ABSTRACT
According to the U.S. Department of Education, parental engagement is a key factor in teacher retention, and teachers experience greater satisfaction when parental involvement grows (Riggs, 2013). Sadly, a survey of 1,000 K-12 teachers indicated 97% of teachers want parents involved, such as within the classroom, yet 76% of teachers report less than half of their students’ parents are involved in this way, and 47% of teachers regarded low parent involvement as a source of frustration (more so than discipline issues and large class sizes; Reid, 2014). This 97% of teachers included 95% of high school teachers, and 56% of the K-12 teachers indicated fewer than 25% of parents are actually involved in their classrooms (University of Phoenix, 2015). There’s thus a disconnect between what teachers need and what they are getting from parents. There is often a disconnect between what students need and what they are getting from their parents academically as well. For example, 87% of parents believe their child’s academic success is based primarily on the child’s natural abilities regardless of the parent’s help (NBC News Education Nation, 2015). As teachers know, parental expectations and support of academics are paramount. Fortunately, there is much teachers can do to bridge the divide. According to the U.S. Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics, public school teachers devote only 3% of their working time to parent interaction; no other professional duty requires less of their time (Krantz-Kent, 2008). Yet in a study of 803 American parents (including guardians and primary caregivers) of kids aged 3 to 18, 47% of parents wished they could be more involved in their child’s education, and this percentage is higher for low-income parents, less-educated parents, working parents, and minority parents (NBC News Education Nation, 2015). Specific shifts in teachers’ efforts can capitalize on stakeholders’ desire to be more involved and can render big improvements in parent and community connections.
