What is Family Learning?
Family Learning is learning activity that involves both children and adult family members and carers, where learning outcomes are intended for both, including wider social, economic and health outcomes. The concept behind this activity is that it contributes to a culture of learning in the home.
What are the benefits?
A publication entitled, ‘Family Learning Works, The Inquiry into Family Learning in England and Wales’ [i] states that it not only secures better outcomes for children and their parents/carers, but also has measurable positive impacts on a wide range of economic and social policy agendas.
Research shows that Family Learning impacts upon:
• self-confidence and self-esteem
• motivation and self-efficacy
• aspirations and ambitions
• parenting practices
• skills, also referred to as human capital
• social capital
• cultural capital
Family Learning Project: Test and Learn- 2022-2023
Liverpool Learning Partnership was commissioned to coordinate a Family Learning Project on behalf of Liverpool Adult Learning Service and Virtual School Liverpool. This was a Test and Learn style project aimed to scope out the possibility for further work in the future and identify ways that Adult Learning Service could support family learning in schools.
The first stage of the project focused on the training of Adult Learning Service tutors on current classroom practice led by staff from School Improvement Liverpool’s Primary Learning Team and Ethnic Minority and Traveller Achievement Service (EMTAS). Curated resource boxes were also provided to the tutors including maths manipulatives, high quality reading books and items for writing stimulus.
Following this, parents/carers from several schools across the city had the opportunity to participate in a learning session led by staff from School Improvement Liverpool’s Primary Learning Team and the Adult Learning Service that focused on how to support children with their learning. Following these session, the parents/carers took part in another session, this time along with their children. There were be different sessions for families in different areas of the city, each focusing on a different subject: Maths, Science, Reading, Writing or Phonics. Participating families were provided with a bag of materials to support their learning at home.
Parental Engagement in Maths Funding
Following the Family Learning Project, we were asked by Liverpool’s Adult Learning Service to provide small grants to schools to support parental engagement with maths. This money has been used to fund maths story sacks, board game clubs, craft materials for maths craft mornings and much more.
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