-primary schools.

Inspectors reported that, in both Gaelcholáistí and Gaeltacht post-primary schools, parent associations were very supportive of school-based activities. However, they identified scope to develop the links between parent associations and the wider parent body further in the Irish-medium sector in general. In Gaeltacht schools in particular, they recommended that increased efforts be made by boards of management and parent associations to promote the benefits of bilingual and immersion education, and to inform parents of the specific Irish-language supports available for students as part of the Gaeltacht School Recognition Scheme.

Parental involvement can play a key role in helping and encouraging children and young people to learn foreign languages

Celebration and affirmation of the diversity of home languages can lead to improved learning outcomes for learners for whom English is an additional language, as well as enriching the language-learning environment, and enhancing the ways in which parents can support their child’s learning and participation in settings and schools120.

The Inspectorate’s research during 2019 on aspects of the initial implementation of Languages Connect, Ireland’s Strategy for Foreign Languages in Education 2017-2026 found examples of strategies that were particularly effective in enhancing partnerships between parents and ELC settings/schools to support children and young people’s learning. Some are detailed in the following Spotlights.

Spotlight…

Spotlight 1

In an early learning and care (ELC) setting visited during 2019, families for whom English is an additional language (EAL) were supported with a ‘communication corner’ which used symbols to enhance communication with the children and their parents. Prior to the settling-in period, early years educators met with parents. These opportunities were used to build positive relationships and to discuss the various approaches used by the early years educators to support children. They also organised an open-day to establish effective settling-in procedures. Early years educators used visual leaflets and a video to further support the children and families with EAL in their understanding of the ethos and procedures of the setting. Parents were also invited into the setting three times during the year, with language support provided if required, to discuss the children’s learning and to explain their learning stories and experiences. In addition, a variety of visual displays, including a daily routine, helped to convey a wide range of information to support the children and families for whom English was an additional language.

Spotlight 2

The staff of a primary school researched how they could develop the language learning ability of their multilingual pupils so that those pupils could access the curriculum using home languages to ‘fill in the gaps’ in a meaningful way. Teachers provided English vocabulary and sentence structures to the pupils once they had had an opportunity to engage with the lesson topic in their home language. Parents and guardians were involved in this approach, and they worked with the school to enable younger pupils to produce ‘Think and Talk’ scrapbooks using topic-based pictures. These scrapbooks formed the basis of discussion between the child and the parent in their home language. In line with the school’s work to promote linguistic diversity, home languages came to play a more prominent role in its events to mark internationalism.

120 Evans, M., Schneider, C., Arnot, M., Fisher, L., Forbes, K., Hu, M. and Liu, Y. (2016) Language development and school achievement: Opportunities and challenges in the education of EAL students. Available at: https://www.bell-foundation.org.uk/ eal-programme/research/language-development-and-school-achievement/

There is scope to enhance parental involvement in governance and decision-making in early learning and care settings and schools

Inspection findings indicated that, while ELC settings and schools demonstrate strengths in communicating with parents, they are less successful in making provision for their involvement in governance and decision-making.

During the period September 2016 to December 2020, findings from EYEIs indicated that there is scope for ELC management to place additional emphasis on seeking parental views and inputs to inform the work of the ELC settings. These findings are consistent with those from the Annual Early Years Sector Profile Report 2018-2019121, in which just over half of community services (52%) and 24% of private settings reported that they provide opportunities for parental involvement in governance and decision-making. It is recognised that the private, for-profit nature of a large proportion of ELC settings creates a different context for the involvement of parents in governance and decision-making; however, parental views on provision for their child are valuable in all cases and should be a feature of all high quality settings.

Inspection findings in primary schools, special schools and post-primary schools during this period also indicated that there was potential to improve the involvement of parents in school matters. In their responses to Inspectorate surveys carried out during whole-school type inspections, 13% of parents in primary and special schools and almost a third (30%) of parents in post-primary schools did not agree that the school sought their views on school matters regularly (Table 7.3). These survey findings suggest that boards of management, particularly at post-primary level, need to develop effective two-way channels of communication with parents. Whole-school evaluation reports of provision in primary and special schools and in post-primary schools highlight the benefits for schools in having a communication policy, and of ensuring that boards of management support good communication with parents. In this regard, the dissemination of agreed reports to parents after board meetings, and the preparation of an annual report for parents on the work of the school are important.

