单选题 However important we may regard school life to be, there is no gainsaying the fact that children spend more time at home than in the classroom. Therefore, the great influence of parents cannot be ignored or discounted by the teacher. They can become strong allies of the school personnel or they can consciously hinder and thwart curricular objectives.
Administrators have been aware of the need to keep parents informed of the newer methods used in schools. Many principals have conducted workshops explaining such matters as the reading readiness program, manuscript writing, and developmental mathematics.
Moreover, the classroom teacher, with the permission of the supervisors, can also play an important role in enlightening parents. The many interviews carried on during the years as well as new ways of reporting pupils progress, can significantly aid in achieving a harmonious interplay between school and home.
To illustrate, suppose that a father has been drilling Junior in arithmetic processes night after night. In a friendly interview, the teacher can help the parent sublimate his natural paternal interest into productive channels. He might be persuaded to let Junior participate in discussing the family budget, buying the food, using a yardstick or measuring cup at home, setting the clock, calculating mileage on a trip, and engaging in scores of other activities that have a mathematical basis.
If the father follows the advice, it is reasonable to assume that he will soon realize his son is making satisfactory progress in mathematics and, at the same time, enjoying the work.
Too often, however, teachers' conferences with parents are devoted to petty accounts of children's misdemeanors, complaints about laziness and poor work habits, and suggestions for penalties and rewards at home.
What is needed is more creative approach in which the teacher, as a professional adviser, plants ideas in parents' minds for the best utilization of the many hours that the child spends out of the classroom.
In this way, the school and the home join forces in fostering the fullest development of youngsters' capacities.

单选题 The central idea conveyed in the passage is that ______.
A. home training is more important than school training because a child spends so many hours with his parents
B. teachers can and should help parents to understand and further the objectives of the school
C. parents unwittingly have hindered and thwarted curricular objectives
D. there are many ways in which the mathematics program can be implemented at home

单选题 The author directly discusses the fact that ______.
A. parents drill their children too much in arithmetic
B. principals have explained the new art programs to parents
C. a father can have his son help him construct articles at home
D. a parent's misguided efforts can be redirected to proper channels

单选题 It can reasonably be inferred that the author ______.
A. believes that schools are lacking in guidance personnel
B. believes present relationships between home and school are satisfying
C. feels that the traditional program in mathematics is slightly superior to the developmental program
D. feels that parent teacher interviews can be made much more constructive than they are at present

单选题 The author implies that ______.
A. participation in interesting activities relating to a school subject improves one's achievement in that area
B. school principals do more than their share in interpreting the curriculum to the parents
C. only a small part of the school day should be set apart for drilling in arithmetic
D. too many children are lazy and have poor work habits

单选题 The author's primary purpose in writing this passage is to ______.
A. tell parents to pay more attention to the guidance of teachers in the matter of educational activities in the home
B. help ensure that every child's capacities can fully develop when he leaves school
C. urge teachers and school administrators to make use of a much underused resource of the parents
D. improve the teaching approach in mathematics in and outside the classroom