Product Description
This book addresses the complications and implications of parental involvement as a policy, through an exploratory theoretical approach, including historical and sociological accounts and personal reflection. This approach represents the author’s effort to understand the origins, meanings, and effects of parental involvement as a prerequisite of schooling and particularly as a policy ’solution’ for low achievement and even inequity in the American educational system… More >>
Rethinking Family-school Relations: A Critique of Parental involvement in Schooling
Tags: Critique, Familyschool, involvement, Parental, Relations, Rethinking, schooling
#1 by R. Lyttle on April 13, 2010 - 6:36 pm
There are some really good ideas in this book, but either chapter 3 or 4 is VERY difficult to read. I had students in my IU Masters class that had difficulty with it. The author should have toned it down a bit.
Rating: 1 / 5
#2 by DKC on April 13, 2010 - 6:44 pm
Ms. de Carvalho posits several extremely interesting and rather counter-intuitive concepts, which, when understood are excellent and rational. I found this to be a very valuable and unique contribution to the discussion of the interactions between schools and families and the expected (often political) vs. logical obligations arising from those relationships.
Her clear understanding that expecting the parents least able to participate directly in their children’s education to do so, and then blaming them for their childrens’ academic failures and inadequacies is NOT rational; and pointing that out is important, basically simple common sense, and often overlooked. And I agree with her awareness of the schools inserting themselves in various ways, often inappropriately, into the home/family/out-of-school lives of children.
I also appreciated her being able to compare and contrast her experiences in the U.S. and Brasil, and the fact that she is/was a single parent raising 3 children in a system which often did not recognize her competence and accomplishments and was different from her school experiences, and feel these gave her treatise extra depth and value.
Rating: 4 / 5
#3 by Reginald Williams on April 13, 2010 - 8:29 pm
…to Joyce Epstein’s trendsetting SCHOOL, FAMILY, COMMUNITY PARTNERSHIPS, E. H. Berger’s rivaling PARENTS AS PARTERS IN EDUCATION, or Couchenour/Chrisman’s FAMILIES, SCHOOLS, and COMMUNITIES…if you can’t get Kevin Swick’s EMPOWERING PARENTS,FAMILIES, SCHOOLS, AND COMMUNITIES DURING THE EARLY CHILDHOOD YEARS.
It fits squarely within those two standards because even though it does not entail a fulfledge textbook with colorful illustrations, it doesn’t, on the other hand, present all of the relevant research and theories within the field.
A good read, if you can’t afford the others.
Rating: 3 / 5