College Bound: How it Works
Note: this entry is part of a series called “The Making of College Bound”. Click here to read the series-to-date.
Last month, we introduced you to College Bound and the Four Key Roles of Parents, the framework around which College Bound is designed. Today, we’ll explain how College Bound actually works.
College Bound inspires and guides parents — regardless of their own educational backgrounds — to do what it takes to raise a college-ready high school graduate. It is an innovative web-based program that uses short video and animation to show parents, step-by-step, in an engaging, easy-to-understand manner, how to support their children’s success.
How it works:
- Parents take free online courses and learn simple ways to help their children do well in school.
- Parents put the lessons to work and try out the new tips they learned with their children.
- Parents benefit from other parents’ experiences and share their stories with other parents online.
The lessons consist of short, simple videos that require only a few minutes a week to watch.
For example, the Kindergarten lessons fall into six topic areas:
- The ABCs of Kindergarten learning
- Nurture a love of learning
- Learning self-control
- Partnering with your child’s teacher
- The road to reading
- Math every day
Designed for busy parents, College Bound lessons include bite-sized, practical advice that parents can immediately incorporate into their everyday lives. Watch a sample tip here:
Parents are invited into College Bound in groups and experience the program together. For example, a classroom of kindergarten parents may be enrolled together or parents affiliated with a nonprofit organization, labor union or company may enroll as a group. Dedicated coaches guide and motivate each group through the program. Parents share comments and post questions about the lessons with one another and receive encouragement from their coaches. Weekly emails and printable activities engage parents to stay on track throughout the 12-week course.
We are currently testing a beta version of College Bound for parents of Kindergarten students. Soon College Bound will expand to serve parents of children across many more grade levels.
Stay tuned! College Bound Spanish BETA is coming in early 2010.
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