1
Department of Educational Sciences, College of Education, Hacı Bektaşı Veli University, Nevşehir, Türkiye
Abstract
The aim of this research is to identify how existing centralized legal regulations and administrative frameworks governing primary and lower secondary school levels in Türkiye function in relation to ensuring school–parent partnership in schools located in low socio-economic status areas, by taking into account students' academic development, school attendance, and discipline based on school administrators' lived experiences and perspectives. The study adopted the phenomenological design, one of the qualitative research approaches. The participant cohort of the study was determined through purposive criterion sampling and comprised 10 school administrators (5 principals and 5 assistant principals) serving in official primary and lower secondary schools located in socio-economically disadvantaged areas with dense immigrant populations. Data were gathered using individual, semi-structured interviews and systematically analyzed through the descriptive analysis approach. As a result, this research concluded that the existing legal regulations supporting parent participation in education in schools with low socio-economic status are insufficient. The research determined that parents with low socio-economic status have low participation rates in parent meetings and that their contributions to their children's academic success are limited compared to their peers. In this context, parents also have no legal responsibility. Furthermore, this research concluded that in the hierarchically structured Turkish national education system, the penalties applied in the student discipline process are either insufficient or not enforced. On the other hand, school principals can develop their leadership skills in matters of student success, ensuring school attendance, and discipline management; in this context, training can be provided to school principals.
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