A summary of a research report titled “School Staff Perceptions Of Parental Involvement” was recently published in Data Trends. The Research and Training Center at Portland State University collaborates with the Research and Training Center at the University of South Florida to produce Data Trends, ” a series of briefs addressing current themes, summarizing recent literature, or presenting new developments in the field of children’s mental health.”

The report, focused on a rural county in North Carolina, shared school staff’s surprisingly (at least to me) negative attitude towards parents: ” [staff]ultimately placed the blame of student underachievement…. “squarely on the shoulders of parents.”

The researchers nailed it when they wrote:

“To truly partner with families in planning for youth, schools must change practices so that information can be shared with a socially just approach. Schools must…meet families where they are, rather than embracing misperceptions and stereotypes that perpetuate ambiguity.”