The role of parents in special education: the notion of partnership revised

ABSTRACT

While parents' role in schools has attracted growing attention in educational research, very few researchers have directed any interest to the role of parents in special education. In this paper, we focus upon the concept of partnership, relating our analyses of interviews with classroom teachers and parents to the notion of partnership as described and explored by different researchers. Our main focus is on how teachers describe and perceive their relation to parents, and how parents experience their relation to the school. Our analysis shows that the relationship between teachers and parents seems to contain some other features than those reflected in the existing literature on parents’ role in education. To extract some of these features based on our data, we construct two roles: parents as ‘implementers’ and parents as ‘clients’, which we believe better captures the distinctive feature of the role of parents in special education. ‘Implementer’ implies parents being given responsibility for following up aims and measures set by the school, with very little possibility to influence how things are being done. ‘Clients’ occur when teachers see parents as part of their child's problem. Both roles place parents in a subordinate and powerless relationship with the school, as a result of a strong inequality of power between parents and schools. This inequality is caused, among other factors, by the socially defined power relationship between laypersons and professionals, and the stigma attached to special education which restrains parents from forming any collective resistance.     

择校意愿的心理机制-义务教育服务满意度模型与实证研究

本研究首先根据满意度理论提出义务教育满意度的假设模型,然后在分析义务教育阶段学生家长教育满意度的评价及择校意愿的数据基础上,采用模型检验方法对义务教育满意度模型进行验证,最后分析了满意度对择校意愿的影响程度以及不同的人口学变量对满意度的影响。研究结果表明,义务教育阶段家长教育满意度评价是影响家长择校意愿的心理变量,尽管家长是否最终做出择校行为还会受到其他因素的影响,但是家长对政府和教师的满意度评价是具有显著作用的预测因素,学历、职业等人口学变量影响家长的满意度,作者在研究结果的基础上提出了相应的管理建议。     

Parental Priorities in the Selection of International Schools

The issue of choice of schooling for their offspring is one which exercises many parents based in different parts of the world. For parents whose employment takes them away from their home country and whose children accompany them on such postings, the issue—while different from the experience of parents based solely within national systems—is no less important or complex. This paper investigates the issue of parental choice and priorities within the context of three international schools in Switzerland, where a study was undertaken to establish the basis on which parents had elected to send their children to one or other of the schools in question. Based on a survey model of questionnaires and follow-up interviews with parents, the research concludes that a major factor influencing parents is the perceived importance of an English-medium education. Interesting similarities in perceptions to emerge from the study are found amongst parents from the different schools and amongst parents of primary and secondary age children, while differences in perceived levels of importance clearly emerge between fathers and mothers, and between parents from different geographical backgrounds. The paper suggests some preliminary explanations for such differences, and highlights areas which could form the basis for further pieces of research in this growing and increasingly important context.     

Crisis intervention: Facilitating parental acceptance of a child's handicap

School psychologists consult with parents on many issues. One frequent task involves informing parents that their child is handicapped. The diagnosis of a handicap can bring on a situational life crisis for parents. This paper discusses various adjustment reactions displayed by some parents in the process of crisis resolution. Implications for the school psychologist's role with parents of exceptional children are presented within a crisis intervention framework.     

Behavioral intervention strategies with child abusive parents: A home intervention program

This article describes a therapeutic program for child abusive parents that is psychoeducationally based and is conducted through home visits by trained behavioral interventionists. The immediate goals of the intervention are to teach abusive parents effective child management procedures based on social learning therapy and to modify faulty or excessive expectations these parents have toward the behavior of their children. The general model is discussed as well as criteria for selection of parents for home intervention services, the differences between home intervention with abusive and non-abusive parents and the procedures used in home intervention services. A general discussion is also provided of the various goals and stages through which parents progress.     

Parental Participation: Essential Partners in Guidance

The relationship between parents and schools has in recent years been a controversial and contradictory one. Here Barrie Irving discusses one dimension that impinges on this relationship—vocational guidance—and how interactions between teachers and parents could be made more productive, particularly from the perspective of parents. Having suggested that often the interchange of information and ideas is limited by the attitudes and perceived interests of both schools and parents, Irving goes on to focus on a particular issue, the fact that although parents are given information about their children, they are rarely if ever given the means to develop on this.     

