parents education essay

Parent Role in Education is Critical for Academic Success

Research confirms how critical their role in student success

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• M.Ed., Curriculum and Instruction, University of Florida
• B.A., History, University of Florida

While parents have always had a role in their children’s education, there is a growing body of research that confirms their critical role in helping both teachers and students succeed academically.

Parental Engagement Starts Early

The parent-school relationship is one that should begin early, a fact recognized by both the Department of Health and Human Services and the Department of Education. In May 2016, these departments issued a joint  Policy Statement called "Family Engagement from the Early Years to the Early Grades" to recognize the critical role of parents in promoting children’s success starting in early childhood systems and programs:

"Strong family engagement in early childhood systems and programs is central—not supplemental—to promoting children’s healthy intellectual, physical, and social-emotional development; preparing children for school; and supporting academic achievement in elementary school and beyond."

The policy statement reiterated the findings in an earlier report, " A New Wave of Evidence ," from the Southwest Educational Development Laboratory (2002). This report remains the most comprehensive meta-analysis using 51 studies on parent engagement and student academic success. The report released the statement:

“When schools, families, and community groups work together to support learning, children tend to do better in school, stay in school longer, and like school more.”

The reviewers considered backgrounds and income and included studies covering all grades, all regions of the country, diverse populations along with a variety of methods, both quantitative and qualitative. The conclusion reached was that that parent engagement led to:

• Higher grades and test scores, and enrollment in higher-level programs
• An increase in earned credits and promotions.
• Improved attendance
• Improved behavior and social skills
• An increase in enrollment in postsecondary education

Increasing parent engagement to achieve these outcomes means schools are seeking ways to connect parents to school communities.

What Parents Think

A report commissioned by Learning Heroes and supported by the Carnegie Corporation called " Unleashing Their Power & Potential " details why communication can help.

The data for the report came from a survey that focused on the “perceptions of schools and the state and national assessment data.” More than 1,400 K–8 public school parents across the nation took part. The survey co-collaborators included Univision Communications, National PTA, National Urban League, and the United Negro College Fund.

The findings from  " Unleashing Their Power & Potential" may hold one big surprise for educators; elementary school parents place more emphasis on their child’s happiness than academics. Putting happiness first, however, shifts in the middle school years as parents develop doubts about their children’s preparedness for postsecondary schools.

One primary area for concern in the survey found parents are confused about how to understand the different ways students are accessed:

“(M)ost of the communications parents receive—report cards, annual state test score reports, and curriculum summaries to name a few—are indecipherable and incomprehensible for most parents. About a quarter of parents are not aware of their child's annual state test scores.”

The authors of the report suggest there is a need for improved communications “that are responsive to parents' needs, interests, and concerns.” They note:

“Most parents rely on report card grades, quizzes, and communications with teachers to determine whether their child is achieving their grade level.”

They promote helping parents to understand the connection between these forms of assessment.

That sentiment was echoed by Claudia Barwell, director of learning, Suklaa, with her essay, " How Parents Can Change the Global Landscape of Education " in which she discusses the challenges in finding the right balance in communicating with parents. Her essay, written from a parent’s point of view, suggests that there are three fundamental areas for balance: the teacher’s relationship with parents, parents’ relationship with formal assessment, and the latent power of parents in co-designing schooling.

She suggests that schools survey parents and ask these key questions:

• What values do you believe are essential for a developing child?
• What part of the current curriculum is essential?
• What should we be teaching that we are not?
• What skills will they need for the future?
• What role would you like to play in the education of your children?

Such questions can begin a dialogue and improve the conversations between parents and teachers and administrators. Barwell would also see value in seeing “links to brief teaching methods and a glossary of terms so that parents can support learning at home without being told we are ‘doing it wrong’ by our children.”

Barwell’s request for links illustrates an audience willing to use a growing number of technology tools designed for parents to understand how a school operates. There are also technology tools designed to help parents interact with the teachers and administrators.

How Parents Interact With Schools

If parents are looking for an explanation with details of what their child is expected to learn over the course of a week, month or year, there are multiple options schools may be using, from software platforms to mobile apps. 

For example, SeeSaw or  ClassDojo , used in preschool and elementary grades, are software programs that can document and share information about student learning in real-time. For the upper elementary grades, middle and high school, the platform  Edmodo  allows parents to see assignments and class resources, while Google Classroom provides teachers a means to send assignments to students and send out parent/guardian updates. All of this software offers mobile apps as well. Video-conferencing programs such as Zoom and Google Meet allow for real-time interaction between students and teachers, or even students, teachers, and parents, in a virtual setting.

