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Description
Research has indicated that children of color and low socio-economic status face double jeopardy for literacy achievement. Family involvement research has demonstrated that children from all socioeconomic backgrounds and all racial groups can make significant academic gains when parent involvement increases. The Diamond Community Family Engagement Curriculum was geared specifically towards equipping families among the early grades (preschool-2nd grade) with the skills to support their children’s literacy development. The purpose of this project was to plan, implement, document, and evaluate this pilot program in order to inform curriculum and develop research-based materials for teachers and parents to use. This program was implemented in two elementary schools in the Diamond Community of Southeast San Diego; the participants from these schools are low-income, minority families with less than 50% of students reading at grade level. Epstein’s Six Types of Involvement helped guide the design of the curriculum, which focused on home learning, relationship building, and communication. This project was also successful in involving various levels of a family’s environment for the support and growth of a child’s literacy development through the use of Bronfenbrenner’s Theoretical Framework. The program was implemented with high fidelity and the feasibility of implementation indicated that this pilot program could be replicated at other schools or community centers. The documentation of this program development demonstrated the evolvement of a curriculum that respected and integrated linguistic and cultural accommodations in order to best serve the families of the Diamond Community. Participants indicated that they were satisfied with the family engagement program, enjoyed the bonding experience with their child, and were empowered through the understanding of pedagogy. The success of this program has implications for schools to entrust and support families with the task of providing home learning.
