Parental involvement in schools has been contested for decades. Although it is
clear that parents have a responsibility to care for and nurture their children, the legislated
role of schools to educate children leaves somewhat ambiguous the role of parents.
Using Hannah Arendt's notions of public and private and the emergence of a
social sphere this conceptual research examines the complex relationship of parents to
schools. Using the British Columbia Confederation of Parent Advisory Councils
(BCCPAC) Parent Advocacy Project as one model, this study illustrates how parents can
play an important role in the public school education of their children.
Parental involvement and legislated governance of schools have emerged as major
educational issues in Canada. The struggle for control in education has its roots in the
history of public education, legislation, the emergence of unions and the postindustrial
global production/consumption market place economy. These issues reveal the
emergence of a "social" sphere blurring the public/private distinctions, dominated by
bureaucracy and alienating citizens from their political responsibilities to determine a
good life.
The emerging role of parents as advocates for their children in the schools may
restore some balance to the public/private relationship, however, it may also reveal some
of the problems of power and control within the system.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:LACETR/oai:collectionscanada.gc.ca:BVAU.2429/13202 |
| Date | 05 1900 |
| Creators | Moss, John Colin |
| Source Sets | Library and Archives Canada ETDs Repository / Centre d'archives des thèses électroniques de Bibliothèque et Archives Canada |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Electronic Thesis or Dissertation |
| Relation | UBC Retrospective Theses Digitization Project [http://www.library.ubc.ca/archives/retro_theses/] |
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