chanel
Silver Member
If parent participation in classrooms is good, why not make it mandatory?
That's the thinking of some in San Jose's Alum Rock Union School District, where a committee is crafting a proposal to require families of all 13,000 students to volunteer at least 30 hours a year at school.
It's a tall order. The disparity in parent volunteers is as wide as the economic rift in the valley, as schools serving affluent families depend on moms and dads to drive on field trips and help with science projects, while schools teaching poor children often lack such involvement.
In Alum Rock, where 88 percent of the students are poor and 54 percent are language-learners, most of its 28 schools don't even have a PTA. But even as some critics warn working parents don't have extra time, trustee Gustavo Gonzalez is pushing volunteerism, citing studies showing that students do better when their parents are involved.
"We're trying to create a culture of strong parent-guardian-family participation in schools," he said.
Although it's not clear whether state law permits districts to require parents to donate time to schools, proponents say that's besides the point. In addition to getting parents to embrace the expectation that they participate on campus, the district wants to persuade principals and teachers to welcome parents in the classroom, Gonzalez said.
Not everyone agrees that mandating volunteerism will work.
Regardless of income or background, students with involved parents are more likely to earn higher grades and test scores, be promoted, attend school regularly, have better social skills and graduate, according to a study by the Texas-based Southwest Educational Development Laboratory.
The school is looking into ways for other parents or community members to "adopt" students whose families face hardships in participating, she said.
School district may make volunteering mandatory - San Jose Mercury News
Good idea? I don't think I could give 30 hours. I have always participated in PTA and fundraisers, etc., but haven't volunteered in the classroom since my son was in Kindergarten. What say you?