iNACOL: Making the Connections

For the past two years I have been a volunteer for iNACOL which is an organization built on the idea of creating stronger environments for online learning.  I am on the program committee in which I read through proposals and rate them according to a rubric.  I also then volunteer at the conference at registration in which I get to meet educators from around the world.   I had the opportunity to attend the conference last week in which I meant many educators focused on the research to better education.   Attending the conference was a bit different then in past years.  I am walking away from this conference with a few new connections that will help with research I am completing with a partner teacher.

Parent engagement is always a topic of discussion in which I believe should be a huge piece of any school's puzzle.  The connections at home and school should be strong and through the sessions, I continuously heard how to involve our parents.  I even presented on this topic at the conference and found a few educators that were struggling with the same issues.  How do we bridge any gaps in communication?  What steps should we take?  Why is it so important?  Research states that the more involvement with parents, the better a student will do in school.

Currently research is being done on this topic and I will continue to follow it to find ways on how I can better the communication with parents. As there are many puzzle pieces in learning, the students will only benefit if they all fit together nicely.

What are you thoughts about parent engagement?