Because evaluation programs for teachers, support staff, and administrators include  a parent communication/engagement goal , a need exists to measure communication and engagement, and these technology tools collect that data. For this reason, many schools districts encourage parents to sign up for the mobile app  Remind . This app can be used by a teacher to send homework updates or by a school district to send general school updates through text messages.

Finally, most public schools now post student grades online through student-management software such as  PowerSchool, Blackboard ,  Engrade,   LearnBoost , or  ThinkWave . Teachers can post student performance ratings (grades) which let parents keep a watchful on student academic progress. Of course, the amount of information available through these kinds of technology can be a little overwhelming.

Technology tools designed to increase parent engagement are only effective if they are used by the parents. School districts need to consider how they will educate parents to use different technology tools to guide their decisions. But it is not only in the area of technology that parents need training. 

Research findings report that most parents do not understand educational policy at the local, state or federal level. To correct these gaps, the  Every Students Succeed Act (ESSA) , an educational reform plan that replaced the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) in 2015, places an  emphasis on the importance of stakeholder engagement . There are mandates for community input; states  must  solicit and evaluate input from parents when developing strategic plans for schools.

Finally, while teachers need to keep parents “in the loop” they also need to respect the limited time today’s parents find themselves, stretched for time, energy, and resources.

Home and School Connection

Technology and legislation aside, there are other ways parents can be supportive of education in general, and they have been around almost as long as the institution of public education.

As early as 1910, a book on education by Chauncey P. Colegrove titled "The Teacher and the School" placed an emphasis on engaging parents. He advised teachers to “enlist the interest of parents and secure their co-operation by making them acquainted with what the schools are striving to accomplish.”

In his book, Colegrove asked, “Where there is no knowledge of each other, how can there be close sympathy and cooperation between parents and teacher?” He responded to this question by stating, “The surest way to win a parent's heart is to show an intelligent and sympathetic interest in the welfare of his children.”

Over 100 years after Colegrove published "The Teacher and the School," Secretary of Education (2009-2015)  Arne Duncan  added:

“We often talk about parents being partners in education. When we say that, we're usually talking about the healthy and productive relationships that can develop between the adults in a child's life at home and the adults who work with that child at school. I can't overstate how important this partnership is.”

Whether it is a handwritten note or a text message, the communication between teachers and parents is what develops the relationships described by Duncan. While a student’s education may take place within the walls of a building, the school’s connection to parents can extend those walls into the student’s home.  

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• School Education /

Essay on Parents: Free Samples for School Students

• Updated on  
• Nov 6, 2023

Robert Brault once said, ‘A parent’s love is whole no matter how many times divided.’ Our parents mean everything to us. From birth to the day we become financially independent, our parents have always been there for us, formulate our thoughts and make or change the decisions in our lives. Parents play a crucial role in a child’s emotional, social, intellectual, and physical development. We celebrate important days like Mother’s Day and Father’s Day to honour and respect our parents. No words can describe the efforts and the hardships they go through. Therefore, today we will be providing you with an essay on parents to help you understand their importance in our lives and their role in shaping our future.

Table of Contents

• 1 Essay on Parents in 100 Words
• 2 Essay on Parents in 200 Words
• 3 Essay on Parents in 300 Words

Also Read: Parental Pressure: Care But Not Too Much

Essay on Parents in 100 Words

Also Read: Importance of Education in Our Life

Essay on Parents in 200 Words

Also Read: National Parent’s Day 2023

Essay on Parents in 300 Words

Ans: It’s very easy to write an essay on parents, all you need to do is highlight every aspect of your life where your parents have supported you. You can start by mentioning your early school days when you were having difficulties with your classmates or teacher, and how beautifully your parents helped you. Real-life examples will give value to your essay as it will portray the emotional bond between you and your parents.

Ans: Mere words cannot describe the importance of parents in our lives, as they always try to do their best. Our parents offer us the life which they ever dreamed of so that we can have a flourishing future. They are the primary source of moral guidance for us. They impart values, ethics, and principles that shape our understanding of right and wrong, contributing to the development of a strong moral compass.

Ans: Here are 5 lines on parents: Parents are the guiding lights that illuminate the path of a child’s life; They provide unconditional love, which forms the bedrock of our emotional well-being; Through their nurturing presence, parents provide a sense of security and stability; They serve as role models, imparting values and morals that shape our character; Parents are the first teachers, introducing us the wonders of the world.

