L’innovation dans la collaboration L’innovation dans la collaboration école/communauté école/communauté

Innovation in School-Community Innovation in School-Community Collaboration Collaboration

Francis Gagnon1,3

Angèle Bilodeau2

Jean Bélanger1

Nathalie Lussier1,3

(1) Université du Québec à Montréal(2) Université de Montréal(3) Programme de formation stratégique en recherche en santé publique et en santé des populations

IntroductionIntroduction

• CONTEXT: There is a call for additional innovation and collaboration between school and communities to: – Mobilize knowledge and resources from a variety of

sectors– Respond in a different way to academic failures and

health inequalities in underprivileged neighborhoods

• RESEARCH QUESTION: Through what arrangements do schools and communities innovate to help children succeed in primary school?

Methods (1) Methods (1)

• Comparative analysis of two socio-economically underprivileged Montreal communities:– A ‘concerted’* community, that benefits from a

program supporting local and collective action– A ‘non-concerted’ community

*A concerted community is one with structures through which community members consult each other on planning and collaborate on actions

Methods (2)Methods (2)

• Data sources:– Individual and group interviews • Eight community partners• Eight school administrations• Thirty-two teachers• Two coordinators of homework help service

– Official documents from schools and partners• Conceptual framework: sociology of

innovation• Analytical method: Miles and Huberman• Validation of various cases with participants

ResultsResults

• We found 3 models of arrangements:

– 1. In the two communities: school/community collaborations in response to basic needs related to health, diet, social work, sports and leisure

– 2. In the concerted community: school/community collaborations on academic and family support for homework

– 3. In the non-concerted community: collaborations among school staff to offer homework assistance to childrens

ArrangementsArrangementsActivated mechanismsActivated mechanisms

School-community

network

Social/material support

Meeting basic needs

c

Coordination: Information exchange, case referral,

access to clientele and to infrastructure

Interactions improve access to existing services but do not change practices

1

School-community network

Community-based interventions for

academic coaching of children

Support for coaching parents

Children’s Skills: academic, socio-affective, instrumental

Parent’s Skillsin supervising homework

ArrangementsArrangementsActivated mechanismsActivated mechanisms

i

Innovation in union of school-community knowledge and resources, and change in practices :Community organization (CO) services integrated into the school’s educational planCO’s knowledge regarding Parents and Community is used by the school and teachersSchool support for CO: selection, access to premises, pedagogic adviceCO improves relationship between parents and school

2In concerted community

In concerted community

Network of school staff

Institutional homework help

After-school activities

Children’s academic skills

Extracurricular parental participation

ArrangementsArrangementsActivated mechanismsActivated mechanisms3

c

Coordination: Referral of students to homework

helpOrganization of extracurricular

activities

In non concerted community

In non concerted community

ConclusionConclusion

Of the two communities studied, the concerted community

led to actions that are

more synergisticand cover more determining factors

than did the non-concerted community

AcknowledgementsAcknowledgements

This research was made possible by the financial support of : – Fonds québécois de recherche sur la société et la

culture - Programme des actions concertées (#2003-PRS-94357) as well as by its program of doctoral scholarships.

– Programme de formation stratégique en recherche en santé publique et en santé des populations(ISPP-ISPS/ IRSC and Réseau de recherche en santé des populations du Québec).