Effective partnerships between schools and parents are more likely when parents play three key roles: supporting their child’s education, monitoring their progress, and advocating for them when necessary. In this video, parents in New Hampshire and Los Angeles reflect on the support, monitor, and advocate model.

A team of teachers in Los Angeles and a facilitator in New Hampshire lead groups of parents through all the steps of the Question Formulation Technique (QFT) to think together about two scenarios: “Your child might be held back in the same grade for one more year” and “your child’s school environment.” The facilitator in New Hampshire describes the QFT to parents in this way: “You’re going to see how simple it is and how powerful it is as well.”

Parents and educators can use the Question Formulation Technique to have more productive conversations – in group settings or during one-on-one meetings. In this video, a home-school coordinator in New Hampshire works with a mother concerned about her son’s ability to graduate on time. She also meets with a young man who serves as guardian to his younger brother.