Barbara LeBlanc, LCSW
Debbie Regan, RNC, IBCLC

Session I
Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention (2009)
Lara Robinson, PhD, MPH
Jennifer Kaminski, PhD
CDC Child Development Studies Team
Parent Training Programs:
Insight for Practitioners
A publication of the National Center for
Injury Prevention and Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention
Atlanta, GA

 Is all parent training the same?
 Research and analysis of evaluations of existing programs for effectiveness
 Guide practitioners in making evidence-based program decisions

 Peer-reviewed articles published from
1990 – 2002 evaluating training programs for parents of children ages 0 – 7
 Meta-analysis of 77 program evaluations

Who
 Social workers
 Child care providers
 Teachers
 Doctors
 Nurses
 Clergy
 Others ?

 Knowledge of:
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
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

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Child and lifespan development
Dynamics of family relations
Guidance and nurturing
Health and safety
Diversity and family systems
Professional practice and methods of adult learning
Community relationships
Assessment and evaluation
LAPEN Parent Educator Core
Competencies 2010

What do Parent Educators do?
 Teach
 Facilitate
 Continue to learn

Professional Growth of
Parent Educators
Join LAPEN
Network
NPEN Listserve
Track professional development
Seek & explore latest research

 Schools
 Child care centers
 Social service agencies
 Healthcare facilities
 Faith-based institutions
 Other ???

How?
What?
Why?

How do Parent Educators Teach?

Utilize evidenced-based research

Avoid using personal anecdotal information
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Qualify information you give as either
“my opinion/experience” vs. research

Encourage parents to recognize what they are doing right = empowerment

What do Parent Educators Teach?
(CDC Study, Content Components)
 Child development
 Positive interactions with child
 Responsiveness, sensitivity and nurturing
 Emotional communication
 Disciplinary communication
 Discipline and behavior management
 Promoting children’s social skills
 Promoting children’s cognitive skills

What do
Parent Educators Use?
(CDC Study, Delivery Components)
 Curriculum or Manual
 Modeling
 Homework
 Rehearsal, Role Playing, or Practice
 Separate Child Instruction
 Ancillary Services

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Resist giving immediate advice, answers & solutions
• Guide parents to explore options
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Resist being the expert on EVERYTHING!

Resist citing research on EVERYTHING!
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Allow parents to find their own comfort zone

● Creating an open and supportive climate
● Know when to be supportive or when to refer out
● Introduce appropriate information for discussion
● Encourage participation
● Help create a feeling of group trust
● Summarize major points
● Encourage parents with praise
● Encourage parent to parent relationships

Why do Parents Join Groups or
Take Classes?
 Feeling overwhelmed or inadequate
 Needs help sorting out contradictory information
 Individual child rearing concerns
 Place to sort out feelings
 Seeking ways to transmit their values and morals
 Mandatory

 Adults are motivated to learn as they develop needs and interests generated by real life tasks or problems
 Learning is life or work centered
 Experience is the richest resource for adult learning
 Adults have a deep need to be self-directing
 Individual differences increase with age and experience

 Isolation seeks socialization
 Helps parents create a new normal
 Spin off friendships / playgroups
 Observes others’ parenting skills
 Builds confidence as a parent

Two Outcomes Examined
(CDC Study)
Outcome 1: Acquiring Parenting Skills and Behaviors
Outcome 2: Decreases in Children’s
Externalizing Behaviors

Outcome 1: Acquiring Parenting
Skills and Behaviors
Components Associated with Larger Effects on
Parenting Behaviors & Skills Outcomes
I. Teach parents emotional communication skills
II. Teach parents positive parent-child interaction skills
III. Require parents to practice with their child during program sessions

I. Teach parents emotional communication skills
5 Stages of Emotional Communication
1.
Emotional awareness
2.
Connecting during emotional moments
3.
Listening with empathy
4.
Naming emotions
5.
Finding good solutions
TALARIS RESEARCH
INSTITUTE, John Gottman, Ph.D

Emotion Coaching
Video
TALARIS RESEARCH INSTITUTE, John Gottman, Ph.D

II. Teach parents positive parentchild interaction skills
 Non-disciplinary interactions

Play
 Using skills that promote positive parent-child interactions
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
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Enthusiasm
Following interests
Age appropriate recreation
 Provide positive attention

Connecting / Reconnecting

III. Require parents to practice with their child during program sessions
 Role-playing with the parent trainer or a peer
 Practice parent skills with own child

Outcome 2: Decreases in
Children’s Externalizing Behaviors
Components Associated with Larger Effects on
Children’s Externalizing Behaviors
I. Teach parents the correct use of time out
II. Teach parents to respond consistently to their child
III. Teach parents to interact positively with their child
IV. Require parents to practice with their child during program sessions

I. Teach parents the correct use of time out
 One minute/year of age
 Set timer
 Location
 3 years and up
 Over use
 Lesson learned?
 Alternatives?

www.vanderbilt.edu/csefel/scripte dstories/tuckerturtle.ppt

 Parents agree on discipline
 Plan ahead for persistent problems
 Say it one time – then act
 ACT *
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A cknowledge behavior/feelings
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C ommunicate the rule
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T arget acceptable behavior (redirect)
*1 2 3 4 Parents, Michael Popkin,
Ph.D

III. Teach parents positive parent-child interaction skills
 Non-disciplinary interactions

Play
 Using skills that promote positive parent-child interactions



Enthusiasm
Following interests
Age appropriate recreation
 Provide positive attention

Connecting / Reconnecting

Learning Happens Video
Zero to Three, National Center for Infants, Toddlers and Families

IV. Require parents to practice with their child during program sessions
 Role-play with the parent trainer or a peer
 Practice parent skills with own child

BUSY BABIES
VIDEO

 What components in my program are
effective?
 What components in my program are
ineffective?
 How could additional effective components be added to my existing program?
 How could ineffective components be eliminated from my existing program?

Session III

Commonly Used Components in
Parent Education
 Tailoring parenting classes to appropriate ages and stages

“One size does not fit all”
 Video examples of parent/child interactions
 Homework
 Teaching child development
 Teaching problem-solving
 Focus on cognitive / academic development

If Parents do not attend or endorse the need to learn and use new strategies, even the most effective parenting program
WILL NOT WORK!

Motivation for Parents to
Continue to Attend
We know what to teach.
We know how to teach.
BUT…
How do we keep them coming back?

 Media
 Healthcare facilities
 Pediatrician / Obstetrician offices
 Social service agencies
 Legal system
 Library
 Community fairs
 Schools
 Retail outlets

“…decades of research show that active learning approaches are superior to passive approaches. Therefore parent education programs that seek to presumably change behavior but do not use an active skills acquisition mechanism were not included in the metaanalysis”

Classroom instruction alone doesn’t work
Active learning approaches must be incorporated

 Program model
 Support & funding
 Staff
 Utilization
 Classes/activities/programs
 30 Years and Counting!