Parent-teacher Relationships Research Articles

'Somali parents feel like they're on the outer': Somali mothers' experiences of parent-teacher relationships for their autistic children.

Good relationships between parents and schools can improve autistic children's school success. There are many reasons why families from different cultural backgrounds find it harder to develop good relationships with schools, such as language barriers, discrimination and unfamiliarity with education systems. We know little about what 'good relationships' look like for these families. Here, we worked with a team of autistic and non-autistic researchers as well as an Advisory Group of Somali parents to conduct interviews with 15 Somali mothers of kindergarten and school-age autistic children. We asked mothers about their experiences of their child's education, communication with teachers and what a good relationship with schools would look like. We also asked how they felt the Somali community understood autism. We looked for common things that mothers said. We found that mothers were very proud of their children. They had high expectations, particularly about what children could do by themselves. Mothers found it frustrating that teachers had low expectations, that schools were not good at communicating with them and that autism-specific skills and experience were uncommon in schools. They also reported racist attitudes towards their children. Mothers experienced stigma and lacked resources, but support was gained from their daughters and their religion. Mothers themselves were proactively increasing community awareness and knowledge about autism in the hope that they and their autistic children would be valued and better supported. Our work has implications for how teachers and schools can work together with Somali parents to forge better futures for autistic children.

Parent-pre-school teacher relations during the COVID-19 pandemic ‒ Promoters and undermining factors

The COVID-19 pandemic compelled teachers to grapple with the challenge of distance learning and remote communication with pre-school children and their parents. This study examines how student-teachers perceived their and the teacher’s relations with the pre-school children and parents during the first lockdown. The study is based on a mixed-method, quantitative and qualitative, research design among ten third-year student-teachers in Israel. 56% reported that relations with parents during the first lockdown were strengthened, which they attributed to several factors (e.g., parental desire to establish a routine and maintain the child’s connection with their friends and teacher, and a desire to advance their children). Other factors were perceived to undermine parent-teacher relations (e.g., number of siblings, busy parents, economic and emotional stress, technological illiteracy). The study underscores the importance of a holistic and ecologic approach to relations among early childhood education teachers, student-teachers, parents, and children, and the critical need for partnership and transparency between the pre-school teacher and student-teacher.

Perceived Challenges in Inclusive Education: An Exploratory Study of Primary Schools in Pakistan

Abstract This study aimed to explore the challenges perceived by teachers towards inclusive education in primary schools in Pakistan. It also highlighted the importance of parental involvement in promoting inclusive education. Despite promises, the local government seems to have failed to provide equal access to education for all children in Pakistan. Among various hindrances, negative attitudes of the public, particularly among teachers and parents towards inclusive education can be considered the most significant deterrents to inclusive education in primary schools in Pakistan. Using an exploratory qualitative research design, in-depth interviewswere conducted with primary school teachers (n = 15 selected purposively) and parents (n = 5 selected purposively) having children with special needs. Having a pre-decided inclusion criterion, schools were selected using the purposive sampling technique. The findings of the study reveal that a successful inclusive education setup requires proper comprehension of inclusive education and diversified learning needs, responsible school management, and enhanced parent-teacher relationship. Schools are recommended to conduct awareness programmes for inclusive educational setups. There is also the need for teachers’ training programmes to address the need for inclusive education in society.

Assessment of Parent-Teacher Relationships in Early Childhood Education Programs During the COVID-19 Pandemic.

Relationships between families and schools are important in the educational experiences of young children. However, the COVID-19 pandemic that began in 2019 and spread rapidly around the world disrupted many families, teachers, early childhood programs, and other child-support institutions. There is much to be learned on how this pandemic specifically affected parent-teacher relationships. This study examined whether parent, teacher and other program characteristics had an impact on early childhood parents' ratings of the quality of their relationships with teachers. Results suggest that parent's education, income, age of child, location of the center and distance learning availability, impacted how parents perceived their relationships with teachers. Supporting parents' home environments may be one effective strategy for promoting positive relationships between parents and teachers in times of challenges.

School-Based Relationships Among Children with or at Risk for Emotional and Behavioral Disorders

We investigated the influence of a teacher’s perceived emotional state (e.g., feeling emotionally exhausted; feeling accomplished) on the association between parent-teacher relationships and teacher-child conflict among young children. We used pretest data from a pilot study examining the efficacy of a socio-emotional learning intervention for children with or at risk for emotional or behavioral disorders (EBD). Twenty-six teachers and 45 children (Mean age= 7.46 years; SD = 1.21) participated in the intervention. Teachers rated their relationships with children and their parents using the Parent-Teacher Relationship Scale and Student-Teacher Relationship Scale. Multilevel models showed that teachers with a higher sense of personal accomplishment evidenced a negative association between parent-teacher relationships and teacher-child conflict. However, for teachers who felt emotionally exhausted or those who had a lower sense of personal achievement, the association between parent-teacher relationships and teacher-child conflict either remained unchanged or was positive. We conclude by discussing findings in relation to the importance of increasing teacher efficacy, reducing teacher burnout, and strengthening parent-teacher relationships in schools to improve teacher-child relationships and children’s psychosocial outcomes.

