June: Fathers in the spotlight.

June: Fathers in the spotlight.

This month, at Ouders & Onderwijs, we put fathers in the spotlight. From parents' day until Father's Day, we pay extra attention to the role of fathers in upbringing and at school. Because involved fathers make a difference; at home and for education.

Why attention for fathers?

Research shows that fathers are less often actively involved in school matters. Education seems like a women’s matter, while fathers are just as important in the development of their child.

How do you, as a father, experience contact with school? Do you feel sufficiently seen and invited? And what would help you to increase your active involvement? We will work on these questions this month.

Research on fathers and school

Later this week, we will start research into the experiences of fathers with school. We want to know:

• How fathers experience contact with school
• What goes well and what can be improved
• What schools can do to involve fathers more actively

We use the results to advise schools and policy makers. This way we work together on education where both parents feel heard and involved.

Stories from practice

Besides the research, we share interviews with fathers. What do they find important in contact with school? What challenges do they face? And what works well? We also speak with professionals involved with fatherhood. They provide insights and practical tips about fatherhood and education.

Review of the fatherhood symposium

In May, we attended a symposium about fatherhood in relation to education. In the coming time, we will reflect and share the main insights, inspiring examples, and concrete recommendations that arose during this meeting. This way, we ensure the results are broadly available.

Fathers: let your voice be heard

The perspective of fathers is often still missing. In our online parent panel, we could also use more fathers, so we can speak on behalf of all parents. Therefore, we call on fathers to sign up.

How does the Landelijk Ouderpanel work? Through short online surveys, you can share your opinions on current education topics. This helps us ask attention for the views and experiences of all parents. In politics, government, the education sector, and media.