没有社区的支持学校能完成目标？.pdfVIP

J Educ Change (2008) 9:311–316 DOI 10.1007/s10833-008-9074-x Can schools successfully meet their educational aims without the clear support of their local communities? Kathryn Riley Published online: 18 May 2008 Springer Science+Business Media B.V. 2008 Abstract This short article explores some of the challenges and complexities of engaging with school communities, particularly in diverse urban contexts. The author argues for a new relationship between schools and communities which is developed by grappling with the concept of community; developing tools to ‘read’ and make sense of the community context; working with communities to redefine the notion of school success; and building trusting relationships. She concludes by suggesting that, in a global context in which many city communities are marginalized or isolated, the notion of developing a reciprocal relationship between schools and communities is not an optional extra. Only by working together will they be able to enrich the lives of young people and increase their sense of self-worth and well-being. Keywords Communities Trust Social capital Schools Some years ago I become a governor (school board member) of a school in England which served a predominantly white working-class community. It was located in a tough inner- city area and had the highest number of pupil exclusions in the locality. The local authority (school district) saw this as a sign of failure: the parents and local community as one of success. The school was maintaining standards and keeping a grip on discipline. In this piece I explore some of the challenges and complexities of engaging with school com- munities. I offer, what I hope is, a distinctive approach to working with communities and argue that, unless schools engage with their communities in new ways, there is a danger that some young people will become even more disconnected from their