Teacher-Family Solidarity as Culturally Sustaining Pedagogy and Practice

In this research article, the authors examine the intersections of culturally sustaining pedagogy and critical family engagement to explore the possibilities for equitable family-school partnerships in urban schools. Based on the common values of trusting and caring relationships and power disruption within those fields, as well as data from a multi-year qualitative study of teachers and their relationships with students’ families, the authors introduce the framework of teacher-family solidarity. The framework challenges traditional conceptions of parent-teacher relationships, and the supporting narratives of teachers and parent/caregivers illustrate that teacher-family solidarity should become an indispensable part of culturally sustaining pedagogy and practice.

Implications of CCTV cameras on child-care centres’ routines, peer relationships, and parent–teacher relationships: child care educators’ opinions

In recent years, surveillance cameras have become common in the education system, in early childhood child-care centres as well as in preschools and schools. Public opinion regarding the usage of security cameras in early childhood institutions is constantly increasing due to a growing number of incidents exhibiting child abuse by caregivers. However, meagre attention is given to the use of security cameras in early childhood child-care centres and preschools in the literature. We examined the opinions of child care teachers and caregivers about the implications of implementing cameras in child-care centres routines and how they reshape the relationships with parents and caregivers in Israeli child-care centres. Seven semi-structured interviews were conducted with seven child care teachers and caregivers. Results show that practitioners perceive cameras as generating a disruptive effect on child care centres’ routines. CCTV cameras may create stressful situations between parents and staff, as well as among staff, raising issues of mistrust and privacy violation. However, cameras also serve as a means of establishing mutual trust and maintaining good relationships with parents. This dual impact should be addressed by policy makers and stakeholders involved, who should be aware of the overall consequences of CCTV cameras in child care centres prior to installing such systems.

Psychometric properties of a parent- and teacher-report measure for autistic children: Parent-Teacher Relationship Quality Scale (PTRQS)

Parent-teacher relationship (PTR) quality is linked to child and family-school functioning and may be especially important in the school adjustment of autistic children. However, measurement of PTR quality has been limited by inconsistency in the use of measures, a paucity of two-informant measurement, and limited psychometric consideration. We examined the psychometric properties of the Parent-Teacher Relationship Quality Scale (PTRQS), a parent- and teacher-report measure of PTR quality derived from multiple sources. Specifically, we examined the factor structure, reliability, and convergent validity of the PTRQS among parents and teachers of 192 autistic children in preschool to 2nd grade. Results supported a three-factor model, including (1) parent-perceived relationship quality, (2) teacher-perceived comfort with parent(s), and (3) teacher perceptions of parent abilities. Scores exhibited high internal consistency. As evidence of convergent validity, all three factors of PTR quality, as well as the total PTRQS score, were strongly associated with parent interview-based PTR quality, parent perceptions of teacher effectiveness, and teacher-rated parental school involvement. The two teacher-rated PTR quality factors were also associated with student-teacher relationship quality. Results indicated that (a) the measure can validly capture PTR quality in the context of preschool and early elementary-age autistic children, (b) early PTR quality is linked to parental involvement, and (c) teacher-rated PTR factors are linked to autistic students' own relationships with their teachers. The results have implications for researchers and school psychologists measuring PTR quality in their practice.

New Learning Pedagogy in the Lens of Parent-Teacher Partnerships to Aid Students At-Risks in TLE-Home Economics: An Action Plan Development

