At GECDSB, we believe strongly that authentic partnerships
between home and school are an essential element for student success.
Engaging parents, guardians and families in the daily work of supporting
learning consistently yields powerful results.
A critical element of our focus on 21st Century
teaching and learning is a reimagining of the home-school partnership. Our
goals is to continue to move towards a vision of parents, guardians and
families as authentic partners in their children’s schooling, as “co-producers
of the learning path”, as Dr. Kenneth Leithwood describes it. Although
attending and supporting functions at school is still important, we are excited
as we continue to uncover powerful ways to engage families in supporting the
daily learning of their students at home. It is in this new partnership in the
learning, that we see as having such potential for success.
"Parents are vital partners in education. They influence their
children’s attitudes about learning, and support learning at home. They are a
vital link between home and school. And when they become involved in the life
of the school, they make our schools better places to learn, grow and thrive.”
(Ministry of Education, Parents in Partnership)
“Study after study has shown that student learning and
achievement improvement when parents play an active role in their children’s
education and that good schools become even better when parents are involved.”
(Parent Engagement Policy for Ontario Schools)
“When parents are engaged and involved, everyone benefits, and
our schools become increasingly rich and positive places to learn and grow.”
(Ontario Institute for Educational Leadership, Issue #20)
“The acknowledgement of the importance of partnership and the
positive influence of parents on their children’s learning and their future
success – lies at the heart of the Ontario approach to parent engagement”
(Ministry of Education, Capacity Building Series Monograph #29)
Dr. Jeff Hillman,
Superintendent of Education,
School Effectiveness & Parent Engagement
519-255-3200 ext. 10316
