Role and Functions of Parents in Education
Introduction: Parents play an important role in the lives of their children. Education is the key that opens the door to life that is essentially social in character.
Education indicates a degree of sophistication. Formal education is an important vehicle of socialization.
Nowadays, parents send their children to schools and nurseries even in their infancy. School, thus, becomes a bridge between the family and the larger outside world. However, it should be kept in mind that school-teachers cannot substitute the parents.
The educational functions of parents consist selection of proper schools for their children, getting them enrolled, meeting teachers, helping them in their home-task, planning for their education, seeing their progress, attending the school functions etc. Their planning in this respect is effected by their educational aspirations for their sons and daughters.
Interest in children’s admission and home-task: The most important function of ideal parents is admitting their children in schools and colleges and helping them in their home-tasks. They should oversee the homework given to their child and should assist him in performing it.
Interest in children’s progress in the school: Fulfillment of the educational aspirations of the parents for their children depends upon their active participation in children’s education. The parents should know the progress of their child and diagnosis of the teacher in relation to the school development. More the parents learn about their child in his life away from home, the better they will be able to help him adjust to that life. The school progress report gives the parents a picture of their child – his progress in studies, his behaviors, his attendance, and his teacher’s opinion about him.
Contact with teachers: Ideal parent is not only satisfied with sending their child to the school but also makes close observation of his school life. They make the informal and causal day-to-day contacts with the school and teachers.
Participation in school function: In well-organized institutions, the children are inspired in good number to participate in school functions and sports. It is a natural desire of a child to exhibit his talents to his parents and to others. Principals invite the parents of the children on these occasions. The visits of parents on the one hand inspire and cheer the children, on the other they become the basis for group conferences in which parents with each other and with teachers discuss the responses and problems of children and arrive at interpretations of development and solution of different problems.
Participation in children’s recreation: Play is a way of learning, a means of exploring and mastering the outside world, a natural way of controlling fears and difficult feelings such as those of anger and hate, which the child dare not express in the world. It helps a child to develop and master his growing powers.
Communication with children: Every child needs time with each of his parents for a few minutes every day, uninterrupted by others. As he grows older, these times alone with each of his parents may be less frequent but none the less important.
Educational aspirations: Along with the general education, vocational and professional training is also gaining popularity. Liberal tendency is also developing among parents. Regarding the choice of profession, they would leave the matter at the will of their sons and daughters.
Conclusion: In modern educated families’ education of the children is an important pre-requisite of family organization. Each parent wants to educate his sons and daughters to enable him or her to achieve higher status and security in their adult life. Hence, the role of parents is extremely important in a child’s educational life.
