PDN Article: August
17, 2013
Parents are a child's first teachers and their
continued involvement throughout the child's educational life is key to the
child's academic success. Parents need to remain not only involved, but also
engaged in every level of their child's education and academic process.
There are ways for parents to become involved
and engaged in monitoring their student's academic process in school and ensure
that the student is learning at an effective pace.
Early in the school year, parents need to know
who the child's teachers are and establish a good relationship so that they'll
feel more comfortable approaching them, should the child have a problem, and
teachers feel more comfortable contacting the parents. Parents and teachers
must become partners in students' education.
Parents need to feel welcomed and valued as
part of the overall learning community, because they have a lot to offer about
their children that would be helpful in students' academic achievement. Parent
orientations, parent-teacher conferences and other school events are
opportunities to learn about the students and their parents, skills and
backgrounds.
Teachers and school administrators can offer
programs to assist parents in creating better home environments for their
children and establish homework policies and provide positive reinforcement to
students who complete their homework on a regular basis.
School administrators can provide resources to
connect parents to educational training, such as family literacy programs and
information about family support programs that are culturally relevant, as well
as health and nutrition programs.
How to get involved
Parental involvement and engagement can take
many forms from helping your child learn at home, reading a book, assisting
with homework to helping in the classroom by volunteering during lunch breaks,
at the office or on the playground. Volunteering can help bring parents and
school personnel together, enhancing student learning. Parents' presence on the
school campus can be a great strategy to keeping children on their best
behaviors as well.
Parents can monitor their child's academic
progress by requesting progress reports or simply paying an occasional visit to
the school and staying informed with happenings at their child's school through
newsletters or bulletins.
What happens at home is just as important as
what happens in the classroom.
Parents need to establish structure and
routine, like doing homework before or immediately after dinner and getting
organized for the next day. The child knows that's the time to get his or her
work done and prepare for the next day. These are skills the child will carry
through high school, college and throughout life. Having a routine helps
motivate students to do the work.
This also means limiting time in front of a
television, with video games or on the Internet or social media as well.
Children do very well with routine and structure.
Keep an open line of communication with your
student and have an open conversation each day about his or her school
experience. Maintain a positive and supportive home environment that would help
increase his or her self-esteem and confidence and improve school behavior and
grades.
When parents show a lack of enthusiasm for
their child's academic experience, it teaches children to have low expectations
about learning. This can have a negative outcome, leading to low grades, school
behavioral problems, suspensions and even increased school drop-out rates.
Parents should be encouraged and supported to
provide ongoing support for their children's academic success and reinforce
positive behaviors at home. Let's all work together as a community and help our
children excel and succeed.
Annie F.B. Unpingco,
LCSW, is administrator of I Famagu'on-ta at the Guam Behavioral Health and
Wellness Center.
