Parent-teacher association

“ In certain forms of experience indeed, it is claimed by the school that the instruction should be given by the parent rather than by the teacher. In questions of morals and manners, the natural tie which unites child and parent will undoubtedly enable much of the necessary instruction to be given more effectively in the home. It is often claimed, in fact, that parents now leave too much to the school and the teacher in relation to the education of the child. ”

“ Many teachers seem to imagine that if any thing is in itself important, and especially if it is an important branch of education, the question is settled of its being a proper object of attention in school. But this is very far from being the case. The whole work of education can never be intrusted to the teacher. Much must of course remain in the hands of the parent; it ought so to remain. The object of a school is not to take children out of the parental hands, substituting the watch and guardianship of a stranger for the natural care of father and mother. ”

“ In every case—even of discipline—he is bound to follow the command and the example given him by his Father and Master in heaven, not to chastise his offspring for his "own pleasure," but for the "child's profit." The rule therefore which ought to regulate the parent, and of course the Educationist, in making choice of the subjects and exercises for the school, is, that they shall really and permanently conduce to the pupil's welfare and happiness, irrespective of the conflicting interests or wishes, either of the teacher, the parent, or the public. ”

“ Parents and teachers, both desiring spiritual results, can find means of co-operation. Parent-teacher clubs and associations have done much to bring the home and the school together. Meeting regularly in the evening, so that fathers, too, can attend, gives opportunity to work out a common understanding to raise the spiritual aims of the school, and to discover means by which the families may aid in securing better conditions for school work. ”

“ It is laid down as a fundamental principle, that as the common schools are not boarding but day schools, and as the pupils are under the care of their parents or guardians during the Sunday, and a considerable portion of each week day, it is not intended that the functions of the common school teacher should supersede those of the parent and pastor of the child. ”

“ For this purpose, repair to the school-room on the first day at an early hour, so as to see and become acquainted with the scholars as they come in one by one. The intercourse between teacher and pupil should be like that between parents and children, where the utmost freedom is united with the most perfect respect. The father who is most firm and decisive in his family government can mingle most freely in the conversation and sports of his children without any derogation of his authority, or diminution of the respect they owe. ”

“ Parents later wonder where children have picked up their strange ideals and their surprising standards. Not a few of the roots of later conflict can be traced back to the earlier years, when children find themselves in schools wholly without parental co-operation and flung at amusements bound to have a disorganizing [Pg 17] effect upon their lives. While parents must accept the co-operation of the school, the latter cannot be a substitute for the home nor the teacher a substitute for the parent. The school cannot operate in the place of the home, though it may co-operate with it. ”

“ We all hope that the classes will be made smaller, but they never can be small enough, within our own times, for the purpose of really effective moral training. The relations between teacher and pupil can never be as intimate as are those of parent and child. The teacher knows the child, as a rule, only as a member of a group and under special circumstances; the parents alone have the opportunity to know closely the individual peculiarities of the child ”

“ But, when the infant leaves the lap of its mother, and other duties divide her care, it is then necessary that a teacher, equally affectionate and equally efficient, be provided; for children seek, and will find, teachers of good or of evil in every scene, and in every playmate. It is now that the Infant School must mature the education which the mother has, or ought to have, begun. ”

“ In any realistic sense, students within the school environment have a lesser expectation of privacy than members of the population generally. They spend the school hours in close association with each other, both in the classroom and during recreation periods. The students in a particular class often know each other and their teachers quite well. Of necessity, teachers have a degree of familiarity with, and authority over, their students that is unparalleled except perhaps in the relationship between parent and child. ”

“ We've known for a long time now that students do better in school and later in life when their parents are more actively involved in their learning. But over the years, parent involvement often has meant mothers' involvement. This assumption misses the importance of fathers. Research now confirms that involvement of both parents in a child's education makes a positive difference, and that father involvement during infancy and early childhood also contributes to a child's emotional security and enhances problemsolving in math and verbal skills. ”

“ All professions find the advantage of meeting together to discuss their special problems. There is the Teachers’ Guild on the one hand, and a Parents’ Educational Union on the other. I have tried in vain to bring these together here. The guild is too professional for the parent; it does seem, however, as if the newly-established Child Study Society might unite both. A fair number have joined the child study evenings and given valuable help. ”

“ If he goes to a private school, she can very often arrange matters so that he need only attend the morning session, and never be "kept in," after hours, for punishment. She can help him with the studies which he brings home, and take great pains never to scold him, or show displeasure, or disappointment, if he gets bad marks. She can explain to him that while it is only natural for a school-teacher to attach an exaggerated importance to the training of the brain, mothers and fathers care a great deal more about deeper and finer interests and the right kind of conduct. ”

“ If teachers would inculcate a deeper reverence for parental authority, studiously placing the authority of the parents above their own, (from which it is in truth derived) the parents would in return, I believe, support the teacher's authority more carefully than they are apt to do. It is a great point in any school to enlist the sympathy and support of the parents. I strongly object to the practice of many schools in fining the parents for the non-attendance of the children, for surely the parents have a perfect right to their children's services whenever they require them ”

