By Julie Di Noto
Administration Officer
Catholic School Parents Victoria
Family Engagement Consultant

Recently I attended a family engagement in learning seminar with Dr Tim Moore, Senior Research Fellow at the Centre for Community Child Health, Murdoch Children's Research Institute. Dr Moore explored and led a conversation regarding relationships for learning and the brain science associated with this. He addressed the nature and role of relationships at the heart of effective practice. Some clear messages were:

• there needs to be intentional practice regarding the building of relationships

• the importance of schools collaborating with parents in co-designing, co-managing and co-evaluating services is evident

• relationships are central to wellbeing and face to face contact has the most impact

• relationships are the medium through which teachers can drive learning

• research indicates that positive relationships lead to better outcomes, however they are a necessary but not sufficent condition

To further explore the neurobiology of relationships:                                               

Moore, T.G. (2017). Authentic engagement: The nature and role of the relationship at the heart of effective practice. Keynote address at ARACY Parent Engagement Conference ~ Maximising every child’s potential ~ Melbourne, 7th June.