What do we mean by involvement?
What do we mean by involvement?
The Act’s provisions cover three broad levels of engagement with parents. These are:Learning at home
The Act recognises the vital role that parents and other carers play in children’s learning and development. Parents are the first and ongoing educators of their own children and, as such, should receive information and support to help develop their child’s learning at home and in the community.
Home/School Partnership
The Act reflects the shared role and responsibility that schools, parents and the community have in working together to educate children. Effective home/school partnerships are essential to ensure that children get the most out of their school and their education. Working in co-operation will allow potential difficulties and opportunities to be identified at an early stage. Schools must be open to the involvement of parents in the work they do and they should consider ways of providing information that helps parents engage with the school and their children’s education.
Parental representation
The Act provides a framework for ensuring that parents have the opportunity to express their views and have these taken into account on matters affecting the education of their children, the school’s arrangements for promoting parental involvement and other matters or issues of interest to parents. It makes provision for parents to be members of the Parent Forum at a school, and to have their views represented to the school, education authority and others, through a representative Parent Council for the school.