“ There are then, it must be recollected, three different parties connected with every establishment for education: the parents of the scholars, the teacher, and the pupils themselves. Sometimes, as, for example, in a common private school, the parents are not organized, and whatever influence they exert they must exert in their individual capacity. At other times, as in a common district or town school, they are by law organized, and the school committee chosen for this purpose are their legal representatives. ”

“ The boards work in communities where demographic patterns change, where they must meet traditional learning goals, where they must attract and retain effective teachers, where they should (and will) take account of parents' views and maintain their commitment to public school education, where they must adapt to court intervention, where they must encourage voluntary student and parent action—where they will find that their own good faith, their knowledge, and their understanding of local circumstances are always necessary but often insufficient to solve the problems at hand. ”

“ Most parents will be glad to coöperate with the teacher and soon the child will be happy and contented. Whenever the teacher can not enlist the coöperation of the parents she must do the next best thing. ”

“ A parish in which all pull together is perhaps as rare as a school in which every child truly desires to learn. Yet neither is beyond the possibilities. To keep each family in a proper attitude toward these community institutions is part of the homemaker's work—and a delicate task it often is. It is not enough for a mother to adopt a cast-iron policy of indiscriminate approval of pastor or teacher, although that is often recommended. Do you remember your resentment as a child of the inflexible judgment "The teacher must be right"? ”

“ The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001, which I signed into law in January 2002, requires that, by the end of the 2005- 06 school year, there must be a "highly qualified" teacher in every classroom. Through this new law, States and school districts will have multiple tools to help them meet the new teacher quality requirements. ”

“ A bringing together of the home and the school, thus conducing to a better acquaintance between the parents and the teachers; giving to the teacher a better knowledge of the child's home influences and surroundings, thus enabling him to exercise a more intelligent care over the development of the child's moral character; giving to the parents a better insight and new interest in the schools and their management, with an overflowing of the moral influence of school training into homes where intelligent discipline is unknown ”

“ Primary and secondary schools and kindergartens may, in light of the characteristics of minors at different ages, regularly organize guidance service activities and practice on family education for the public good, and promptly inform and urge the parents or other guardians of minors to participate. ”

“ Such compact shall— `` (1) describe the school's responsibility to provide high-quality curriculum and instruction in a supportive and effective learning environment that enables the children served under this part to meet the State's student academic achievement standards, and the ways in which each parent will be responsible for supporting their children's learning, such as monitoring attendance, homework completion, and television watching; volunteering in their child's classroom ”

“ Educate America Act embraces the importance of parental involvement in the learning process, recognizing that family participation encourages children to value scholarship and to adopt strong values. Character education programs can increase school performance as well, and the Improving America's Schools Act promotes such initiatives. ”

“ Parents should take interest in the school work; ask to see the written work; get to know the teachers and friends of their children; attend lectures, if possible, and supplement school lessons by home reading; perhaps join some common society, e.g., Teachers’ Guild, Parents’ Educational Union, or Child Study Society. ”

“ The kindergarten is unimpeachable in aims, if not methods. Public schools, in general, are something to be proud of. But the kindergarten is limited in its mission without family co-operation, and "the public school accomplishes but little, except when it supplements the intellectual life of the home." Perhaps the latest assumption of family functions in the school line is seen in the establishment of parental schools for incorrigibles, usually under the care of school boards. ”

“ As parents, teachers, and advocates, we recommit to ensuring that all children in America have a meaningful opportunity to harness their full potential.
Parents and guardians are the best advocates for their children's success. Through engagement with teachers and local school boards, parents have the power to shape their children's education. ”

“ Now this past week, I had the opportunity to sign into law the elementary and secondary education act. That bill says that while the National Government will set the standards and help to develop the measurements of whether schools are meeting them, it is fundamentally the responsibility of people at the grassroots to make sure those standards are met. We are encouraging what we know is the true magic of education, that which occurs between teacher and student, with the help of parents and principals and communities. ”

“ To assist State educational agencies, local educational agencies, community-based organizations, schools, and educators in strengthening partnerships among parents, teachers, school leaders, administrators, and other school personnel in meeting the educational needs of children and fostering greater parental engagement. ”

“ Parental Involvement.—Each State plan shall describe how the State educational agency will support the collection and dissemination to local educational agencies and schools of effective parental involvement practices. Such practices shall— `` (1) be based on the most current research that meets the highest professional and technical standards, on effective parental involvement that fosters achievement to high standards for all children; and `` (2) be geared toward lowering barriers to greater participation by parents in school planning, review, and improvement experienced. ”

“ Sometimes first grade pupils choose to be absent from school for a day and often for several days. When the teacher goes to find out the cause, she learns that the pupil is afraid of the teacher, does not like to study, or there is some similar reason, and he has begged to remain at home. The parents have consented to the request. It is then the teacher’s duty to assure the parents that she will do all she can to win the child to the school. Her visit often stops the truancy if the teacher shows that kindly and courteous disposition that all teachers should possess. ”

“ But short of this extreme point, there is almost no amount of faith that children can have in their teacher, that, if well founded, is not of the highest advantage. Seeing the firm, assured tread of father or mother, or of an older brother or sister, is a great aid to the tottering little one in putting forth its own steps while learning to walk. So the child is emboldened to send out its young, unpractised thoughts, by the confidence it has in the guidance and protection of its teacher. ”