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Shiva Tyagi

With an experience of over a year, I've developed a passion for writing blogs on wide range of topics. I am mostly inspired from topics related to social and environmental fields, where you come up with a positive outcome.

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• My Parents Essay

500 Words Essay On My Parents

We entered this world because of our parents. It is our parents who have given us life and we must learn to be pleased with it. I am grateful to my parents for everything they do for me. Through my parents essay, I wish to convey how valuable they are to me and how much I respect and admire them.

My Strength My Parents Essay

My parents are my strength who support me at every stage of life. I cannot imagine my life without them. My parents are like a guiding light who take me to the right path whenever I get lost.

My mother is a homemaker and she is the strongest woman I know. She helps me with my work and feeds me delicious foods . She was a teacher but left the job to take care of her children.

My mother makes many sacrifices for us that we are not even aware of. She always takes care of us and puts us before herself. She never wakes up late. Moreover, she is like a glue that binds us together as a family.

Parents are the strength and support system of their children. They carry with them so many responsibilities yet they never show it. We must be thankful to have parents in our lives as not everyone is lucky to have them.

Get the huge list of more than 500 Essay Topics and Ideas

While my mother is always working at home, my father is the one who works outside. He is a kind human who always helps out my mother whenever he can. He is a loving man who helps out the needy too.

My father is a social person who interacts with our neighbours too. Moreover, he is an expert at maintaining his relationship with our relatives. My father works as a businessman and does a lot of hard work.

Even though he is a busy man, he always finds time for us. We spend our off days going to picnics or dinners. I admire my father for doing so much for us without any complaints.

He is a popular man in society as he is always there to help others. Whoever asks for his help, my father always helps them out. Therefore, he is a well-known man and a loving father whom I look up to.

Conclusion of My Parents Essay

I love both my parents with all my heart. They are kind people who have taught their children to be the same. Moreover, even when they have arguments, they always make up without letting it affect us. I aspire to become like my parents and achieve success in life with their blessings.

FAQ of My Parents Essay

Question 1: Why parents are important in our life?

Answer 1: Parents are the most precious gifts anyone can get. However, as not everyone has them, we must consider ourselves lucky if we do. They are the strength and support system of children and help them out always. Moreover, the parents train the children to overcome challenges and make the best decision for us.

Question 2: What do parents mean to us?

Answer 2: Parents mean different things to different people. To most of us, they are our source of happiness and protection. They are the ones who are the closest to us and understand our needs without having to say them out loud. Similarly, they love us unconditionally for who we are without any ifs and buts.

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• issue briefs
• Improve learning

Parental support to learning

This brief examines the role of parents in supporting their children’s learning in school and how planners and decision-makers can support this role. A related brief looks at issues of school and learning readiness.   Parents (or caregivers) are the first educators of their children. The support they provide affects children’s development, learning, and subsequent educational outcomes. This includes direct support to learning before and during formal education, as well as indirect facilitating of factors such as nutrition, health, and hygiene. Support tasks range from school and home communication, assistance in learning activities at home, participation in school events, and participation in school-decision-making bodies (Desforges and Abouchaar, 2003). Support may vary according to the age of the child, ranging from preschool support in the home to direct support once the child has transitioned to school, including assistance with homework and volunteering in classrooms and with school functions.

What we know

A large body of research shows that ‘at-home good parenting’ is a strong predictor of children’s achievement, even after other factors which impact achievement have been taken out of the equation, including the quality of schools at the primary age (Desforges and Abouchaar, 2003: 4). Mahuro and Hungi (2016) found in Uganda that parental participation in the form of commitment of time and resources to their children’s education plays a pivotal role in motivating children to improve their academic grades. 

Findings from the OECD’s Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) confirm that parental involvement in education is pivotal for the success of children throughout their learning pathways. By showing their children how to plan, monitor, and be aware of the learning process, involved parents help them develop the language and other skills needed for learning. Moreover, teachers may pay more attention to students if they know that their parents are more involved (OECD, 2012: 13). 

Research shows how children’s literacy improves when their parents are involved in schools, regardless of the parents’ level of educational achievement (Marphatia et al., 2010). Promoting higher levels of parental involvement may help to reduce performance differences across socioeconomic groups (Borgonovi and Montt, 2012). Evidence suggests that with support disadvantaged parents can become more engaged with their children’s learning and that in turn, this can lead to better outcomes (Axford et al., 2019). 

