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Online Solution Engages Parents and Students

Palos Verdes Peninsula Unified School District

(Palos Verdes Estates, CA)—An e-mail response within 24 hours from a teacher; a weekly report on a child’s grades; and around-the-clock access to school assignments and schedules. Those are just a few ways technology in the Palos Verdes Peninsula Unified School District (PVPUSD) is helping to improve the lines of communication between school and home. The technology is Edline—the world’s leading web-based solution for K-12 schools. School officials say the improved communication from Edline has resulted in more parental involvement and led to higher student achievement.

“Edline has had a significant impact on school to home communication,” said Trent Bahadursingh, technology services administrator at PVPUSD. “It’s really changing the culture of how our schools and community can work together. A key component of academic success has been strong parental involvement.” Two of PVPUSD’s high schools are listed in the US News & World Report's Top 100 “Gold Medal” High Schools in America, and many of the district’s elementary and intermediate schools have been recognized as California Distinguished Schools.

Studies have shown that an involved parent results in an excelling student. “Edline really helped our family through a rough period,” said Julie Robinson, a mother of two boys. “When my one son turned apathetic toward school three years ago, Edline allowed me to check his homework assignments daily to make sure he was turning them in.” The opportunity to catch a problem early helped her son get back on track before his grades suffered too far into the school year. Now her boys—one at Palos Verdes High School, the other in Miraleste Intermediate School—check Edline regularly to manage their schedules, review homework instructions and check their grades. And with her boys attending two different schools, Robinson finds it helpful to log on to one Web site to find all the information she needs—from combined calendars to academic updates.

“There are no surprises with Edline,” said Laura Schenasi, mother of three in PVPUSD. “You get information immediately from the school and can give feedback immediately to your kids.” When her children do well, she can play her part in continuing that behavior by rewarding their successes. And she sees a greater confidence in her kids with every success they achieve. Her kids are on Edline all the time as she encourages them to be responsible in printing out their homework assignments and checking their calendars for scheduling purposes. Schenasi recognizes Edline requires additional effort for teachers as they input all of the necessary information; but in the long run she believes it results in less work for them because parents become more involved in their children’s lives with Edline.

Middle school teacher Cherish Steinbach has seen the fruits of her labor. She recalled when four students were absent from her class, they all returned the next day with completed homework thanks to the online access to their assignment. Students also have “digital lockers” where they can store data and files, easily retrieving from home what they have done at school. Steinbach sees more students being responsible about their schoolwork because they have all the information they need whenever and wherever there’s Internet access. Steinbach noticed students are more motivated once she updates their grades online, especially if they score poorly on a test. “It changes their behavior in class,” Steinbach said. “They tend to ask more questions in class and seek help after class.”

Steinbach also likes the ability to communicate with parents via e-mail. She said, “In the past, during conference time, parents experienced a lot of panic when they found out their child wasn’t doing well in school.” She now is able to address the problem right after a grade is posted. “It allows parents a more active role more regularly sharing the responsibility with their child's teacher.”

An estimated 17,700 users are online with Edline this school year in PVPUSD. The number of teachers, parents, students and administrators has steadily increased since Edline’s inception four years ago. In schools across the country, high Edline usage rates have shown high student achievement; so PVPUSD believes the web-based technology will continue to play an important role in its school culture and success.