Effectively Involving Parents in SchoolsParents are the first teachers of students in our future classrooms. From the time a student is born until they enroll in a school program, the task of educating them falls to their parents. Once a child starts school, the parent's job is not done when it comes to their child's education; the role is changing. Parents are no longer solely responsible for their child's education. Instead, parents now have a new partner, teachers. As future teachers, it will be our duty to further facilitate this relationship and encourage parents to be involved not only in what happens outside the classroom, but also in what happens inside of the class. I chose this topic because as a future teacher I appreciate the role parents should play in their child's education. According to the Michigan Department of Education (2001), school-aged children spend seventy percent of their waking hours, including weekends and holidays, outside of the school setting. It is not only the teacher's responsibility to educate the child, but it is essential that parents also play an active role. What Studies Show Studies show that involving parents as co-educators in their children's education has led to many positive outcomes. These studies also provided reasons as to why a parent chooses to become involved or not and in what capacity. lead students to feel more valued, competent, effective and create a family environment in which success is stimulated and encouraged. The Michigan Department of Education (2001) has shown over the decades...... middle of article...... difference? File of the College of Teachers, volume 97 (2). Pages 310-331. Retrieved from http://www.vanderbilt.edu/peabody/family-school/papers/childrens_education.pdf Michigan Department of Education. (2001). What the research says about parental involvement in children's education. Retrieved from http://michigan.gov/documents/Final_Parent_Involvement_Fact_Sheet_14732_7.pdf. Oregon State Department of Education. (1990). Parental involvement: the critical link. Retrieved from ERIC http://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED387219.pdf Robson, Maggie & Hunt, Kathy. (1999) An innovative approach to involving parents in their children's early childhood education. International Journal of Early Childhood, Volume 7, No. 2. Pages 185-193. Retrieved from http://web.a.ebscohost.com.oberon.ius.edu/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?sid=8919849e-1d4d-4b13-91ec-200069d583bc%40 sessionmgr 4004&vid=2&hid=4206.