O papel da participação dos pais e/ou encarregados de educação na gestão escolar: caso da escola primária completa de 1° e 2° graus 12 de Outubro na província de Maputo (2022-2023)

Abstract

This monograph aims to analyze the role of parental and/or guardians’ participation in school management, using as a case study the Complete Primary School of 1st and 2nd Grades 12 de Outubro, located in Maputo Province, Marracuene District, during the period from 2021 to 2023. The central question of the study seeks to answer what role the participation of parents and/or guardians plays in the school management of the Complete Primary School of 1st and 2nd Grades 12 de Outubro. Regarding methodological procedures, the study was based on an applied case study, using a qualitative approach combined with exploratory, explanatory, and descriptive research. A semi-structured interview was applied as a data collection technique, using an interview guide as the main instrument. The results show that the role of parents and/or guardians is more closely related to internal school activities, such as cleaning and hygiene, monitoring student behavior, ensuring that students respect their rights and duties especially regarding punctuality and helping identify community-related problems that affect students, such as child labor, alcohol consumption, and student absenteeism. The study also revealed that not all parents and/or guardians fully perform their role in school matters and that many have limited training to participate in school management activities, demonstrating that their involvement is more focused on operational aspects than on curricular or methodological decisions. The study further shows that the school presents two main forms of parental participation: participation in School Councils and participation in the development of parental practices that support children’s learning. Additionally, the study identified several strategies used by the school to promote parental involvement, such as rescheduling meetings to Saturdays, conducting home visits, using WhatsApp groups to share school information, mobilizing local leaders to encourage parents/guardians to participate in school life, conducting door-to-door awareness campaigns, organizing discussion circles with parents, promoting activities involving parents and children such as games, cleaning campaigns and creating parent clubs.