A Different Look at Parental Involvement

When educators talk about parent involvement, they often seem to send mixed messages.

On one hand, educators often all but beg for certain types of involvement. What are some of these “good” types of parental involvement?

• Bringing in items like copy paper, snacks, used books and other items needed for the function of the school, particularly in lean economic times
• Responding to phone calls and notes home about specific academic performance or behavior issues.
• Lending a hand at events often run by the school’s PTA/PTO. Some of these events might include family nights, silent auctions or book fairs, with proceeds benefitting school activities.
• Chaperoning school trips or volunteering through booster organizations for clubs, athletics or music, among other things.

These forms of volunteer work, some educators say, are what “good” parents do. And certainly, there is tremendous value in these activities, particularly in schools where budgets and staffs have been cut dramatically because of budget woes.

But there are other forms of parent involvement that, in at least some cases, school officials are less open to seeing. What are some of these forms of potentially less welcome involvement?

• Asking challenging questions about how the money that the school receives – from parent-run fundraisers and from other sources – is actually spent, and suggesting how that money might, conceivably, be spent more efficiently.
• Expressing opinions about how students should be taught – suggesting, perhaps, that students might need more hands-on activities to engage them in learning, or, in other cases, suggesting that maybe students need to spend more time on activities that encourage the memorization of basic information.
• Questioning whether after-school programs are effective and whether they are maximizing students’ potential to learn and explore new activities.
• Asking difficult questions about teacher performance, including how teachers who are struggling are supported at the school – and what happens if the teacher does not improve.
• Advocating for increased differentiation of instruction, so that all students can have their needs met within the classroom – whether they are two or more grade levels behind, or two or more grade levels ahead.
• Questioning student discipline policies, including situations where some students are punished, while others are allowed to break rules without consequences.

Parents should, of course, support the school their child attends. And teachers need to be respected and honored for the hard work that they do each day.

But supporting public education – at the school level and beyond-- does not mean merely serving as a cheerleader or booster, who blindly follows the school administration or parent organization’s lead. Instead, it means thinking critically about how the school is performing. Without that respectful but critical eye, many schools are unlikely to improve.