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Show School Board Issues Challenge about this innovative approach, ap-proach, the P.T.A. has invited in-vited Mr. Carl Jensen of the Utah State School Board to come and explain how it could work. Some of the ideas are being be-ing used in San Juan School District currently. A quextion and answer period will follow Mr. Jensen's Jen-sen's explanation. Please come to Marsac playroom Tuesday, October 21, at 7:30 p.m. These ideas could be important in Park City's growth. in exercising responsible citizenship. "Unless the schools alter their pattern of operation and their curriculum cur-riculum they may miss the opportunity of demonstrating demonstrat-ing their capacity to be man's best laboratory for the discovery dis-covery and practice of responsible res-ponsible citizenship. Involving citizens in determining de-termining the role of the schools in solving individual and community problems is the highest order of democratic demo-cratic practice." Feeling that Park City citizens cit-izens will want to know more By Margie Becker Vice-President PTA The Utah State School Board has issued a challenge to both the public and the school system in its recent position paper on PUBLIC INVOLVEMENT IN EDUCATION EDUCA-TION DECISION-MAKING. As the paper states, "No institution in a free society will long exist without a full measure of public support. Therefore, mechanisms must be found for the meaningful mean-ingful involvement of more individuals and groups in educational ed-ucational decision-making. It is no secret that the public has the right and responsibility res-ponsibility to help shape the function and destiny of the public schools. It should also be readily apparent that without the exercise ex-ercise of that right and responsibility, res-ponsibility, the schools will not achieve their high potential poten-tial . . . Getting close to the community and individuals individ-uals the school serves is what it is all about. The schools belong to the public and the public shall inevitably decide their fate. We have to find ways to bring about an understanding of the role of the respective partners in education and to organize varying points of view into constructive action." ac-tion." The paper speaks to parents, par-ents, educators and students of their responsibilities, "A major concern of parents par-ents is that they seldom feel completely at home in the school their children attend at-tend . . . The parent who is worried about his or her own child's school experience exper-ience or the school system in general is often confused and frustrated because of policies which shut him or her out from the realities of the school operation." One concept that is stressed stres-sed as important is 'utilizing 'utiliz-ing the resources of the home in bolstering the educational program at the school and in using the resources of the school to strengthen the home and the skills of parenting." par-enting." To educators, the paper says, "Educators should spend less time trying to convince themselves and others what the people want from the educators' perspective per-spective and instead find methods and processes that work so that people may speak for themselves in a manner that educators unmistakably un-mistakably hear. We must also find methods and processes pro-cesses for providing people with information which is usable, us-able, timely, and relevant. Then citizens may make value judgments and determine deter-mine direction." Referring to students, the paper suggests that if they were a bigger part of the education decision-making process the schools would benefit by less vandalism and destruction of property and having an influx of new ideas. The students, in their turn would gain a valuable lesson |