Education Advisory

Education Advisory #11, Feb. 1982 was a handbook on

PARENT CONSULTATIVE COMMITTEES.

[This material is from pages 6/7 of that issue 25 years ago. Comments and feedback are invited. Are these definitions and models applicable to 2007 experiences? TA]

The main ingredient of effective parent consultative committees is the quality of communication and consultation between home and school. The name of the group, whether called parent consultative committee, parent advisory council, home-school committee, liaison committee, or whatever, does not matter.

However, if the group is largely a fund-raising group, a “tea and cookies” auxiliary, a booster club, social committee, special interest group, or principal’s ”rubber stamp”, it is not a parent consultative group in the generic sense.

Parents are legally responsible for their children’s education. Free public schools exist to help parents in this duty, but parents are not limited to this choice alone. Other options include private schools and home education.

This chart shows different styles and degrees of parent involvement in the education of their children. It can help parents examine their own view of child-raising and assist in better choosing an educational setting to match family and child needs.

Further, this chart should also be useful in helping parents and schools negotiate which type of home-school relationship suits them best.

1. MEDICAL MODEL

• no parent involvement
• receive reports
• leave it to “experts”
• view child as “empty vessel” to be filled, or medical case to be “fixed”
• created dependencies on experts, professionals

2. PASSIVE MODEL

• parents attend events, sports, fund-raising, Meet the Teacher Night
• receive reports, attend parent-teacher conferences
• little parent feed-back invited
• see child as needing support, encouragement from home, but largely, “leave education to the school”

3. CONSULTATIVE MODEL

• parents consulted on pertinent matters
• parents have some influence on decisions via feed-back, consultation, suggestions
• child seen as needing active encouragment and informed guidance
• parent education

4. PARTNERSHIP MODEL

• parents part of a mutually supportive relationship, including students
• education seen as partnership between parents, teachers, students
• student an important “worker” in education
• view people as having some control over lives
• parents as co-educators
• professional development about education for parents

5. SCHOOL-SITE MANAGEMENT

• school constituents influence decisions
• parent group and teacher committees have important influence on school decisions–staffing, budgets, etc.
• collaboration
• joint council (School Improvement, School Effectiveness, School Responsiveness Council) affects most decisions

6. SHARED GOVERNANCE

• parent representatives part of governance
• representative council responsible for major decisions
• active negotiations on decisions at school-site
• open books on budget, policies
• major staffing, budgeting, program decisions made at school-site
• parents can initiate performance review of a teacher or principal

7. PARENT CONTROL

• private schools and parent co-op school
• parents hire staff, determine or approve curriculum
• schools reflect parent beliefs
• direct, close relationship with parents

8. HOME EDUCATION

• parents provide education at home
• use correspondence courses, computers, tutors, home-developed materials, experiences, public libraries
• home education support groups are available
• parents “grow” educationally with the child
• education tailored to the child’s needs, talents

9. COLLEGIAL MODEL

• a model being considered by tachers as a “symptom” of teachers feeling excluded from school decision-making
• by definition, excludes parents from decision-making
• colleagues, i.e., professional educators make decisions because of expertise
• also called collegial decision-making or team management
• parent role is determined by professionals, on their terms