家长教育培训研究：从家庭教育到家长教育（上）

家长教育培训是关系到国民素质提高的一个重要领域。家长教育培训活动是根植于社区教育的民众性的教育培训活动。家长教育培训活动的资格性及专业性的发展将成为我国终身教育体系中的一个重要组成部分。文章对家长教育的基本理论问题进行了分析和论述,并提出了家长教育培训活动未来发展的方向和前景。     

An instructional guide for reducing the stress of hearing parents of hearing-impaired children

The impact of a self-instructional program to reduce stress levels of parents of hearing-impaired children is examined. Fifty parents with hearing-impaired children were randomly assigned to one of two groups: Participating Parents, who received a Self-Instructional Parent Program (SIPP); and Non-participating Parents, who received no such program. Findings indicate that the participating parents did not experience significant decreases in their stress levels or in the perceived incidence of misbehavior in their children in comparison with non-participating parents. Participating parents, however, reported a decrease in their children's misbehavior; non-participating parents noted an increase. Additionally, the findings also associated increasing stress on the part of parents with parental perceptions of burgeoning misbehavior on the part of the child.     

中学生父母教养方式、应对方式与学业成绩的关系研究

文章采用父母教养方式量表和中学生应对方式量表对300名中学生进行问卷调查,研究了父母教养方式对中学生应对方式形成的影响,以及父母教养方式、应对方式与学业成绩之间的关系,结果肯定了父母教养方式对应对方式形成的重要影响。     

基于问题学习的家长教育指导模式

以学校为主导的家长教育指导模式是以家庭教育知识呈现为主的单向指导模式,缺乏指导的深度和实效,而基于问题学习的家长教育指导模式可以有效弥补现行指导模式在内容、方法等方面的不足。在基于问题学习的家长教育指导模式中,指导者创设一定的认知冲突情境,并对问题情境进行导引,指导者与家长、家长与家长互动探究,可以有效满足家长的个性化需求,并促进先进理念的内化,有利于指导工作的调整和改进,使家长形成可持续发展的学习能力。这种模式的有效实施必须以调查研究为基础,将鼓励启发、双向互动和指导与自我教育相结合,其具体实施步骤包括指导的先行组织、冲突情境的创设、指导者的引导、家长的总结反思等几个方面。     

Book reviews

This paper explores the relationship between parents and schools. Over the last 30 years the importance attached to parents’ views on education has increased significantly throughout the Western world. Policy‐makers encourage parental participation and involvement through the creation of councils in which parents have a say. In Flanders in Belgium in 2004 a new participation law was passed. We study the impact of this law on the micropolitical relations between parents, school heads and teachers. We conducted in‐depth interviews with teachers, parents, school heads and members of the organizing body in four primary schools and observed parents’ gatherings. Starting from the partnership–conflict opposition, we focus on the functioning of the parents’ associations and the way parents’ associations, school heads and teachers are dealing with this new law. We found that the parent–school relationship differs greatly from school to school. While the socio‐economic middle class predominates in the four parents’ associations, the results show that parental empowerment is enhanced only in those schools with mainly socio‐economically weak families.     

Polish Migrant Parents of Secondary School Boys in the United Kingdom

This article focuses on the parents of secondary school Polish boys and their capacity to realise their educational and professional aspirations for their children. Our primary finding is that although many Polish parents face considerable challenges in manoeuvring through the educational system, some Polish parents display a level of agency comparable to that of white, British middle-class parents.     

Parental Participation: Essential Partners in Guidance

The relationship between parents and schools has in recent years been a controversial and contradictory one. Here Barrie Irving discusses one dimension that impinges on this relationship—vocational guidance—and how interactions between teachers and parents could be made more productive, particularly from the perspective of parents. Having suggested that often the interchange of information and ideas is limited by the attitudes and perceived interests of both schools and parents, Irving goes on to focus on a particular issue, the fact that although parents are given information about their children, they are rarely if ever given the means to develop on this.     

