Parents in Alabama will soon have greater access to their child’s classroom education, thanks to a new school law. While teachers recognize the importance of collaboration with parents, some foresee challenges with this increased transparency. The law aims to improve the quality of education by empowering parents to be more involved in their child’s learning.
Alabama has recently implemented the “Parental Right to Know” law which mandates educators to make their lesson plans available online for parents to access.
According to the legislation’s sponsor, Alabama Senator Greg Reed (R-Jasper), superintendents across the state have been eager to turn this into a reality.
Reed stated that offering this option was seen as a way to involve parents more in their children’s education. The provision of additional information about classroom activities was perceived to increase parental willingness to participate.
The new law aims to give parents a better understanding of the daily activities that take place in the classroom. According to Trenace Hayes, this will create an added advantage for parents, like herself, who want to collaborate more closely with teachers.
Hayes expressed his support for increased access to information and transparency, stating that having more tools to anticipate and focus on student needs is crucial. “If I can have more tools,” he said, “so I can see in advance what’s going on and better ways to help them learn, that’s something that’s important to me.”
Parents are also empowered to provide feedback to their school board under this measure. Merri Gardunia, who has been teaching for more than 20 years, expressed concern about the additional level of responsibility this could entail in the future.
While she advocates for parents to be more involved in their children’s education, she also recognizes that this could place additional pressure on educators. Furthermore, she expresses concern that some feedback may be directed towards aspects that are beyond their control.
According to Gardunia, the teacher shortage in Alabama must be taken into account as educators are facing increasing responsibilities. She acknowledges that most teachers have been collaborating with parents to enhance their child’s education.
According to Gardunia, the article seems to reflect a sense of distrust towards schools, which she disagrees with. As public servants, their duty is not to keep information hidden from families, but rather to serve them.