Using the Journal tab, respond to the following prompt:
 

Explain how a service learning project can fit into the specific needs and culture of your school or future a school in which you will be working.
 

Carefully review the

Grading Rubric (Links to an external site.)

for the criteria that will be used to evaluate your journal entries.

See full work attached

Week 5 Journal Specific Needs and Culture

Using the Journal tab, respond to the following prompt:
Explain how a service learning project can fit into the specific needs and culture of your school or future a school in which you will be working.
Carefully review the

Grading Rubric (Links to an external site.)

for the criteria that will be used to evaluate your journal entries.

INSTRUCTOR GUIDANCE
WEEK FIVE

*Special thanks to Dr. Patrice Jones for sharing her original guidance in this document.
According to the National Education Association (NEA) President Dennis Roekel, “research and field-work show that parent-school partnerships improve schools, strengthen families, build community support, and increase student achievement and success” (Roekel, 2008, para. 5).  Schools cannot work alone in getting students to improve learning. 

There has to be a structured, strategic plan that includes other stakeholders.  A variety of potential community groups such as police officers, firefighters, civil rights, and youth services organizations are great examples of resources that can be involved in the teaching and learning process. Consider the benefits of seeking out this type of community support?  What are some of the first steps in garnering the support of these leaders within the community? Additionally, when students get involved with this strategic planning in developing community relationships through service learning projects, the outcomes prove positive for social growth and academic development.  The benefits of service learning project can be seen in the

Service Learning: You Can Make a Difference (Links to an external site.)

  one and half minute video.  
The first step in establishing a successful partnership between schools and community is the initial planning phase. This sets the foundation by assessing the school’s needs, establishing goals and objectives, and developing a vision for the future.  One of the key factors is getting those individuals involved who have a genuine interest and care about what happens to the schools within the community.  Price (2008) explains that through the “community mobilization” process, schools engage the community to create a list of community priorities, resources, needs, and solutions that promote stakeholder accountability and positive student support.  He believes that by “mobilizing the village” and having community meetings related to education, support for education can be garnered (Price, 2008, p. 90). The concern, however, is recruiting school and community volunteers who will spearhead these partnerships. Educators may not feel qualified to assume this role, or may not have enough time to add another responsibility to their already-full plate.  Price suggest that the key to getting teachers involved in creating partnerships is by tapping into their professional interest in community-based efforts in improving student success.
A fully supportive community must include parental involvement. The efforts previously discussed to get the parents engaged in the teaching and learning of their children may not be successful for parents who are under the Tier IV category (Hjalmarson, 2011). For example, many educators have provided breakfast or lunch money to students of Tier IV parents who may not have it.  These same students may often come to school without completing their homework from the previous night.  For these students, an alternative strategy to complete homework is to provide time or peer help in the morning before school.  Providing extra time and attention will help to build a foundation of trust between the teacher, student and family.

Week 5 Discussion Guidance

For this first discussion post, Service Learning, we will begin to focus on strategies for developing a service learning program in schools.  Remember that the purpose of a Service Learning project is to connect the school’s curriculum with real-world, community-based needs where students have the opportunity to mature socially and academically. Think about the best ways to incorporate this type of program into the school’s curriculum.  What advantages would this type of program have on the relationships?  When writing your initial response, be sure to include your personal and professional experiences with Service Learning and specific benefits to your community.
The second discussion post, Hierarchy of Needs, is a reflection on Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs triangle. At the bottom of this pyramid are our basic needs such as breathing, food, and water.  We need these things to function at the most basic level of survival. Why do you think these needs must be met first before people can move up the hierarchy?  Review the discussion for Hierarchy of Needs and be sure to include in your discussion how these needs help children in schools.  For some families, being involved in their child’s education takes a back seat to finding the resources to meet these basic needs. What is your experience with schools that understand the imperative to take care of basic needs as step one of any school to parent outreach program?
Please review the discussion board rubric prior to your initial post to ensure you are fully meeting each of the set criteria to earn full credit. Your initial post should include relevant professional, personal, or other real-world experiences in a manner that is rich in thought and provides valuable insight into the topic. Additionally, all elements of the discussion board prompt should be thoroughly addressed with strong and precise connections to previous and/or current course content, or to real-life situations. When substantively replying to your peers’ post, be sure to provide a thorough and constructive analysis relating the response to relevant course concepts that incorporates pertinent follow-up thoughts or questions about the topic, and demonstrates respect for the diverse opinions of fellow learners.

Week 5 Assignment Guidance

For this week’s assignment, A Strategic Plan to Involve School-Family-Community Partnerships via Service Learning, in addition to reading chapter ten in the text and the recommended resource by Kielsmeier (2010), be sure to independently seek out other sources that will assist with developing a plan to spark interest in classroom service learning.  Begin to think about when you were in school and any clubs you may have joined.  Many of the clubs used community service to build a bridge between the school and the community.  Service learning projects can do the same with building relationships, but from within the classroom (i.e., using math and writing skills to plan, create, and publicize a community garden space). Learning becomes concrete and relevant for students as they apply content-based learning in a real-world application while serving the community.  Next, you will create an annotated outline that explains the steps you would take to help students plan, create, and publicize this project.  In this plan, you will include academic, curricular, physical, and social skill development.  Make sure to use the grading rubric as a self-checklist before submitting the final copy of your assignment to confirm you have met or exceeded each required expectation. The highest level of achievement on the rubric is “distinguished”, which is only earned through exceeding posted expectations at the proficiency level. Please remember you are in a masters-level program. Therefore, your writing, research, and content are held to graduate-level expectations.

References and Resources

Hjalmarson, F. (2011). Differentiated parent support: Engaging parents in unique ways to increase their involvement in school. San Diego, CA: TurnAround Schools Publishing.

HumanRelationsMedia. (2011, October 5).

Service learning: You can make a difference (Links to an external site.)

[Video file]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z-MxJ01zeN4

Prawny. (2014).

stained-glass-love-hands (Links to an external site.)

[photograph]. Retrieved from http://www.morguefile.com/archive/display/912801

Price, H. B. (2008). Mobilizing the community to help students succeed. Alexandra, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.

Roekel, V. (2008). Parent, family, community involvement in education. NEA Education Policy and Practice Department. Retrieved from: www.nea.org/assests/doc/PB11_ParentInvolvement08

Required Resources

1. Read from your text, Differentiated Parent Support: Engaging Parents in Unique Ways to Increase Their Involvement in School:

· Chapter Nine – Tier Four: The Checked-Out Parent

· Chapter Ten – Community Outreach

Recommended Resources

1. Kielsmeier, J. C. (2010). Build a Bridge Between Service and Learning. Phi Delta Kappan, 91(5), 8-15. Retrieved from EBSCOhost.

1. Service learning is both a philosophy and a methodological approach to meet academic development while using community resources. It can create a bridge to business, government agencies and nonprofit organizations to support student learning.
 

· Lopez, C. & Donovan, L. (2009). Involving Latino Parents With Mathematics Through Family Math Nights: A Review of the Literature. Journal of Latinos & Education, 8(3), 219-230.

1. This resource investigates family-school partnerships that (a) empower Latino families in the area of mathematics education, (b) promote student achievement in mathematics, (c) impact parent-child involvement in mathematics at home, and (d) support Family Math Nights. Family Math Nights are school-sponsored events in which parents, teachers, and students interact around a mathematics curriculum.