Table 7.3: Parental responses to survey statements related to parental involvement in school governance in whole-school type evaluations in primary (P) and special (S) schools and in post-primary (PP) schools: September 2016 - December 2020

	Strongly agree		Agree		Don’t know		Disagree		Strongly disagree
	P&S	PP	P&S	PP	P&S	PP	P&S	PP	P&S	PP
The school regularly seeks the views of parents on school matters	37.0%	14.2%	34.3%	31.8%	16.2%	24.4%	9.6%	22.6%	2.9%	7.1%

Source: Inspectorate, Department of Education

121 Department of Children and Youth Affairs (DCYA) and Pobal (2019) 2018/19 Annual Early Years Sector Profile Report. Available at: https://www.pobal.ie/app/uploads/2019/12/Annual-Early-Years-Sector-Profile-Report-AEYSPR-2018-19.pdf

Parental involvement in self-evaluation needs to be strengthened in both early learning and care settings and schools

Schools are required to involve parents in school self-evaluation (SSE) processes, and to provide a summary of their self-evaluation report and the school improvement plan to the whole school community.122 The national curriculum and quality frameworks, Aistear and Síolta, encourage ELC settings to seek the views of parents when they are carrying out internal review of provision and practice, including self-evaluation processes.

For self-evaluation to be effective, it needs to be both inclusive and collaborative. Findings from EYEIs during the period September 2016 to March 2020 suggest that parental involvement in the processes of internal review, including self-evaluation processes, is an emerging feature of practice in this sector. Inspection findings in primary and special schools and in post-primary schools indicate that schools are taking action to involve parents in SSE; findings from WSEs during this period show that parental involvement in SSE was considered to be good or very good in almost half of the schools inspected (Table 7.4). Nevertheless, there is a need to develop this good practice further as parental involvement was considered to be just satisfactory in 30% of primary and special schools and in 32% of post-primary schools, and less than satisfactory in 14% of primary and special schools and 28% of post-primary schools. Similarly, inspection findings from a series of focused incidental inspections, undertaken in autumn 2019, indicated that parental participation was not a strong feature of the SSE process in the majority of schools visited (65%). Findings from DEIS evaluations during the September 2016 to December 2020 period also indicated that parents were not always provided with a summary report of the school’s improvement targets and agreed actions arising from the SSE process. Although these findings suggest that ELC settings and schools need to be more active, inclusive and encouraging in involving parents in their self-evaluation processes, the close communication that schools have had to maintain with parents during the COVID-19 pandemic sets the scene for developing parental involvement further. This good practice in communicating with parents was supported by the advice the Department provided in the extensive range of guidance materials that it published during the pandemic in 2020 and 2021.123 The Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth (DCEDIY) has also published a range of resources to assist parents with their child’s learning, for example teaching their child new skills, facilitating learning through play, and supporting their child’s transition to pre-school.124

Table 7.4 Parental involvement in school self-evaluation, whole school evaluations in primary schools and special schools and in post-primary schools: September 2016 - December 2020

Inspectors’ ratings	Primary schools and special schools	Post-primary schools
Very good	19.0%	11.4%
Good	36.8%	27.8%
Satisfactory	29.9%	32.4%
Fair	8.3%	17.4%
Weak	6.0%	11.0%

Source: Inspectorate, Department of Education

122 This requirement is outlined in Circular 0039/2016 (Primary) in Circular 0040/2016 (Post Primary) which are available respectively at: http://schoolself-evaluation.ie/primary/sse-2016-2020/circulars-and-guidelines/ and http://schoolselfevaluation.ie/post-primary/sse-2016-2020/circulars-and-guidelines/ 123 The suite of guidance documents relating to Continuity of Schooling and Remote teaching and learning is available at: https:// www.gov.ie/en/collection/965639-continuity-of-schooling. The suite of guidance documents relating to Return to School is available at https://www.gov.ie/en/publication/f6ba5-additional-guidelines-and-procedures-for-primary-schools and https://www.gov.ie/en/publication/3cd09-additional-guidelines-and-procedures-for-post-primary-schools 124 The suite of ‘Let’s Get Ready’ resources is available at: https://www.gov.ie/en/campaigns/1e8a3-lets-get-ready/