School support: What do parents need?

What are the needs of parents in providing educational support for their child? Surprising as it may seem, no research has answered this question so far. A team of researchers set out to answer it.

“This is the first time that a study has focused directly on the needs of parents. What exactly are these needs? Are they satisfied? What could the school do to better respond to them? », Indicates Catherine Ratelle, holder of the Canada Research Chair in Parenting Practices and Educational and Vocational Trajectories at Laval University.

About 2,000 Quebec families, from all regions and all social backgrounds, will take part in the research that has just begun. These families have at least one child in 1^st primary year.

“The aim is to follow parents who come into contact with the school system for the first time. We will follow them for the first two years of their child's journey to begin. We hope to be able to follow them longer afterwards. "

Ms. Ratelle and her team are betting that by better understanding the needs of parents, it will become easier for teachers to develop a better relationship with them. “Teachers will be able to adapt their communications accordingly. And, if parents feel supported, they will gain confidence in their role of educational support. This can only improve collaboration between school and home, which will be beneficial for the children ”.

The study, subsidized by the Fonds québécois de recherche sur la société et la culture (FQRSC), is carried out under the supervision of professor-researchers Catherine Ratelle, Stéphane Duchesne, André Plamondon, David Litalien and Julien Office of the Faculty of Education Sciences from Laval University.

Obviously, researchers will not be able to ignore the influence of the current context in the conduct of their study. “Distance education emphasizes the necessary collaboration between parents and teachers. On the one hand, teachers need to communicate their expectations clearly. On the other hand, parents need to make sure their children are willing to learn from a distance. Above all, they must not put too much pressure on their shoulders, ”advises Ms. Ratelle.

The École branchée magazine team is also preparing a new special issue Parents. Watch our site, the announcement of its release will be made shortly! Until then, you can download our two previous Parents editions in digital version for free.