Abstract

Teacher parent collaboration is a highly valued concept in educating children in today’s multicultural classrooms. However, achieving productive relationships between teachers and parents remains elusive. Teachers and parents especially from diverse backgrounds make different assumptions about their relationships and approach partnering from different starting points. For some thinkers in this field, the range of parental competencies and preferences for involvement is so diverse and teacher skill and comfort levels so narrow that they argue that it may not be reasonable to expect collaboration with some parent sub-groups. The authors argue that teacher training in partnering with parents is mired in a traditional canon with its emphasis on teacher self-awareness and cross - cultural competency. This focus fails to address critical interpersonal and child based stress points that keep parents and teachers at odds. The authors maintain that needs based negotiation may provide a process that promotes teacher - parent relationship building, regardless of cultural background and experiences that emphasizes services to the child that they have in common and deemphasizes interpersonal differences. Through establishing the needs of each party and applying the principles of problem - solving theory to address those needs, parents and teachers can cooperate productively and at the same time establish a basis for continuing mutual trust and respect.