Research findings consistently show positive associations between parental involvement and student outcomes in various domains (Desforges & Abouchaar, 2003; Harris & Goodall, 2007). The ways in which parents may become involved in their child’s education have been categorised into activities encompassing parenting, communicating, volunteering, learning at home, decision-making, and, collaborating with the community (Epstein, 1992) and more broadly into home-based involvement, school-based involvement and home-school communication (Fantuzzo, Tighe & Childs, 2000). Each type of involvement may be expected to influence children’s progress differently (Hoover-Dempsey & Sandler, 1995, 1997).

Not surprisingly, given the benefits of parental involvement, it is a policy priority of many education systems, including Ireland (Department of Education and Skills, 2011), England (Department for Education, 2010) and the United States (U.S. Department of Education, 2002). Often, schools are legally obliged to support parental involvement in their children’s education, through for example the provision of information to parents, of opportunities to volunteer and by facilitating access to school staff (DfE, 2010; U.S. DoE, 2002).

In Ireland, the Education Act (1998) makes multiple references to the role of parents, stating that parents not only have a right to access records relating to their child’s progress in school but also a right to be consulted regarding the nature of the school and classroom experience. For example, while the Education Act specifies that schools should promote the moral, spiritual, social and personal development of students and provide health education for them, having regard to the characteristic spirit of the school, it also specifies that this must be done in consultation with parents.

Despite the stipulations of the Education Act, there is evidence that parents in Ireland receive less frequent updates on their child’s academic progress or behaviour and well-being than do parents in many other countries (Eivers & Creaven, 2013).  Also, compared with parents in other countries, parents in Ireland are much less likely to receive formal updates about school-level academic performance or about the school’s educational goals (ibid.).

The current paper contends that school websites offer one means through which schools can support parental involvement, providing opportunities for many of the activities outlined in Epstein’s typology, including communication between home and school, supporting learning to take place at home, and supporting parental involvement in decision-making in the school. This research explores the extent to which Irish primary schools use websites to support parental understanding of the school context and classroom activities. In particular, we examine the information provided through school websites about (1) macro level issues such as school ethos and patronage, and the monitoring of school-level performance; (2) practical issues such as administrative and contact information, and procedures for enrolment; (3) teaching and learning issues such as day-to-day activities in the classroom and how parents can support these; and, (4) information about opportunities for parental involvement in formal structures such as the Board of Management and Parents’ Association. 

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