Home
Visiting
Chrispeels, Boruta, and Daugherty (1988) describe home visiting as a personal way for schools to reach families:
"Home visits are a unique opportunity for real two-way communication between home and school. They acquaint the home visitor with a child's family and culture, and provide a familiar setting for listening to parents' concerns and recognizing their contributions to the home-school partnership. They may be the only way of communicating with hard-to-reach parents who are reluctant to come to school meetings, who don't have a telephone, or who cannot read the written communications from the school.
Home visits can serve a variety of goals. They can be used to:
Home visits can be conducted by teachers, community aids, or trained volunteers (parents and community members). The home visitor should be sensitive to cultural differences and always set a tone of mutual respect and consideration. In general, visits should be arranged in advance. Parents should be informed of the purpose of the visit, how long the visit will last, and be given the opportunity to request topics of interest to them. Any questions that will require parent preparation should be given in advance. If parents refuse a home visit, their wishes should be respected. Reluctant parents may be more receptive to a home visit if the visitor is accompanied by a familiar third party, such as a friend of the family, a neighbor, or a respected minister. Guidelines for home visitors are provided in how to prepare for a home visit and how to conduct a home visit.
School administrators can facilitate home visits by:
Courtesy of the San Diego County Office of Education.
