Parent Involvement Works!

1Mary Lindsey, Ph.D.Director, Florida HIPPY Training & Technical Assistance Center

Dabaram RampersadAssistant Director, Florida HIPPY Training & Technical Assistance Center

Marsha M. Black, Ph.D.Research Assistant Professor

Department of Child and Family Studies

University of South FloridaTampa, FloridaParent Involvement Works!Home Instruction for Parents of Preschool YoungstersWorkshop AgendaWelcome & IntroductionsBackground/History of HIPPYEssential Features of the HIPPY Model: Staff, Curriculum, Role Play, Home Visits/Group MeetingsHIPPY Program Demonstration Model for Building Parent and Child InvolvementHighlights from Parent Involvement Research/Evaluation FindingsQuestions & Answers2What is HIPPY?HIPPY is an international evidence-based home visiting early childhood intervention program focused on parent-involved learning for preschool age children.The goal of HIPPY is to increase parental involvement in early educational activities to promote childrens school readiness and long term school success.39 CountriesHIPPY International4Argentina, Australia, Canada, Germany, Israel, Italy, New Zealand, South Africa, and USA

4

HIPPY USA135 Local Sites21 States &District of Columbia5Serving more than 15,000 families5

Florida HIPPY11 Counties1,600 Children11 Coordinators70 Home Visitors66Background/History of HIPPYEstablished in 1969 at Hebrew University in Israel as a research and demonstration project for :Families experiencing economic disadvantageLimited English proficiencyImmigrant familiesEstablished in the US in 1984 and serves more than 15,000 families across 135 communities in 21 states.Currently in 9 countries.7Essential Features of the HIPPY Model8

Cost per Child9Approximately$1,500 - $2,000*Based on

Program operating with approximately 150 children

Program is in its 3rd year of operation or beyond

* HIPPY USA national figures.

Program Factors

Low supervisory caseloadStable fundingLow levels of staff turnoverPrograms ability to offer tangible incentives such as goods and services

Parent Involvement in Family Support Programs: An Integrated Theory.Karen McCurdy and Deborah Daro, Family Relations, 2001, 50, 113-121.

10Promoting Parent Involvement10The structure and capacity of a program to support its workers shapes the content in which services are delivered.

Low supervisory caseload ensures that direct service personnel receive the support they need to avoid frustration and burnout.

Stable funding Promotes smooth service delivery and reduces staff turnover

Low levels of staff turnover avoid service disruption

Programs ability to offer tangible incentives such as goods and services entices parents to remain in the program

How HIPPY Parent Involvement Works!11

Parent Involvement12

What Research Says About Parent Involvement13

National ResearchExperimental study to examine the effects of HIPPY on childrens early language skills, emergent literacy and parent involvement.

Randomized control trial design was used with a sample of low-income immigrant Mexican American families.

Mothers reported significant more involvement with their children after 15 weeks of HIPPY compared to the control group in providing home based literacy and language opportunities, quality instruction and interaction, and frequent modeling of literacy activities. Necoehea. D.M. 2007 unpublished doctoral dissertation14Parent Involvement in Home Educational ActivitiesNational ResearchHIPPY researchers in Texas investigated the relationship of HIPPY parents to mothers involvement in education at home and school, student school readiness in kindergarten, and student academic outcomes in the third grade.

Parent involvement surveys were administered at the start of HIPPY and again after one program year to 87 HIPPY mothers (79% Latina and 76% Spanish-speaking).

Results: Within group analysis revealed a significant increase in report parent engagement in academic-related activities at home.

Johnson, Martinez-Cantu, Jacobson & Weir, 2012

15Parent Involvement in Home Educational ActivitiesNational ResearchHIPPY researchers in Texas conducted a quasi-experimental research study to investigate the effects of HIPPY on parents and children.

A randomly selected sample of 54 HIPPY mothers and 54 wait-listed parents completed a one-time assessment on the HOME (Home Observation Measurement of the Environment)

Results: Families in HIPPY had more learning materials in their home and offered their preschool children a greater variety of learning experiences than families on the waiting list.

Nievar, Jacobson, Chen, Johnson, & Dier (2011)16Parent Involvement in Home Educational ActivitiesFlorida ResearchParents completing their first year of a HIPPY program were surveyed on type and level of direct involvement with their young children.

Responses of a matched sample of 366 pairs of HIPPY parents and 366 parents from the 2007 National Household Education Survey data set were compared on a number of home and community based educational activities using propensity scoring matching procedures.

Results: HIPPY parents were found to not only engage in more frequent early literacy activities with their preschool age children, they also reported significantly higher use of research based dialogic reading strategies and a higher level of participation in community based educational activities compared to a demographically matched national sample of parents. 17Parent Involvement in Home Educational ActivitiesParent OutcomesEnriched home language environment.Improved confidence and parenting efficacyHigh levels of involvement when children enter school.Gain confidence in their role as their childs most influential teacher.18Parent OutcomesLearn to initiate, monitor and direct childrens educational experiences in the home.Become familiar with child development conceptsIncrease their communication skills19Acquire skills and values that display a predisposition to learningAre more self-confident in their role as learnersGain increased self-reliance and self-sufficiencyIncrease literacy in home environments

20Child Outcomes21