Parent participation in primary schools and school social work

Parent?s participation is very important not only for the academic performance of children but also for their development and social adaptation. However, particularly in regions with low socio-economic status parents participation is not sufficient. For this reason, it is very important to identify problems in relation to parent participation and to develop policy recommendations for solving these problems.The main purpose of this study is to identify problems in relation to parents participation in primary education, to develop policy recommendations for these problems and to emphasise the need for school social work.This research is a scientific field research. In this research, survey technique is used to reach a large group in a rapid and convenient way. 6 schools from low to middle socio-economic status families were chosen from Sultanbeyli district of Istanbul. In these schools, I worked with randomly selected 335 parents. Parents were selected among low-participating parents of primary school children from grades 1-8.SPSS 17.0 software was used to analyze data collected through this method. Various tables were produced based on these data and they have been interpreted. The analysis of data reveals that the non-participating families are mostly from disadvantaged groups in terms of socio-economic status. In additon to socio-economic status, lack of practices motivating families to participate has been identified as a barrier. The research demonstrates the need for school social worker to increase parent participation.