Despite these advantages, it is not always easy for parents to find time and energy to become involved or to coordinate with schedules for school events. For some parents, a visit to school is perceived as an uncomfortable experience, perhaps a holdover from their own school days. Others may have their hands full with a job and other children. The availability and cost of babysitters are other factors. Recently, teachers and other school staff have made special efforts to increase communication with parents and encourage involvement in children's learning experiences.
Parents can also serve as school volunteers for the library or lunchroom, or as classroom aides.
These methods, along with requests for parents to review and sign homework, were most frequently used to involve parents. Almost all schools have a PTA or PTO, but often only a small number of parents are active in these groups. Another kind of involvement is home-based and focuses on activities that parents can do with their children at home or on the teacher's visits to the child's home. However, few teachers involve parents through home-based activities, partly because of the amount of time involved in developing activities or visiting and partly because of the difficulty of coordinating parents' and teachers' schedules. Some programs aim to reach parents who do not usually participate in their children's education.