Fundamental Pedagogy Jana Doležalová

10.3 Cooperation between Family and School 
Cooperation between family and school has proven to be necessary for positive 
education of children. Both sides need to be informed on the behaviour of 
children, on their specific needs, causes of peculiarities in the child’s behaviour, 
on the child’s school results. Moreover, school should raise the parents’ 
awareness about education.
If children have problems at school, there can also be a cause in family 
relations, in the parents’ behaviour towards the child (see family typology), 
which is why the teacher should know about the family situation and seek a 
solution together with parents. On the other hand, parents need to be informed 
on the current school events, on the school’s requirements, on how the child 
acts and behaves and in which situations so that they together (parents and 
teachers) form the conditions for the optimal behaviour and learning of 
children.
Cooperation between family and school is especially important when integrating 
learners with specific needs. Where the children have not been diagnosed yet, 
the teacher and other colleagues help provide professional assistance. Hence, 
the teacher becomes a coordinator and cooperating partner of the stakeholders 
(Turzík In kol., 2011). 
School, as the secondary educational environment, should use the socialising 
achievements of family and adjust them. It should also compensate the 
shortcomings of family education for learners to enable educational 
development as much as possible. This is why the family background should be 
known (Helus, 2007). 
Currently, there are many possibilities of how to ensure communication 
between both sides: in writing, by telephone, in person, by email or in other 
ways.
Teachers and other experts can motivate and instruct parents on how to create 
a favourable family environment to improve its quality regardless of the family 

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structure and economic situation through discussions and lectures by experts 
(In Duchovičová et al., 2013).
Varied forms of cooperation (both raising awareness and entertaining and 
recreational) have a positive effect on the pupil and parents (for details on 
specific forms and risks of the family-school relation, see In Pol, Rabušicová, 
1997).
The teacher should not forget about ethical responsibility towards families. 
He/she should, among other things, maintain discretion.