SCHOOL OF EDUCATION
_______________ CAMPUS
Mission: Wayland Baptist University exists to educate students in an academically
challenging, learning focused and distinctively Christian environment for professional
success, lifelong learning and service to God and humankind.
COURSE NUMBER AND TITLE: ECHD 4312 Partnering with Parents
TERM AND DATES:
INSTRUCTOR’S NAME: Mary Davis
OFFICE ADDRESS:
PHONE 806-786-0534
E-MAIL ADDRESS: mary.davis.8718@wayland.wbu.edu
OFFICE HOURS: as needed
CATALOG COURSE DESCRIPTION: This course provides the guidelines for creating effective
partnerships with families. It provides an overview of the diversity of modern families. The emphasis
is on examining elements that create successful partnerships and programs that work.
REQUIRED RESOURCE MATERIALS:
A. Student Textbook(s) -Gestwicki, C. (2007). Home, school, and community relations: A
guide to working with families (6th ed.). Florence, KY: Cengage Learning.
B. Access to WBU Learning Resources www.wbu.edu/lrc
COURSE OUTLINE:
Families Today
Parenting
Diversity of Experience
Family Involvement
Benefits of Partnerships
Barriers to Partnerships
Foundations of Successful Partnerships
Methods of Developing Partnerships
Informal Communications
Parent Teacher conferences
Home Visits
Parent Education
Making Partnerships Work
Programs that Work
COURSE REQUIREMENTS:
1. The student will attend class, read all assigned materials, participate in class activities, field experiences,
and assignments, and will behave in a professional manner. Students will complete all assignments at the
appropriate time; due dates are important.
2. All assigned work must be word-processed.
3. The student will complete a midterm and a final exam.
4. Written Assignments
5. Reading Assignments
6. Projects and Other Assignments (observations, field trips, performances)
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COMPETENCIES FOR THIS COURSE:
 Students possess knowledge and understanding of family and community characteristics.
 Students understand how to build positive relationships, taking families preferences and goals
into account and incorporating knowledge of families’ languages and cultures.
 Students consider family members to be resources for insight into their children, as well as
resources for curriculum and program development.
 Students understand that their relationships with families include assisting families in finding
needed resources that may contribute directly or indirectly to their children’s positive
development.
 Students understand how to go beyond parent conferences to engage families in curriculum
planning, assessing of children’s learning, and planning for children’s transitions to new
programs.
STUDENT LEARNING OUTCOMES:
 Students will demonstrate a variety of communication skills to foster relationships,
emphasizing informal conversations while also including such approaches as exchanging emails and posting information and children’s work on the Web.
 Students given a specific problem will identify community resources and develop a plan for the
family to obtain the needed assistance.
 Define parent involvement and describe perspectives and history of parent involvement in
early childhood programs and schools.
 Demonstrate techniques and practices for developing effective parent partnerships.
 Construct activities for involving parents in early childhood programs.
 Identify and explain advocacy roles of teachers, parents, community, and government.
 Demonstrate sensitivity to problems and issues confronting families with young children.
 Demonstrate an understanding of the functions and services offered by social service
agencies, support services, and clinics in the local community, the State, and on the National
level.
 Construct a resource file to be used when referring families to outside
MEANS FOR ASSESSING STUDENT ACHIEVEMENT OF THE OUTCOME COMPETENCIES:



Rubric is used to evaluate role playing of various problems and situations.
Development of plan to obtain assistance for specific problems.
Development of a resource book for community, state and national services.
ATTENDANCE POLICY:
1. Campus Attendance Policy: Students enrolled at Wayland Baptist University should make every effort
to attend all class meetings. The University expects students to make class attendance a priority. All
absences must be explained to the instructor who will decide whether omitted work may be made up.
When a student reaches a number of absences considered by the instructor to be excessive, the
instructor will so advise the student and file an Unsatisfactory Progress Report in the office of the dean.
Any student who misses twenty-five (25%) or more of the regularly scheduled class meetings will
receive a grade of F for that course. Student grade appeals should be addressed, in writing, to the
campus dean.
2. Instructor’s Additional Policies:
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METHODS OF INSTRUCTION:
EVALUATION: University Grading System:
A grade of “CR” indicates that credit in semester
hours was granted but no grade or grade points
were recorded.
*A grade of incomplete is changed if the work
required is completed prior to the date indicated in
the official University calendar of the next long term,
unless the instructor designates an earlier date for
completion. If the work is not completed by the
appropriate date, the I is converted to the grade of F.
An incomplete notation cannot remain on the
student’s permanent record and must be replaced
by the qualitative grade (A-F) by the date specified
in the official University calendar of the next regular
term.
EVALUATION: University Grading
System (see Catalog)
A
90-100
Cr for Credit
B
80-89
NCR No Credit
C
70-70
I Incomplete*
D
60-69
W for withdrawal
F
below 60
WP
Withdrawal
Passing
WF Withdrawal
Failing
given
X No grade
IP In Progress
COURSE GRADING CRITERIA:
Grading Rubric
Assignment
Possible
Assignments
300
Project
Test (2) 100 pts each
300
200
TOTAL
Earned
800
ACADEMIC HONESTY: University students are expected to conduct themselves according to the highest
standards of academic honesty. Academic misconduct for which a student is subject to penalty includes all
forms of cheating, such as illicit possession of examinations or examination materials, forgery, or plagiarism.
Disciplinary action for academic misconduct is the responsibility of the faculty members assigned to the
course. The faculty member is charged with assessing the gravity of any case of academic dishonesty and
with giving sanctions to any student involved. Penalties may be applied to individual cases of academic
dishonesty; see catalog for more information about academic dishonesty.
Plagiarism - The attempt to represent the work of another, as it may relate to written or oral works, computer-based
work, mode of creative expression (i.e. music, media or the visual arts), as the product of one's own thought, whether the
other's work is published or unpublished, or simply the work of a fellow student.
When a student submits oral or written work for credit that includes the words, ideas, or data of others, the source of
that information must be acknowledged through complete, accurate, and specific references, and, if verbatim statements
are included, through use of quotation marks as well. By placing one’s name on work submitted for credit, the student
certifies the originality of all work not otherwise identified by appropriate acknowledgements. A student will avoid being
charged with plagiarism if there is an acknowledgement of indebtedness.” - Source:
http://www.spjc.cc.fl.us/webcentral/admit/honesty.htm#plag
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DISABLED PERSONS: It is University policy that no otherwise qualified person with disabilities be excluded
from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subject to discrimination under any educational program
or activity in the University. It is the responsibility of the student to disclose and to provide documentation
pertaining to the disability so that appropriate modifications may be made.
Course Calendar
Session
Date
Classwork
Reading
November
Syllabus
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
9
November
16
December
1
December
7
December
14
January 4
January
11
January
18
January
25
10
11
February 1
February
6
Basic Instructions
Readings from text
Readings from text
Assignments
Autobiography/picture
Chapters
1,2,3
Chapters
4,5,6
Family images
Chapters
7,8,9,10
Chapters
11,12,13, 14
Respond 2 classmates on
discussion board
Design a parent education
meeting based on readings
from chapter 13
Chapters
15,16,17
Case Scenerio, What would
you do?
Compare and contrast
Parent interview
Readings from text
Readings from text
Mid term
Chapters 1-10
Project guidelines will be
provided
Readings from text
Children’s books about
families
Work on project
Project is due,
Final exam is delivered
Final Exam-comprehensive
Comparing parent involvement
programs from three schools
Syllabus from Edison community college was used to shape the learning outcomes and course
competencies.
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