A very novel approach to education used in the US at the four Briya Public Charter Schools is that of “dual-generation” education, where children are enrolled as well as offering their parents a range of programs (English as a Second Language, parent coaching or workforce development classes). As this article from the NYTimes explains “children’s success is tightly intertwined with their families’ stability (and we know it is), and families do better when they have access to nutrition, health care and economic opportunity, why not address all of these needs together?”. The schools also helped more than 200 families get some basic services, including internet access, daily live online instructions and contacted families twice a week to check if they needed help getting food, health care, housing assistance etc. While the harsh situation of these families has now been extended to non-immigrants, the example of the services has been shared as best practices to help others. The results in turning children with low scores across basic subjects, “almost all leave at or above end-of-year expectations — that is, ready for kindergarten”. Turning schools into a social service delivery centre is a challenge, but one that seems to be working.
nytimes.com/2021/04/02/opinion/coronavirus-school-children-parents.html