Government calls for more teacher-parent cooperation

The government has called for parents to have more cooperation with their children's teachers.

Schools secretary Ed Balls has argued that this will help improve the behaviour of pupils.

His comments follow the publication of research by the Department for Children, Schools and Families, indicating that when teachers and parents work together, it sets a positive example to children.

It was also found that mums and dads are much more likely to get involved in their child's education earlier on in their schooling, while they are highly unlikely to stay involved at secondary level.

Mr Balls argued that there is a need to utilise technology such as text messaging and emailing in order to keep parents more aware of their offspring's progress at school.

There is a need for "a new era of cooperation between parents and schools", Mr Balls stated.

Of 1,500 parents surveyed by government education technology agency Becta recently, 68 per cent said they would like schools to keep them up-to-date via text or email.