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Parental Participation in Schools
 
Parental Involvement in evaluating Schools
 
Italy: School evaluation - the primary school at Mezzolombardo, Trento
 
Mario Dutto
IPRASE, Trento
 
France Zappini
Direttrice Didattica, Mezzolombardo, Trento
 
Fiorenza Aste
Primary School Teacher, Rovereto
 
Italian law only requires the involvement of parents in school self-evaluation through the drawing up of an annual report by the School Board on the activities of the school. This report has to be sent to the Sovrintendente Scolastico (Director of Education) and to the Provincial Board of Education, where parents are represented. The report cannot directly affect decisions made by the schools, or change educational policy. It is, however, about to be modified by the introduction of indicators which will enable schools to be compared.
 
In the Province of Trento, there is a School Evaluation Committee which collects information to help policy makers reach decisions. The Committee tests samples of classes and informs public meetings on an annual basis about the results of the evaluation process. It has already published four booklets: Schools at the mirror; The partial quality; The stuck autonomy; and A waiting laboratory. At the moment, parents are not represented in the Evaluation Committee, but a new provincial law, approved in August 1998, will introduce evaluation groups which will involve parents.
 
In recent years, steps have been taken to build on and improve evaluation procedures, and to introduce new and more effective self-evaluation processes. IPRASE of Trentino promoted research, involving nine primary schools, into School self-evaluation and process indicators. Some of these schools, assisted by a tutor, set up a variety of research procedures to seek parents' views.
 
Primary school at Mezzolombardo - school evaluation
 
The focus of observation
 
The School Board (comprising of the headteacher, eight parents, the same number of teachers, and two administrative helpers) decides the educational framework upon which the aims and values of the school will be based (see the other Italian case studies). This case study will show how the different aspects of the agreed curriculum were analysed.
 
The school declares its intentions
 
Parents receive a school diary which provides a summary of the school's educational and organisational procedures, together with the criteria for success. Parents have access to full details of the school's Educational Project in the school.
 
The self-analysis process
 
A variety of pro-formae and other tools for evaluation have been developed in order to analyse:
  • the curriculum;
  • teaching issues;
  • the learning process; and
  • study skills.
 
Some of these pro-formae have been produced by teachers and others, for example the parents' questionnaire, in co-operation with the parents and with the endorsement of the School Board. Tests for pupils were those used by the Evaluation Committee and CENSIS.
 
The tools for evaluation include:
  • quality criteria for analysing the teacher's work plans;
  • tests for pupils in mathematics, Italian language and German;
  • questionnaires for parents on their views of school life generally;
  • questionnaires for pupils on study skills; and
  • questionnaires for teachers on how well the work plans were delivered, the appropriateness of methodologies used, and the difficulties they met in their work.
 
The School Board selects the most appropriate methods to investigate how well the school's Educational Project is working in practice. In the primary school at Mezzolombardo, the criteria for success were expressed as questions such as the following.
  • How are the foundations of learning laid in the early years of school? Priority must be placed on motivating children to become independent learners.
  • What sort of support is given to children with learning difficulties? There must be individualised teaching or other appropriate support.
  • Is a good range of resources available such as microscopes, computers, listening/TV rooms, library etc? Are pupils encouraged to select and to use these materials when carrying out science experiments, or art activities? Do they learn how to use the library?
  • If I hear, I remember; if I do, I understand. When learning is based on practical experience, it becomes much more relevant to the child and more easily remembered. When pupils work on projects, are they encouraged to be active and independent, rather than always being guided by the teacher? What is the role of problem-solving?
 
The answers, which formed the quality criteria, were based on responses to the parents' and teachers' questionnaires.
 
Self-evaluation: the results
 
The results of questionnaires to teachers, parents and pupils were collected and processed in order to highlight and cross-reference relevant data. The full self-evaluation report has been discussed by the teachers and the School Board. During the last class-parents' meeting, parents were informed of the questionnaire results. The evaluation process highlighted the following key points.
  • The results of the tests showed if pupils were performing well in comparison to the provincial average (results of samples are annually published by the Evaluation Committee). However, they could not show how a child had progressed and what had been achieved on an individual basis at the school. This made teachers aware that standard deviation may be a necessary quality indicator in the educational process.
  • It is very important for parents to know the processes involved in learning.
  • Teachers have to clarify these learning processes and set up a small range of indicators for monitoring their effectiveness.
  • Teachers noted that they jointly planned the curriculum content and carried out regular tests. Parents expressed satisfaction about the curriculum taught, and the results of pupils' tests corroborated the high standards of attainment.
  • Parents and teachers felt that social skills were inadequate, including their acquisition of values and social skills, relationships and classroom ethos.
  • One goal for teachers and parents was to help pupils acquire positive attitudes to learning and study skills. The results showed that this had been achieved in only one class out of the three.
 
The use of evaluation to plan development
 
The survey outcomes were discussed fully with teachers and parents. The outcomes were also used as the basis for a development plan to improve the school's effectiveness in helping pupils develop skills. The identification of weak points in provision helped the school to prioritise its work in improving learning and teaching, organisational procedures, and the time and methods for monitoring and evaluation.
 
Conclusion
 
It is now clear that the School Board final report can no longer be viewed as just a formality. It has become an evaluation of the year's work, and importantly, forms a sound basis for the next development plan to improve the school's work in the future.
 
At the moment, the Provincial School Evaluation Committee is producing a new layout for the final report. This will detail success criteria and enable schools to be compared fairly.
 
Other examples of parental involvement in evaluating schools
 
The primary school at Cembra distributed a questionnaire in class assemblies to evaluate pupils' views.
 
The primary school at Trentino evaluated the success of individual parents' meetings.
 
The Parents' Association distributed a questionnaire to evaluate the quality of the school's overall service.
 
IPRASE of Trentino collected parents' impressions of an innovative project to re-organise the primary and secondary school.
 

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