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By Dr. Harry Tennant
Sunday, December 12, 2010 In The News: Parent-Trigger Law (and Parent Empowerment) In California there is now a "parent-trigger" law whereby parents can mandate school shutdowns or charter-school conversions through a petition drive. Under the state's new "parent-trigger" law, the signatures of at least half the parents at a campus are required in order to launch the changes. After an effort to use this provision recently, some parents are rescinding their signatures to convert McKinley Elementary into a charter school that would operate outside the direct control of the Compton Unified School District.  Will "parent-triggers" become a national trend? Parents are increasingly empowered in our school systems. Is this a positive trend? Like everything else, it is no doubt a mixed bag. What can we as educators do to accentuate the positives of parent empowerment while minimizing our exposure to the negative aspects? Beyond simply exhibiting excellence in general, building capital in advance of "issues" seems to be one of the most effective ways to ride the wave of an increasing level of parent empowerment in our school systems. One of the more important ways to build this capital is through helpful, consistent communication between the school and parents. Is your school doing enough in this critical area of operations? Posted at 11:36 AM Keywords: In the News , California , Parent-Trigger , Charter Schools , Accountability 2 Comments |
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R. Jorczak said... There is parental involvement and there is politics. Parents are not experts in education or public school systems. Giving parents more power over schools seems like a bad idea to me. Their rightful place is concern and attention to their children who are attending schools. Input from parents to the school board or administration already provides a powerful means for parents to voice their opinions and influence school policy. This law is a continuation of the political attack on public schools, despite the data which clearly indicate that charter schools do not perform better than, or even as well as, most public schools. Monday, December 13, 2010 9:00 AM |