Incredible Years Chapter 14

Partnering with Parents

There is evidence that parent involvement in childrens learning and
the quality of parent-school interactions have positive effects on
childrens academic achievement, social competence and school
engagement. Schools are finding that they can best serve the needs
to their students by becoming more family-centred and more
focussed on students emotional and social needs as well as
academics. Often, home-school partnerships are fragile and it can
be hard for teachers to encourage and form partnerships with
parents and parents do not always participate even when they are
encouraged to do so. A barrier to parent involvement in childrens
school is misunderstandings between teachers and parents. Schools
can best serve the needs of their students by becoming more
family-centred. Working collaboratively with parents to effectively
problem-solve a challenging academic or behavioural issue takes
specialised interpersonal skills.
When teachers take the time to build up a positive relationship,
parents realise how much teachers are invested in their childs
learning. Teachers should take every opportunity to show families
they care. Students flourish when parents are involved in their
schooling and teachers will find that positive relationships with
parents are crucial in the event that there is a behavioural or
academic concern that needs parental involvement or input.
The ideal relationship between the teacher and parent is based on a
collaborative partnership. This implies a reciprocal relationship that
uses the teachers and parents knowledge, strengths, culture and
perspectives and considers them of equal importance. Involving
parents, particularly with difficult children, may help teachers
discover there are family factors that have a bearing on the childs

misbehaviours. Leaving a meeting too long may anger parents that

they havent been informed about the problem sooner.
Collaborative problem-solving will be most effective when teachers
focus on positive behavioural goals for children rather than
focussing on the problem behaviour that is occurring. It is
important to focus on fixing the problem not the blame. It is
important to maintain a professional and respectful attitude and not
to react defensively or angrily otherwise the cycle of criticisms will
continue. Teachers need to recognise that theyre dealing with a
parent who may be highly distraught about their child. Once the
issue or problem has been discussed and both the parent and
teacher feel they have expressed their views and been listened to,
the next step is for them to agree upon their common goals and to
share possible solutions. Parents need to know they are dealing with
a confident teacher who has the ability to handle the situation and
to work together with them and with their child to teach him or her
alternative prosocial behaviours.
Involving parents in the childs education is a process that is
demanding and time-consuming, sometimes frustrating and often
rewarding. The value of this approach for the childrens social,
emotional and academic growth cannot be underestimated. In long
run this commitment to work with parents may actually save time as
it can lead to more positive relationships with students, less
stressful classrooms and more support for both teachers and the
family.