I'd also just like to add that "parental involvement" does not have to include volunteer hours only. When I was teaching in Title I schools, I would have been THRILLED to find out that a parent sat down with his or her child and looked at homework. It would have been great to know that parents asked their children about what was going on at school each day. However, I know it rarely happened, because when I spoke with parents at conferences (those who showed up), I was often met with blank stares when discussing major projects, labs in which we blew stuff up, or even who their children were currently dating.
When I was a kid, my parents both worked full time and never set foot in the school as a volunteer. However, every night around the dinner table (yes, it was a family rule that we all eat together), my brother and I had to describe something new that we learned that day. It didn't necessarily have to be academic - it could've have been as simple as "I learned I can't trust Angela with a secret, because she....." This facilitated all sorts of discussion, and it allowed my parents to be involved without leading a reading group, cutting out paper letters, or taking time off work. I never missed them at school, but I sure would have missed the bonding that came with sharing ideas, trials, and the day-to-day issues that arise when families spend 8 hours apart. It's so simple, and yet in my experience, not enough parents do it.