Parental involvement in a student ’s education may have a substantial impact on how well they achieve in school. The quality of a student’s parent-teacher interactions influences his or her personal growth, academic performance, and emotional well-being. During the early stages of the modular distant learning deployment, the state of the new regular education setup revealed that more pupils were in danger. TLE-Home Economics, as a topic that needs mastery of practical skills, is prone to such problems when it comes to student academic achievement. This action research was made with these goals in mind: to help at-risk students by coming up with new ways to teach from the perspective of parent-teacher relationships. The study, which is based on Vygotsky’s (1934) theoretical foundation of social constructivism, employs parent-teacher partnerships as an innovation to become a new normal pedagogy for assisting at-risk students. Using a mixed-method research design, the study focused on fifteen (15) identified low-performing Grade 10 students in TLE-Home Economics. The parents of the fifteen (15) identified at-risk students in Grade 10 serve as the main medium for a combined intervention program to academically help the students’ at-risks in TLE-Home Economics. Results revealed that, in the context of new learning pedagogy, the Parent-Teacher Partnership strategy is an effective approach to help students at-risk cope with their academic problems. The result of the remedial programs, when paired with a parent-teacher partnership approach, can help students improve their school performance. The action plan is set to guide both parents and teachers in utilizing the enhanced parent-teacher partnership strategy to reduce students’ at-risk in the new normal education set-up. Keywords: Academic performance, new normal pedagogy, Parent-Teacher Partnerships, students’ at-risks

Association Among Parent–Teacher Relationship, Autonomy Support, and Career Development of High School Students Across School Types

The parent–teacher system is influential in promoting students’ career development. Guided by the systems theory framework of career development and spillover theory, this study examined the direct association between parent–teacher relationships and high school students’ career development. Furthermore, it analyzed the indirect effect of parent–teacher relationship on career development through parents’ and teachers’ support for students’ autonomy and the moderating role of the type of school. Data analyses were conducted on 1,452 students (46.5% males) in Grade 10 (aged approximately 15–16 years) from an academically oriented high school (53.0%) and a vocational high school (47.0%) in Beijing. The students completed questionnaires on the parent–teacher relationship, parent autonomy support, teacher autonomy support, and career development. The results indicated that the parent–teacher relationship predicted career development directly as well as indirectly through parent autonomy support. Moreover, there was no difference in the results of the structural equation model analysis among students in academically oriented and vocational high schools. Last, further implications and limitations are discussed.

Longitudinal impact of parent-teacher relationship on middle school students' academic achievements in China.

ObjectiveThe study aims to discuss the longitudinal impact of the parent-teacher relationship on students’ academic achievements in China.MethodBased on the China Education Panel Survey, covering the data from 438 classes of 112 schools in 28 county-level administrative areas in China, we used the hierarchical linear model to analyze the data.ResultsWe found that the parents’ active communication with teachers, parents’ participation in parent meetings, teachers’ active contact, whether parents are afraid to communicate with teachers, and parents’ willingness to participate in parent meetings have significant relationships with students’ academic achievements. At the class level, the extent of teachers’ stress from parents’ requests and teachers’ perception of respect from parents also affected students’ academic achievements significantly in the Chinese context.ConclusionThere was a longitudinal association between the parent-teacher relationship and students’ academic achievements. The practical implication was discussed in the paper.

Teacher-Parent Relationships, Forms of Communication and Factors that Affect Them

Most parents want to be more involved in education, however, in practice, it can be challenging to achieve an effective relationship and communication between the parents and the teachers. The aim of this study is to find out whether selected demographic factors influence teachers’ views of the teacher-parent relationship and which the preferred ways of teacher-parent communication are. In this study, we processed data collected in a sample of 139 teachers of Hungarian ethnic schools (i.e. Slovak teachers working in Hungary). According to the findings hereof, teachers from urban areas perceived their relationships with the parents to be more positive than the teachers from rural areas. As gender differences, we found that female teachers preferred messages and telephone calls. As far as age differences are concerned, we found that older teachers preferred individual meetings with parents and open days. We also found that urban teachers preferred messages more than their rural colleagues. The contribution of this study lies in the fact that it provides a better understanding of the different aspects of the teacher-parent relationships and communication.

QUALITATIVE STUDY OF FACTORS INFLUENCING THE IMPLEMENTATION OF SCHOOL COMMUNITY RELATIONSHIP AMONG SECONDARY SCHOOL STAFF AND PARENTS IN IBADAN, NIGERIA

<p><strong>Background:</strong> School-community relationship is the presence of an intelligent connection between teaching instructors, school administrators, the community where the school is situated and parents. The success or failure of the school system, involving the (principals, teachers, students and parents) depends to a large extent, on the general educational environment of the communities and their value system. There is a dearth of studies on parents’ involvement in schools in Nigeria. This study was a qualitative study that investigated the factors influencing the implementation of school-community relationships among school staff and parents in Ibadan Nigeria. <strong>Methods:</strong> In-depth interviews were conducted with 49 participants (28 school staff and 21 parents). A multi-stage sampling technique was adopted to select the respondents from five (5) government-funded (public) schools and (2) private schools. Consent was obtained for the use of audiotapes, which were transcribed verbatim with a thematic analysis of data. <strong>Results:</strong> The majority of the participants (67.8%) were female school staff between the ages of 25-60 years. Most of the parents were females (90.7%) between the ages of 25-46 years. The level of knowledge of both the school staff and parents about the school-community relationship was limited. Despite their limited knowledge, both the school staff and parents had a positive attitude toward the school-community relationship, and the schools involved the parents in the school activities. However, poor communication, type of parents’ job/schedule, poor parent-teacher relationship were factors influencing the implementation of school-community relationships in the schools. <strong>Conclusion:</strong> This study emphasizes the importance of advocacy and policy changes that will enable school staff to be more receptive to parents and surrounding communities and to foster behavioural changes in both parents and school staff. Additionally, health promotion and education programs focusing on the importance of school-community relationships should be implemented among school staff.</p><p> </p><p><strong> Article visualizations:</strong></p><p><img src="/-counters-/edu_01/0555/a.php" alt="Hit counter" /></p>

