Parents and Schools : The 150-Year Struggle for Control in American Education / / William W. Cutler

• Record Nr.: UNINA9910149165203321
• Autore: Cutler William W.
• Pubbl/distr/stampa: Chicago : , : University of Chicago Press, , [2015]; ©2000
• ISBN: 0-226-30793-X
• Descrizione fisica: 1 online resource (305 pages) : illustrations
• Disciplina: 371.19/2/0973
• Soggetti: Home and school - United States - History - 19th century; Home and school - United States - History - 20th century; Education - Parent participation - United States - History - 19th century; Education - Parent participation - United States - History - 20th century; Educational change - United States - History - 19th century; Educational change - United States - History - 20th century
• Lingua di pubblicazione: Inglese
• Formato: Materiale a stampa
• Livello bibliografico: Monografia
• Nota di bibliografia: Includes bibliographical references and index.
• Nota di contenuto: Frontmatter -- Contents -- List of Illustrations -- Acknowledgments -- Introduction -- CHAPTER 1. From Adversaries to Advocates -- CHAPTER 2. Home Rule or Ruled at Home? -- CHAPTER 3. In Search of Influence or Authority? -- CHAPTER 4. Heard but Not Seen -- CHAPTER 5. Twenty-Four Hours a Day -- CHAPTER 6. From Advocates to Adversaries -- Epilogue: Recurring Themes -- Notes -- Bibliographic Note -- Index
• Sommario/riassunto: Who holds ultimate authority for the education of America's children-teachers or parents? Although the relationship between home and school has changed dramatically over the decades, William Cutler's fascinating history argues that it has always been a political one, and his book uncovers for the first time how and why the balance of power has shifted over time. Starting with parental dominance in the mid-nineteenth century, Cutler chronicles how schools' growing bureaucratization and professionalization allowed educators to gain ; increasing control over the schooling and lives of the children they taught. Central to his story is the role of parent-teacher associations, which helped transform an adversarial relationship into a collaborative one. Yet parents have also been controlled by educators through PTAs, leading to the perception that they are "company unions." Cutler shows how in the 1920s and 1930s schools expanded their responsibility for children's well-being outside the classroom. These efforts sowed the seeds for later conflict as schools came to be held accountable for solving society's problems. Finally, he brings the reader into recent decades, in which a breakdown of trust, racial tension, and "parents' rights" have taken the story full circle, with parents and schools once again at odds. Cutler's book is an invaluable guide to understanding how parent-teacher cooperation, which is essential for our children's educational success, might be achieved.