Education minister Peter Peacock last week hailed 'a new era for parental involvement', in response to research that found that children who regularly discuss schoolwork with their parents perform better than those who do not.
Speaking at Forthwith Primary School in Edinburgh, Mr Peacock said he wanted to strengthen the link between parents and schools.
This year there will be information for parents offering practical advice on how to support children with homework and build on what they learn at school, as well as how to get more out of parents' evenings.
For schools there will be support on how to communicate better with parents about children's progress, and a project to identify good examples of schools that involve parents.
Scottish results from the Programme for International Student Assessment published in June found that children who talked about school with their parents did better at school than those who never or hardly ever had such discussions.
Mr Peacock said, 'Supporting homework arrangements can make a big difference. Children who regularly do homework benefit from the equivalent of roughly an extra year's schooling. But without the right support and encouragement from their parents, they can find it difficult to get into the homework habit.'
The Rev Ewan Aitken, education spokesman for the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities, said he welcomed the recognition of the role of parents in education. But he added, 'Unfortunately we do not live in an ideal world and for whatever reason, a small group of parents are not as involved as they would like or should be. They are often chastised, but we have to appreciate the real world they are living in.'
