Understanding the Significance of Action in a Learning Community: The Roles of Parents of Pupils with Attention Difficulties

Résumé 0

The concept of learning community introduces concerns linked to the future of the school system. In the context of ongoing school reforms in Quebec, it evokes a number of major stakes, in particular those relating to the services provided to pupils with problems of attention. It helps to clarify interconnections between the behaviour of the pupils in the course of learning projects and the roles played by the adults who supervise them, in particular their teachers and their parents. Relations between these two groups are often characterized by a confrontation. To go beyond this confrontational relationship, one has to put the emphasis on the analysis of the systems of support available to the two groups. Based on what parents reported, this article describes participation experiences in a learning community, attempting to illustrate the decisive roles played by the concerned parents in their participation in the projects of training as well as in problem resolution. It also takes into account some important factors: obstacles related to the school system, collaboration with the teachers-professionals and the complexity of the whole domain of attention difficulties.