ABSTRACT
This chapter outlines different paradigms of the educational relationship which may be encountered in Europe. It shows that it is possible to hold the view that schooling may be irrelevant to education in practice. The chapter considers two politico-administrative issues. These are consumerism and parental representation in school management. The relationship of parents to schools must be set in the broader context of parents' role in their child's total learning experience. An educational argument for parental choice of school is that parental enthusiasm for an institution may improve pupil confidence in it and therefore motivation. There is a conceptual linkage between parental interest groups and the election of parental representatives to boards of school management. Through enhanced use of the media, parental advisory centres, home-learning specialists and other professionals, they could mount a campaign to alert parents to their unavoidable educational impact and provide guidance about home-educating to reinforce the work of the school.
