CSEFEL Establishing Reciprocal Relationships with Families

MALE_1: Children,
so resourceful,

independent in so many ways,

sometimes it's easy
to forget that

each child is a
part of a family,

a family that is essential
to her survival,

a family that is

her primary source of
affection and support.

Teachers programs, schools.

Each may play a critical role at

special times in a child's life.

Teachers may develop strong
emotional ties with a child,

but children move on
to other teachers,

programs and schools and

teachers take new jobs and
develop new priorities.

Over time, the family
remains constant.

Only the family can meet

the child's needs for

love and lifelong
emotional connection.

The foundation for
all development.

Ellen Galinski: In the
past, I think we've thought

about the job of
teaching and taking care

of children as having

the child as the
client, so to speak.

Our work was focused
on children.

Now I think we understand
that to be most effective,

we need to consider the most

durable relationship
that exists,

which is that we need to focus

on the parent-child
relationship.

You can't really
help a child if you

don't help the family
and the child together.

Sue Bredekamp: The teacher's
role involves, of course,

interacting constantly
with children,

thinking about what they
need to be learning,

how to teach them, et cetera.

But one really
important dimension

of the practice of teaching,

especially for young children,

is relationships
with their parents.

We were very careful at choosing

the word reciprocal
relationships because

relationships that are
based on reciprocity are

relationships in which
each party has power.

Each party is respected.

Each party is treated
in a way that

is respectful of what knowledge

they bring to that relationship.

MALE_1: Reciprocal
relationships,

a relationship of shared
power and mutual respect.

This means teachers
and parents work as

partners to understand
what each wants

for the child and how each

can best help the child
develop and learn.

FEMALE_1: Come on here.

MALE_1: Teachers who
want to establish

reciprocal relationships for

families seek to understand

a family's goals
for their child,

communicate frequently with
the family members and

facilitate family involvement in

all aspects of the
educational program.

Often the initial
contact with a family is

a good place to begin to learn

about a family's goals
for their child.

As we will hear in this
conversation between

a family childcare provider
and a prospective parent,

family members often express

their goals indirectly for
the questions they ask.

This gives teachers a chance to

hear the family's goals and then

to share their own views

about child development
and learning.

It's okay for the parent
to challenge her.

FEMALE_2: I saw how you
discipline older kids.

What's your philosophy?

FEMALE_3: Well, the same thing.

You just have you just have
to repeat yourself a lot.

A lot of times Emma and I joke.

MALE_1: It's okay for
the teacher to share

her perspective and her
style with the parent.

Both parent and teacher have

the best interests of
the child at heart.

FEMALE_2: Tell me
what things would

you be doing with my four month?

FEMALE_3: But your four
month, oh, it depends.

Each child is different.

MALE_1: Frequent easy going
day to day communication is

an important way to establish

and maintain reciprocal
relationship.

Casual conversation about
feeding can lead to

more detailed discussion
about care strategies.

FEMALE_4: Is there
anything that we can do

them here to help you
with the schedule?

MALE_1: First grade teacher
Jeanette Sparks began

the year with her student
Marcellus underperforming.

She was frustrated in

her attempts to
communicate with him

until one day she put forth

a special effort that
involved his family.

Jeanette Sparks: On this
particular day, Marcellus

had an okay day. Things
were going pretty well.

I was able to talk with him

about some of the things that
were going on in the class

that were a little troublesome
for both himself and

I. I took him home,

and I said, Marcellus, I'm
going to walk you home today.

He was actually seem
very excited about it.

He took my hand and
we were walking home

and he was talking
to me a little

bit about some of the
things he does on his way

home and who he walks
with sometimes.

Sometimes he walks by himself.

I was really concerned
about that fact alone,

just him being six-years-old
also I found out that

he had walked himself home

when he was in
kindergarten by himself.

San Pablo is a very busy street
for a young boy to cross.

I was amazed at
how many people in

the neighborhood knew Marcellus

because when I was
walking home with him,

they say, Hi, Marcellus,

people driving by
or other people?

Oh, is that your teacher?

Because it was the
beginning of the year.

It was nice and he was beaming,

he says, oh, are you in trouble?

He says, no, she just wants
to walk home with me.

He felt really good about that.

Marcellus and his grandmother
knew that I was there

to support Marcellus both
academically and socially.

Ever since then, Marcellus has

really giving me
a different kind

of respect than he had at
the beginning of the year.

I'm walking him.

MALE_1: Facilitating the
family's involvement

in every aspect of a program

is another important way to

maintain reciprocal
relationships with parents.

Silvia Leon: Parents
who are involved in

this program in many
different ways,

first of all, first
and foremost,

the most important thing to get

parents involved is to make them

feel warm and make them

feel comfortable
that whatever they

have you welcome their
skills in anything.

Some parents will say, oh,

I can't read, I can't write.

I said, I'm sure
that you can sew,

you can do something to
help us bake cupcakes.

There's always something
that you can offer us.

Parents help in this
classroom basically

by coming into the
classroom one day a month.

When they're here, I want
them with their child.

I want them interacting
with their child.

Their kids, too, but basically
mostly with their child.

They also attend Friday meetings

one Friday a month with me,

and they also attend 10
parent education classes

with a parent education teacher.

Now, aside from that,
they're in committees,

and committees can be
fundraising committee or

construction committee
or sewing committee

or cleaning the
classroom committee,

cleaning the
playground committee,

or setting up the toys in

the morning or picking
them up in the afternoon.

They're bound to find
something that they

feel successful in
and everyone does,

and everyone feels like,
we're really a community.

We're really here to help

the children. We
all work together.

Great. It's a lot of
planning and organizing,

but once you have it all

organized and you got
the parents going,

it just I really helps. [MUSIC].

MALE_1: Reciprocal
relationships with

families are a teacher's
most powerful tool.

The teacher brings her
knowledge of how children,

especially children of a
given age, develop and learn.

She also brings her knowledge of

how the child functions
in the classroom setting.

The parents bring
their knowledge of

the child within her
cultural context,

as well as her unique
interests and needs.

Together, through shared
power and mutual respect,

they provide for
the child what is

best for her
educational success.