Training Guides for the Head Start Learning Community:
Community Partnerships
Module 1
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| Contents | Preface
| Introduction
| Module 1
| Module 2
| Module 3
| Module 4 | |
Practicing the Collaborative Process
Handout 2: A Call for Action
Overview
A call for action is an issue, problem, concern, or need that ignites people to act. Four sample calls for action are described in the following scenarios. Which call for action would you like to be part of?
Call for Action #1
Alcohol, tobacco, and illicit drug use is a problem you see far too often in your community and in your work with families. Alcohol and cigarettes are readily available to teens and children. Many teen and young mothers you know smoke during pregnancy and around their children. Many families you know are worried about the drug dealing that plagues their neighborhood. Many are so worried that they are afraid to allow their children to play outside. Moreover, you're hearing from more parents each day about alcohol and drug abuse occurring within their own families and its shattering impact on family life. You want something done about the problem!
Call for Action #2
Your Head Start program has had an enrollment waiting list of at least 50 children for each of the past three years. You expect the waiting list to reach a total of at least 100 this year because of the recent work requirements placed on parents. Other child-care programs in your community also have long waiting lists. You believe that many children are being left with older siblings or babysitters who are not equipped to care for them. You're aware of some possible sources of funding for expanding Head Start and other child-care programs. But there seem to be no suitable sites for the centers in the neediest neighborhoods. You want high-quality, early childhood educational programs for every child in your community!
Call for Action #3
Your Head Start program is trying to help families with the transition from the Head Start program into the local elementary schools. Some of your troubling issues are overcrowded kindergarten classes, gaps in special education resources, and the lack of responsiveness on the part of community service providers to the diverse languages and cultures of Head Start families. As a result, you see many children and families losing the gains they made at Head Start; the supportive educational and social environment, which Head Start provided, is now missing in their lives. Even parents who were very involved in Head Start are finding the transition difficult; many have come back to tell you that the role of parents in elementary school is limited to fund-raising, or that teachers have little or no time to meet with them. You want the situation to change!
Call for Action #4
Your Head Start program received a grant last year from a local foundation to purchase computers for staff offices and children's classrooms. Most of the time the computers go unused. Numerous opportunities for staff, teachers, and parents to learn about computer use and educational software have come up, but almost no one has shown interest. You want to see your Head Start program be part of the exciting technological wave of the future with staff benefitting from computer-generated reports, video-conferencing, and distance learning. Moreover, you want the world of computers and the Internet opened for Head Start children and families. You are ready to act!
Copyright © 1998 Head Start Publications Management Center
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