News

December 10, 2019

PDE Releases New Family Engagement Framework

The Pennsylvania Department of Education (PDE) has released the Pennsylvania Family Engagement Birth through College, Career, Community Ready Framework.

About The PDE Family Engagement Framework

As a collaborative initiative between PDE’s Office of Child Development and Early Learning (OCDEL) and Office of Elementary and Secondary Education (OESE), the Pennsylvania Family Engagement Birth through College, Career, and Community Ready Framework is a tool to guide learning communities in the implementation of effective practices, use of shared language, and application of a family engagement continuum for families across their child’s educational lifespan. With this, the framework includes Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA)-aligned Family Engagement resources and information for local education agencies (LEAs).

Beginning with early learning programs through K-12, effective family engagement is critical to supporting a child’s learning and development. In fact, research has demonstrated that regardless of socioeconomic background, when schools, families, and community groups work together to support learning, children perform better academically, enjoy school more, remain in school longer, and have better long-term outcomes such as higher graduation rates, improved post-secondary educational attainment, and increased career readiness.

By establishing this framework, PDE seeks to foster a clear path by identifying a set of common standards of how learning communities can plan and implement family engagement practices. Members of Pennsylvania’s learning communities can employ this framework, with communities including programs and schools to which PDE provides funding, guidance, and monitoring.

More Information

For more information on the framework, visit the PDE’s website.

*Information provided by the Pennsylvania Key

Image: Young children and adults gather together to participate in a fun table activity.