Last week, Louisiana State Rep. Joe Harrison introduced a bill in that state's legislature that -- if passed -- would grade parents on the level and quality of their involvement in their kid's education.
Focusing attention on the need for parental involvement is always a good idea. But Rep. Harrison's "we" versus "they" approach has no chance of achieving the desired results in our country's urban schools.
What will bring about systematic long-term change in the attitudes of urban schools and households is ongoing training, creative solutions and respectful dialogue. Sure, I'm putting the onus squarely on schools. Educators know without a doubt that kids do better when their parents are involved with their education. Where schools fall short is their failure to overcome the barriers and challenges of urban environments and within urban families.
At LEAP Academy in urban, low-income Camden N.J., parental involvement is not an option, but strongly encouraged as part of a partnership between parents, teachers and administrators. From the very first communication, parents are notified of their responsibility to their children and to the school. They are asked to sign a Parent Partnership Agreement that requires them to be present, help with homework, volunteer at least 40 hours a year, attend parenting workshops and adhere by the rules of the school.
Still, it takes so much more than a piece of paper to engage urban parents in their children's education.
For starters, schools must recognize that parents are not the enemy.
In fact, many parents don't get involved because they lack the confidence to do so. They often feel threatened by the school establishment, lack social capital and feel that there is a lack of school support. Some don't speak English, work several jobs or care for generations of family members, sapping their energy for involvement in a mentally challenging school environment.
Responding to these challenges has led to some key lessons about parent empowerment that can be applied in urban school districts around the country.
Urban parents -- who generally view education as the way out from a life of poverty -- may not know HOW to get involved with their children's education. Forcing involvement is not the answer. Urban parents need a guide and personal guidance to learn how to navigate the school system. This knowledge is not intrinsic.
The only roadmap many urban parents have is the one created by their own experiences growing up in homes where education rarely extends beyond high school and income is low. And those roadmaps are often devoid of how-to's on engaging with your kids, supporting their schools and helping with their homework.
At LEAP, a parent-school coordinator leads parents through the maze of school engagement and facilitates the Parents Council and Parents Academy. The Parents Academy runs monthly parent training series to strengthen parent leadership and advocacy, while the Parents Council offers learning and training that extends beyond the school day.
Parents learn how to support their children with homework and deal with character building. Staff and teachers develop homework exercises that emphasize interaction with parents, and parents receive training in study skills and basic grammar, and coping skills to manage their children learning styles.
Practice makes perfect for parents, too. They need supportive forums and arenas in which to put their parent advocacy skills to work. Training workshops, presentations or involvement with community projects are great practice fields.
To help urban parents deal with the financial and social challenges, schools can become community service hubs where families access assistance and professional services. At LEAP, health care services are provided to our students and their families, along with access to legal services and social service counseling.
Some educators balk at having to educate parents when it's often hard enough to teach their kids. But when students come to school armed with the knowledge that their parents care and are engaged in their education and are there to help and support them, they are more open to instruction and achieve at higher levels.
By providing guidance and clear expectations for parents, a new parent roadmap will be created and handed down to the next generation and those to come.
Louisiana State Rep. Harrison means well, but for his bill to engender meaningful change, it must be more realistic to help all parents make the grade.
Follow Gloria Bonilla Santiago on Twitter: www.twitter.com/GloriaBSantiago
If parents are working seriously with their kids, those kids are likely to be ready for school and are likely to do well. Trying to pull in parents and playing makework chores, which is all to likely to happen, is both unproductive and frustrating.
By the way, my wife has her MS Ed and taught for 12 years. She is not ignorant about teaching.
It's the second and third generation Americans that seem to be the problem, or the foreign people that come from urban areas in their country. I also have never had a problem with any Asin parents (family culture does not permit it).
I have educated parents yearly for 26 years about making sure they read just 15 minutes at home, that their kids are below grade level, that they need to catch up so they don't struggle in high school. I tell them how to help, even if they are uneducated themselves. They say yes, yes, yes. Then, saaasssss, nothing happens.
I have had one parent who met the challenge, he sat down and read Harry Potter evey night to his sixth grader and the kid got tired of it and said "I will read to you" the kid grew about 6 grade levels in vocabualry that year. I was proud, they were proud, the kid was happy to spend quality time with dad.
All kids need is time, people aren't taking the time, they don't even have to be literate to help their kids read, they just can sit and listen to the stories.
You just made yourself the vanguard for the improvement of public education.
I don't think it's fair to "require" me to take part in the education of parents on how to raise their kids. Especially if it means putting in un-paid hours.
Given that, I'm willing to do it because those un-paid hours I put in will profit me peace of mind, good classroom order, and more student learning.
So, count me in. I hope this idea and practice spreads to MY state, and I promise not to B & G during the meetings.
I’m sure you can sight anecdotal evidence to support your “Mandated involvement” theory, but I would like to point to the “What ifs ……..”
What if …..?
-These meeting/workshops are fun?
-I and some parents discover common interest such as little league sports, amatuer theater, working as a film extra, cooking, amiture home improvement, gardening, knitting, you know …. Stuff like that.
-There are other teachers who enjoy these meetings.
-There is a lot of laughter at these meetings/workshops.
-The kids change their behavior.
The monetary investment in conducting these workshops is nominal. The human investment of time has the potential to change lives.
Besides, at the risk of being redundant, what if the meetings are *the forbidden educational word* FUN?
It's the social culture in America. You really think the Jersey Shores crowd wants to help their kid do homework? You could't threaten them to sit with their kid every night.