THE ROLE OF PARENTS TEACHERS’ ASSOCIATION (PTA) IN PROMOTING EFFECTIVE AND EFFICIENT MANAGEMENT OF PUBLIC PRIMARY AND SECONDARY SCHOOLS IN NIGERIA

Abstract

Every school child comes to school from home which is made up of the unclear family. The nuclear family comprised of father, mother and children. The family is the first social agent a child finds himself. It is also the child’s first environment before the commencement of schooling. Upon starting schools, the parents are still charged with responsibility of liaising with the school authority to ensure the progress of the child. The parents are expected to have a symbiotic function with the school management to foster the attainment of school objectives. When parents belong to parents-teachers’ association, they do not just attend meetings but also work hand in hand with the school to ensure the success of their wards. This they do by belonging to some designated school committee, identifying problematic areas of the school, sought ways of combating them so as to meet their children’s needs and theirs as well. There is no doubt that many schools are plagued with myriads of problems and the government seems to be unaware of such problems bedeviling the academic flow of the school children. The parents who are closer are often times sought after to tackle such problems through emergency meeting. Parents teachers’ association has performed creditably well in assisting schools where they have their children in achieving academic excellence even though not without any setbacks. Some of the challenges distorting the role of the PTA include but not limited to role conflict between the school head and the PTA chairman. It is therefore suggested that rigorous job description and analysis be specified upon the appointment of the chairman as well as other PTA executives.