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Dr Bridget Cooper, Reader in Education, Leeds Metropolitan University, discusses the issues of promoting parental involvement.
 A weight of research evidence suggests that parental involvement in children’s education is crucial to their success, motivation and achievement, (Deforges & Abouchaar; 2003). Evidence from neuroscience confirms the importance of human interaction in supporting the highest levels of learning. Intense and positive relationships build self-esteem, pleasure and motivation in the learning process. Teachers who have time to interact personally with students can transform their understanding of the student, demonstrating care and promoting learning.
However, many parents do this naturally and their intense positive relationships with their children from birth onwards enable their children to feel happy, confident and support their development in many different ways.
In primary schools, teachers can support each child personally (especially in smaller classes) but more successfully if parents and school are mutually supportive. Teacher/parent relationships are crucial to allow teachers to understand the particular interests young people enjoy and any problems they may face. Similarly, when parents understand the processes in school, they can support their child’s learning. Mutually respectful communication between home and school needs to be easy, rapid and frequent but is a challenge in our busy working lives.
In secondary schools, subjects are taught by different teachers. Consequently, teachers know students less well and parents become less involved as their children develop independence. However, parents who continue to take an interest provide a bedrock of support, valuing and celebrating their children’s achievements and maintaining care when the stresses of examinations and the teenage years create their inevitable challenges. High quality communication overcomes problems and supports positive developments.
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When parents, children and schools keep talking, development continues apace. |
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Virtual interaction, alongside face-to-face and telephone communication can be very helpful, enabling teachers, parents and students to work together and share more understanding about the learning process. When students and parents can access the school community at any time from home and vice versa, then understanding can be supported for everyone. When staff realise a child has suffered a bereavement, for example, they can respond sensitively. When parents have access to the curriculum and see their child studying online at home, they can be more supportive. Children who achieve highly have the best support from home and school, working in tandem.
Virtual learning environments enable school and homes to link through the web. The quality of this complex software is crucial to its success, which is why colleagues and I have worked over several years with Frog to develop a more user-friendly electronic learning environment. This enables teachers, students and parents to easily create, share and discuss learning resources, understand each others’ perspectives and ultimately support children’s learning.
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July 2010
May 2010
March 2010
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FrogTrade Ltd
Dean Clough
Halifax
West Yorkshire
HX3 5AX
T: 01422 250 800
F: 01422 354 232
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