Firstly, as a matter of principle, I consider it important that, in the introduction of any initiative, but particularly in such an area as this which impinges upon the home, parental views should be sought and taken account of in taking initiatives forward. Secondly, the behaviour scheme is more likely to be successful if parents are informed of its aims and the demands being made upon pupils as parents will then be in a better position to understand the reward system and to encourage their children to try to meet the targets set. In keeping with the rationale given for involving parents, the questionnaire fulfilled two purposes - one to provide information about the scheme and how it operates and, secondly to obtain parental views of such.
Parents are a much harder target audience to reach.
I therefore stressed the importance to pupils of remembering to give the questionnaire to their parents. Unfortunately, the timing was rather poor as we were affected by mid-term holidays with the result that there was a two week gap before I saw some classes again. I used an identical set of criteria as in the senior pupil interview but changed the format of the question to allow quick responses. Secondly, to seek parental views on the efficacy of such approaches in comparison to more standard approaches to disciplining pupils. And, thirdly, the extent to which parents considered their children had been motivated to behave well as a result of participating in the scheme.