Schedule teacher home visits before the start of the school year to build family relationships¶

Strategy · All strategies
Evidence · no claims cited

Description¶

This strategy has teachers visit students' homes before the school year begins, establishing a relationship-building contact with families early. The article reports that "a home visit before the start of the school year reduced the likelihood of a student having a disciplinary incident in that school year," supporting early timing as the implemented design in DC Public Schools' family engagement program.

Design Implications¶

Context¶

Requirements¶

• Teachers and a family engagement program infrastructure to arrange and conduct structured visits before the school year starts

Constraints¶

• Evidence comes from a matched comparison study in grades 1-5 in one district (DC Public Schools)

Target Learners¶

• Elementary school students in grades 1-5

Target Learning Goals¶

• Reduced disciplinary incidents and improved attendance

Related Strategies¶

• Home Visits
• Two-visit structure: relationship-building visit first, academic-focused visit later
• Connect with Parents Early in the School Year

Examples¶

-

Key Sources¶

• Allison McKie, Jeffrey Terziev, Brian Gill. (2021). Impacts of Home Visits on Students in District of Columbia Public Schools. Regional Educational Laboratory Mid-Atlantic, Institute of Education Sciences, U.S. Department of Education. https://ies.ed.gov/ncee/edlabs