Systemic vulnerability of schoolteachers: A scoping review to compare the systemic pressures faced by teachers in countries with and without a totalitarian past

Introduction. The systemic vulnerability that teachers experience is influenced from pressures arising from ecological environments originally described by Bronfenbrenner (1979). The pressure on teachers has its peculiarities in countries with a totalitarian past and without it. Regardless of cultural context, pressure effects many teachers’ ability to be comfortable with the demands of their daily tasks, and their willingness to feel proud of their profession. Therefore, identifying factors of systemic vulnerability of teachers in different contexts and levels of social environment is relevant. The aim of the study is to evaluate publications that reveal systemic factors of schoolteachers’ vulnerability with the help of Scoping review. Methodology. Initially, 4,810 publications from four databases (Scopus, ERIC EBSCO, PsycINFO, and Web of Science) were involved. At the stage of full texts’ analysis 22 articles were considered. The research presents a wide range of geographical regions, which indicates the degree of generalization in conclusions about the sources of systemic pressure on teachers in different countries. Results. In this article, for the first time, the factors of systemic vulnerability of teachers at the micro-, meso- and macro-levels of social environment are highlighted. Societal and cultural expectations are the biggest sources of pressure on the macro-level. Pressures on the macro-level may affect the micro-level, that is, for the psychological well-being of teachers, since they themselves are a part of the cultural and societal systems. This can contribute to “self-imposed” pressure by teachers that has not been the focus of research until now. Parents and the school environment are the biggest sources of pressure on teachers at the meso-level. Much of the conflict between parents and teachers is stimulated by opposing views of what a ‘good education’ means. Government overregulation of work conditions, requirement to maintain responsibilities other than teaching, pressure from administrators, insufficient levels of wages and resources of the education system, heavy school workload, insufficiently developed curriculum are sources of systemic pressure on teachers. Lack of public control over school administration’ decision-making and lack of autonomy of educational institutions correlates with political and governmental pressures. Burdensome governmental pressure whether due to reform, policy change, or cultural expectations related to political past forms the social representation of the teacher as having a low professional status, as well as social ideas about mismatch between teacher actions and the expectations of society. The great consensus of research on the sources of systemic vulnerability extends to the countries of Eastern Europe and China that were associated with totalitarianism, as well as to the countries of Western Europe with a strong democratic tradition. Since pay is a determinant of social status, the substantially lower salaries of teachers in Eastern Europe than in Western Europe may be a driving factor behind the prevailing negative perception of their status among Eastern European teachers. The lack of clear differences between factors that cause vulnerability of teachers beyond pay may be explained by the international decline of the status of the teaching profession. The limitations of this study are the lack of publications on systemic pressure on teachers at the micro-level and on pressure relief factors. Social consequences and practical significance. The policies to mitigate systemic vulnerability will need to be highly contextualized. Research questions that reveal meso- and macro-level factors can be used for re-Scoping Review, as they point to teachers' systemic vulnerability. Future work. Future research should focus on ways that parent teacher relationships can be strengthened to a point of healthy co-addiction

Preschool Parents’ Ratings of Parent-teacher Relationships. A look at the Impact of Family Demographics

Relationships between families and teachers are important quality indicators of an effective early childhood program and a child’s development indicators. Assessment of these relationships provides program administrators and policy makers insights into the effectiveness of their programs in impacting children’s and family outcomes. In this study, using the newly developed FPTRQ Measure, parents’ perceptions of parent-teacher relationships in preschool programs were assessed. The effects of parents’ demographic factors income, education, age of the child, years provider had cared for the child, and number of providers parent had worked with were also investigated. The study focused on the parent-teacher relationship components of knowledge of the family, collaboration practices, and teacher attitudes of families. Fifty one parents participated from both Head Start and center based programs. Results show that teachers generally scored higher on family knowledge and attitudes with some items in the practices element scoring fairly lower. Significant core-relationships were found in parents income, education and age of the child and parent-teacher relationship skills on collaboration, communication and commitment. Parents in low income category and of younger children reported stronger parent teacher relationships. The study suggests a need to focus on strengthening the practice component of the parent-teacher relationship, specifically communicating with parents.

