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The Family Room

The Family Room is an interactive study program involving parents/guardians and students using multimedia to prepare a presentation on their 'special place of significance'.  The four-week project uses the school environment targeting Year 7 students and their parents/guardians from schools in Melbourne.

The goal

The goal of The Family Room is to positively influence secondary school student retention in Melbourne by engaging the support and involvement of parents and guardians.

Cohesion

The Family Room hopes to improve cohesion at a local school and community level in Melbourne and thus create lasting bonds between children, their parents and guardians and the school.

Results

A pilot program was conducted at Melbourne's Albert Park College and, following the program's success, the school has incorporated it into the 2006 curriculum. Participants reported that their knowledge of the school environment and local community improved during the program. They said they would highly recommend running this program annually in other schools. Students said they appreciated spending time outside the home with their parent/guardian and took pride in being able to teach their parent/guardian a skill (ie. technology).

Taking notice

The 'Emerald Hill Times' reported "Students Teach Parents a Lesson" on 20 September 2005; and the 'Herald Sun' reported "Mini Movies cause a big hit with parents" on 22 November 2005