Knowledge and perceived social norm predict parents’ attitudes towards inclusive education

Parents are key stakeholders in education and their support is pivotal to policy implementation. Through a large-scale survey, the present study investigated the validity of a structural model describing the relationship between attitude, knowledge, and perceived social norm among parents of children with special needs. Results revealed that knowledge and perceived social norm were powerful predictors of parents’ attitudes towards inclusion and the two predictors were intercorrelated. Exploratory analyses on the effect of demographic variables on parents’ attitudes demonstrated that male parents exhibited more positive attitudes towards inclusion than female parents; and parents of children at a higher grade level indicated less positive attitudes. Cultural issues of parents’ concerns about inclusive practice are discussed.     

Preschool selection considerations and experiences of school mistreatment among lesbian,gay, and heterosexual adoptive parents

The current study is the first to investigate the school selection considerations and school-related experiences of sexual-minority parents with young children. The sample consisted of 210 parents in 105 couples, including 35 lesbian couples, 30 gay male couples, and 40 heterosexual couples, all of whom had adopted a child three years earlier. We found that parents with less income were more likely to consider cost in choosing a preschool, and parents with less education were more likely to consider location. More educated parents tended to emphasize racial diversity and the presence of adoptive families, and, among sexual-minority parents, the presence of other lesbian/gay parents. Sexual-minority parents were more likely to consider racial diversity than heterosexual parents. In reporting on their experiences with schools, heterosexual parents were more likely to perceive mistreatment due to their adoptive status than sexual-minority parents, and sexual-minority parents living in less gay-friendly communities were more likely to perceive mistreatment due to their sexual orientation than sexual-minority parents living in more gay-friendly communities. Our findings have implications for early childhood educators and administrators seeking to create an inclusive learning community for all types of families.     

知青家长视角下的知识青年上山下乡运动

知青家长与知青的关系最为直接最为密切,他们的态度势必影响到上山下乡运动的广泛性与持久性,本文基于知青家长的视角,考量运动中的错综复杂的社会心态,揭示上山下乡运动走向低潮的必然性。     

Investigating Toddlers’ and Parents’ Storybook Reading During Morning Transition

This qualitative study builds on the previous body of emergent literacy research by investigating the use of storybook reading with parents during morning transition times through observation on fifteen toddlers (2- to 3-years old), their parents, and teachers in a university preschool classroom. The focus of this study is to investigate whether storybook reading with parents eases morning transitions for young children as well as fosters their literacy development. Additionally, this study seeks to understand how storybook reading with parents during morning transitions affects the partnership between parents and teachers. The findings of this study contribute to the literature showing that (1) reading a book with parents during morning transition times may provide smooth transitions, (2) it may help with direct interactions between teachers and parents and with direct parental involvement in a school setting, and (3) storybook reading with parents in class during morning transition times may lead the child to engage in independent reading.     

Parent involvement in early childhood: a comparison of English language learners and English first language families

This study evaluated parents’ communication, involvement and knowledge of their children’s abilities in reading and mathematics among parents who spoke English as a first language (EL1) and those who were English language learners (ELL). Forty‐two kindergarten‐aged children, their parents and their teachers participated in the study. Results indicated that EL1 parents communicated more frequently with the teacher than ELL parents. However, there were no language group differences in parents’ involvement in their children’s education (as rated by the teacher). For both groups of parents (EL1 and ELL), parents’ ratings of their children’s abilities in reading did not predict children’s reading scores. However, parents’ ratings of their children’s abilities in mathematics did predict their children’s mathematics scores. Further analyses indicated that this relationship was not mediated by parents’ communication or involvement. It is concluded that parents’ accurate knowledge of their children’s abilities in mathematics may be the result of their involvement at home and particularly for ELL parents, their greater understanding of and emphasis on mathematics learning.     

走向共生的家长、社区与学校合作——美国的实践及其启示

学校变革中需要关注未被充分利用的资源——家长和社区的力量,因为这种力量的引入有助于确立良好的公共信心,有助于促成变革中良性压力的形成,有助于强化学校自身的知识基础。要突破目前家长、社区与学校合作关系发展的瓶颈则是建立本质上共生互惠的合作关系。家长和社区参与不仅仅只是为了实现学校变革,同时也是为了家长自身和社区的共同发展。