Doc. 8476
13 July 1999

Teachers' and parents' responsibilities in children's education

Motion for a recommendation

presented by Mr Varela I Serra and others

This motion has not been discussed in the Assembly and only expresses the views of the members who have signed it

1. Traditional education is in a state of turmoil; so is the traditional family. Neither of these institutions alone is capable of giving young people all the knowledge, skills and sets of values they need in order to integrate successfully in society.

2. With the unrestricted access to countless sources of information provided by modern media, schools find it difficult to preserve their once uncontested authority in terms of education. Teachers increasingly face criticism from pupils and parents for being unable to keep up with the developments in modern knowledge and with social realities. Schools are unable to protect or stop young people from violence and bullying, racism and intolerance, drug and alcohol abuse by teenagers, sexual promiscuity and teenage pregnancy or child abuse. Worse, they are themselves increasingly becoming the scene of dramatic incidents.

3. The fulfilment of the duties that every parent has towards their children's education, is increasingly impeded by the changing family structure, with more and more children growing up in single-parent or split families, with parents unemployed or too busy professionally etc. Television and computer games have become a frequent substitute for parental supervision.

4. Parents and teachers tend to accuse each other for not doing what is necessary to educate children. In reality, progress can only be achieved with an increased involvement both of parents and teachers, as well as a clearer definition and greater awareness of their respective responsibilities. This should be done bearing in mind that the first and foremost responsibility for educating children always lies with the parents.

5. The Assembly therefore recommends that the Committee of Ministers

i. instruct its competent bodies to examine the issue of the respective responsibilities of parents and teachers in children's education, in particular in the context of the Council of Europe programme on education for democratic citizenship;

ii. recommend specific measures to member states aimed at:

      a. increasing parents' representation at all levels of education and promoting partnerships between schools and parents;

      b. promoting and developing education of parents and enhancing their awareness of the responsibilities they have to assume;

      c. elevating the value of the teachers' profession;

      d. placing particular emphasis on the education of children coming from difficult family backgrounds;

      e. encouraging co-operation between schools and local communities, for instance by the use of schools as a basis for building community spirit by offering social, sports and cultural facilities;

      f. increasing the participation of local communities, employers and non-governmental organisations in school affairs;

      g. increasing school autonomy with a view to making schools more easily adaptable to specific local realities.

Signed : ¹

Varela I Serra, Spain, LDR

Alis Font, Andorra, NR

Arnau, Spain, SOC

Calleja, Spain, SOC

de Puig, Spain, SOC

Fernandez Aguilar, Spain, EPP/CD

Guirado, Spain, SOC

Hadjidemetriou, Cyprus, SOC

Isohookana-Asunmaa, Finland, LDR

Kiely, Ireland, LDR

Kollwelter, Luxembourg, SOC

Martinez, Spain, SOC

Mota Amaral, Portugal, EPP/CD

O'Hara, UK, SOC

Ramirez Pery, Espagne, EPP/CD

Valk, Netherlands, SOC

¹ SOC: Socialist Group; EPP/CD: Group of the European People's Party; EDG: European Democratic Group; LDR: Liberal, Democratic and Reformers Group; UEL: Group of the Unified European Left; NR: Not registered in a group