Who's the Expert: Reconceptualising Parent-Staff Relations in Early Education

Abstract

This article draws on an examination of current international literature concerning parent involvement in early education to advocate a reconceptualisation of parent-staff relations. Three views of parent involvement in early education dominate the literature: parent as teacher, parent as collaborator, and parent as decision-maker. Each view rests on problematic assumptions about staff and parent expertise concerning learning and development and each, in specific ways, disempowers staff and parents by discrediting or undermining their particular expertise. The article argues that staff can resolve some ‘theoretical’ and practical problems associated with parent involvement by acting as ‘organic intellectuals’.