Educators\u2019 experiences and perspectives of child weight discussions with parents in primary school settings

BackgroundThe role of schools in addressing rising childhood obesity levels has been acknowledged, and numerous diet- and physical activity-related interventions exist. Aside from formal interventions, opportunistic parent-educator conversations about child weight can arise, particularly in primary school settings, yet little is known about how useful these are. This study aimed to understand the utility of child weight related conversations with parents through exploring educators’ experiences and perspectives.MethodsThis qualitative study consisted of semi-structured interviews conducted with primary school teaching staff in the United Kingdom (N = 23), recruited through purposive and subsequent snowball sampling. Interviews were audio-recorded, transcribed, and analysed using thematic analysis.ResultsParticipants identified opportunities and need for child weight discussions in schools. However, conversations were prevented by the indirect and sensitive nature of conversations, and educators’ professional identity beliefs. Using pre-existing face-to-face opportunities, good parent-teacher relationships and holistic approaches to child health and wellbeing were reported as important in optimising these conversations.ConclusionsWhilst educator-parent child weight discussions are necessary, discussions are highly challenging, with contradictory views on responsibility sometimes resulting in avoidance. Educators’ roles should be clarified, and communication training tailored to increase teacher confidence and skills. Current social distancing will likely reduce opportunistic encounters, highlighting a need to further improve communication routes.

Parent and Teacher Perceptions of the Parent–Teacher Relationship and Child Self-regulation in Preschool: Variations by Child Race

Parent and Teacher Perceptions of the Parent–Teacher Relationship and Child Self-regulation in Preschool: Variations by Child Race

Physical Separation, Social Distance, and Kinship Sentiments: An Exploration of Rural Parent–Teacher Relations in China

AbstractResearch from various national contexts has shown that less privileged parents face various barriers when developing relationships with teachers compared to their more privileged counterparts. Chinese rural citizens have been disadvantaged within the hukou system, where existing studies have shown various and complex inequalities as regards rural parent–teacher relations. Such complexities, this article argues, might contribute to the ongoing discussions on the integration of Bourdieu's and Coleman's approaches to social capital. Informed by Bourdieu's three moments of field analysis, this study presents three core themes as regards Chinese rural parent–teacher relations: physical separation, social distance, and kinship sentiments. Through qualitatively exploring the life stories of a group of Chinese rural students before their entry to elite universities, this article bridges Bourdieu's social reproduction stance and Coleman's productive view in relation to social capital.

Exploring teacher–parent relationships in times of Covid-19: teachers’ expectations and parental home-schooling strategies in a Flemish context

ABSTRACT Previous research shows that the lockdown of schools due to the Covid-19 pandemic increased the already existing inequalities in education but little is known about the processes underlying these outcomes. In this study we used Bourdieu’s theories to explore how interactions between teachers’ expectations of parents and parents’ availability of cultural, social and economic capital could potentially influence educational inequalities in the context of distance education. The analysis is based on 24 qualitative interviews with parents from different social backgrounds, teachers and school coordinators, sampled from an inner-city primary school in Flanders (Belgium). The results indicate that teachers continue to have standardised expectations of the proper role that parents should perform in distance education, which were difficult for some families to meet due their availability of cultural and economic capital. However, this study suggests that teachers’ exposure to familial issues can result in teachers adapting their expectations and responses so that they are more likely to respond to the needs of parents and students in the field of distance education.

Collaborative learning intervention associated with small increases in home-based school involvement for lower SES families in deprived neighbourhoods

ABSTRACT This study investigated the impact of the Dutch family-oriented Collaborative Learning intervention, characterised by a partnership approach and provision of personalised support. We assessed effects on parents’ home-based school involvement, perceived quality of the parent-teacher relationship, and parenting skills. Fifty-six families with children in grades 1–4 (aged 4–9) were randomly assigned to an intervention or waiting list condition. Results of two path models, using cluster-robust standard errors to adjust for nesting within our data, and controlling for baseline values of our outcome variables, indicated small improvements in home-based school involvement among families in the intervention group, but no differences in the perceived quality of the parent-teacher relationship nor in parenting skills. Our findings provide preliminary evidence for the idea that, under conditions of a partnership approach and provision of personalised support, efforts to support and strengthen the capacities of lower SES parents to promote child development can be fruitful.