A Survey of Parental Involvement in Government Secondary Schools. Discussion Paper No. 3.

This study attempted to determine how much parents were involved in Western Australian secondary schools and how satisfied they were with their involvement. Subjects included almost 2,000 families with children in one of sixteen secondary schools that were a sample of schools of differing sizes, in several types of communities in both rural and metropolitan locations. Subjects completed questionnaires brought home from school by children. Results indicated that scarcely any parents believed there was too much parent involvement in secondary schools. Only a small minority were seeking greater influence over school decision-making. Less than a quarter reported attending a parents' or citizens' meeting in 1977. More than 70 percent of parents said they were satisfied with the way the school kept them informed. Few parents wanted more use of school facilities. Although half the parents were willing to help at school, only a quarter had done so. Two schools in less affluent neighborhoods had low parental involvement, and parents in these districts wanted more involvement. The two schools with the most parental involvement were an affluent metropolitan high school and a school in a large country town. There was no evidence parental involvement varied with school size. (Author/JM)