Original scientific paper

Parents’ readiness to participate in classroom and school activities

Marko Jurčić ; Filozofski fakultet Sveučilišta u Zagrebu Odsjek za pedagogiju

Abstract

This study focuses on issues around and a need for a partnership between the school and the family. The theoretical section presents some academic insights and considerations about a parent-teacher partnership; the empirical section illustrates the conceptual grounds for a survey on parents’ readiness to participate in classroom and school activities, whilst the last chapter brings the findings of the survey and their interpretation. The survey results provide an insight into the relationship between the parents’ readiness to take part in classroom and school activities and the level of their education, their age and the child’s gender. Highly educated parents are more prepared to participate in classroom and school activities in comparison to parents who have a primary or secondary level of education. In accordance with another premise, there is no statistically relevant difference among the subjects in relation to the child’s gender. It has been found that parents of children attending the seventh grade of elementary school are more prepared to take part in classroom and school activities than the parents of children attending the third grade. The survey included 1,050 parents of pupils from third and seventh grades across seven elementary schools in Zagreb. The value of the survey findings is reflected in the possibilities of maintaining and further developing parents’ readiness to participate in classroom and school activities, since that represents a path towards creating optimal environments for the collaboration between parents and teachers as set by the educational partnership model, and abandoning their conventional communication model (superficial and simplified) as based on four annual meetings and monthly informational sessions.

Keywords

school and family partnership; teachers; parents; classroom and school activities

Hrčak ID:

118109

URI

https://hrcak.srce.hr/118109

Publication date:

22.12.2009.

Article data in other languages: croatian german

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