Parent’s participation in the education of their children and in the school's educational policy

Abstract

Introduction. The discourse that has unfolded recently about the future of the school, about the difficult relationship between the school and the parents of students, about the difficulties of introducing state-public administration has led to the need for a scientific understanding of the position of modern parents regarding the education of their own child and in the broader context of their participation in educational policy. The main goal of this theoretical article is to analyze the current features of the interaction between school and family and to build a comprehensive model for the participation of parents in the education of their children and in the educational policy of the school. Methodology and methods. The study refers to the comparative analysis and generalization of the results of the specialized and comprehensive scientific data, dedicated to the problems of parental positions in mutual relations with the school. Methodology of research composed of complex approach, detailed and subjective approaches, semantic analysis of central points, synthesis of positions and partial models, proposed different researchers. Results and scientific novelty. In the course of the work, studies were analyzed on the problems of interaction between parents and schools, the concepts of “parental involvement/participation”, “educational policy and its subjects”. The created model reveals the personal and institutional aspects of parental participation, taking into account the different levels of subjectivity of the participants in the interaction. The novelty of the proposed model lies in the fact that it compares two types of participation: participation in the construction of the child's educational space and participation in the educational policy of the school. At the same time, three groups of factors are identified that determine the nature of participation: “subjects” of participation or interest of parents, based on their idea of the quality of education; communication channels, ways of interaction between educational subjects; socio-psychological “motivators” for participation. Practical significance. The resulting model allows the school to purposefully adjust the processes of interaction with parents. The model also serves as the basis for empirical research to identify the conditions for effective family-school cooperation and its impact on the child's school well-being and educational achievement.