The pupil as part of the relation between family and school: transmission of messages and developed strategies

Abstract

Today, families and schools are under obligation of cooperating, which notably induces new forms of relations between parents and teachers. These modifications make it necessary to reconsider the child’s position in the family-school interface, envisaging him at the same time as product and actor of the social processes involved. Our research attempts to better define the strategies developed by the pupil in the transmission of messages between his family and school. The efficiency of these strategies is directly linked to the knowledge of school ways, meaning representations of norms, forbidden aspects, rituals and relational stakes. Results indicate the importance of the message’s content about the type of strategy developed: in particular, pupils manifest a more daring behaviour when they find themselves confronted to messages that contain evaluative aspects.