The Scottish Consultative Council on the Curriculum this week sent a cautionary reminder to Labour that plans to involve parents may be misguided and could backfire.
In a position statement on parents and the curriculum, the council advises: “A vision of the family which for many is no longer appropriate, and which may never have been authentic in the first place, continues to inform much that is said and done. Home circumstances vary from one family to the next, as does the understanding of what it means to be a parent.”
The council says school-parent partnerships are often based on continuing school work outwith school hours and warns: “Pushing too hard for this kind of parental involvement or ‘professionalisation’ may be less than helpful. ”
Some parents may not have the time to volunteer, the council says, may not wish to become involved or may live in poor housing.
“For some, parents’ evenings are an exercise in frustration,” the council warns.
