The Importance of Involvement in Education and the Ways to Alleviate the Shortcomings

Abstract

  Abstract   The present article is extracted from a study entitled “The Ways to Promote People’s Involvement in Education with an Emphasis on School-Building Philanthropists’ Viewpoints”. This national research was carried out through descriptive method and analysis of documents. Purposive sampling method was utilized and the instrumentation consisted of structured interview. The main objectives of the article were to identify the shortcomings and the main internal and external obstacles in the way of involvement as well as to propose suggestions for alleviating these shortcomings.Research findings on the subject under scrutiny as well as the results of 263 interviews with school-building philanthropists were analyzed and used. Results indicated that involvement shortcomings can be classified into two groups of internal and external ones. Inactive associationof school principals, teachers,and studentsin involvement as well as the Ministry of Education high-ranking authorities’ performance and attitude towards the concept of involvementare identified ashuman factors shaping internal shortcomings. Furthermore, the defects in organizational structure, Parents-Teachers Councils, and education councils play a role in this regard. The external shortcomings are also identified to be the result of economic, social, and cultural factors. Finally, the researcher has put forward suggestions for alleviating the shortcomings.