Engaging parents in their child’s learning and wellbeing

The ‘how to’ of engaging parents in their child’s learning and wellbeing – a concept known as parent engagement – is a big step closer thanks to our Engaging Parents in Curriculum (EPIC) research project.

EPIC is now in its third year, building on research conducted by Griffith University’s Dr Linda Willis and Professor Beryl Exley in the Catholic and state education sectors since 2008.
We are proud to say that EPIC is advancing decades of research cementing the ‘why’ of engaging parents in their child’s learning – and converting it to the ‘how’.

One of the most interesting findings from the research is that participating teachers showed how often small changes in parent engagement practice were quickly rewarded with noticeably enhanced: student learning and engagement, teaching effectiveness and teacher satisfaction, as well as collective and community wellbeing.

“The findings challenge the perceived barrier to parent engagement that most parents lose interest in their child’s formal education as they get older,” Dr Willis and Professor Exley write in their 2022 final report.

“On the contrary, this research showed that parents of children of all ages were often waiting in the wings, they just needed to be invited into their child’s learning in a way that worked for them.’’

Queensland Independent Schools Parents Network is grateful to receive funding through the Queensland Government, a significant portion of which has been used to fund this important and ongoing piece of research, which is resulting in tangible change for the teaching profession, students and families.