The COVID-19 pandemic has further highlighted the importance of parental support, as parents have had to join the front-line teaching and learning process (Winthrop et al., 2020). Parents’ lack of education and ability to provide support for homework may crucially affect child learning outcomes, especially during school closures (Brossard et al., 2020).

Overall, findings suggest that children of involved parents are more motivated to learn for learning’s sake, because they adopt their parents’ positive attitudes towards school and learning (OECD, 2012). Accompanying and supervising children’s main school goals – that is, to study and to learn – modelling positive behaviours and attitudes towards school and conveying the importance of school have the strongest positive impact on learning (Castro et al., 2015). Family policies can also be used as entry points for promoting school attendance and learning at all stages of childhood, but these need strengthening to have an impact on promoting equitable learning outcomes. (Richardson et al., 2020).

Challenges and limitations

Evidence on the impact of parental involvement on children’s learning outcomes in developing countries is minimal. Most research has been conducted in urban settings in Western countries where supportive structures often exist to facilitate parental participation (Marphatia et al., 2010; Carter, 2017). Measures of parental involvement used in studies in developing countries are based on scales that have been established in the context of developed countries, where parental involvement may be different (Chowa et al., 2013).

Not all forms of involvement have the same impact on learning. According to Cao et al. (2014), the evidence from experimental and quasi-experimental studies on this issue is mixed, depending on the type of parental involvement and type of outcome considered. Some argue that supervision and control of homework and parental attendance at school activities are not necessarily related to children’s academic achievements (Castro et al., 2015). Others indicate that school-based parental involvement is only modestly associated with student outcomes, at least when compared to ‘at-home good parenting’ (Desforges and Abouchaar, 2003). In Ghana, home-based parental involvement was found to be associated positively with academic performance, while school-based parental involvement had a negative association (Chowa et al., 2013). 

Evidence on the causal impact of parental involvement on academic achievement is scarce. Most studies that document a strong correlation between parental involvement and education outcomes are descriptive but cannot show causality (Marphatia et al., 2010; Cao et al., 2014: 11; Carter, 2017). 

Differing definitions of parental involvement and a general lack of consensus concerning which types of parent involvement lead to which educational outcomes means that establishing links between parental involvement and student learning is complicated, especially since educational outcomes are influenced by a number of different factors (Cao et al., 2014; Desforges and Abouchaar, 2003).

Obstacles to parental involvement

Some parents, in particular those from lower socioeconomic backgrounds or minority groups, face barriers to involvement in their children’s learning. According to Axford et al. (2019: 7), there are material and psychological obstacles ‘which operate differentially (and discriminatingly) across the social classes’ and evidence of a socioeconomic gradient to parents’ engagement in their children’s learning and the home learning environment. Findings from the UK suggest that parents from ethnic and/or linguistic minority groups may not have the confidence or skills to guide their children or may be viewed by teachers and schools as having less ability and effectiveness to contribute to their children’s education (Goodall and Vorhaus, 2010). This was also found to be the case for parents of migrant or refugee children (d’Addio, 2019). While most parents feel that they are able to assist their child with school-related work during the primary years, many feel less capable of helping their children as the curriculum becomes more advanced. 

Policy and planning

Embedding parental engagement in education plans and policies.

Parental engagement is increasingly recognized by policy-makers as one of the integral parts of educational reforms (Wilder, 2014). At the national level, the constitution and/or the education sector policy should define the parameters for parental engagement in schools as well as provide incentives and support for engagement (Marphatia et al., 2010). At the decentralized level, district education offices can support parents with regard to their roles and responsibilities (Kayabwe, Asiimwe, and Nkaada, 2014). Parental engagement must be planned for and embedded in a whole-school or service strategy, including in needs analysis, establishment of priorities, monitoring and evaluation, and raising of public awareness (Goodall and Vorhaus, 2010: 9).

Capacity-building for teachers and administrators

Teachers and administrators may need training to sensitize them to ways in which they can involve parents in the education of their children (Bray, 2001; OECD, 2012). Suggestions include for teachers to organize ‘just drop in’ sessions, establish an open-door policy in their classrooms, create a class website with a dedicated space for questions and answers from parents, and organize home visits. Education systems can help by identifying milestones and objectives as well as providing adequate financial resources to meet the objectives (OECD, 2012).

Parenting and parental involvement programmes

Parenting programmes aim to create awareness of the importance of parents’ role in supporting their children’s growth and development and to strengthen or modify their attitudes, beliefs, and practices in relation to caring for a child (Evans, 2006). Parental involvement programmes aim to strengthen home–school relations with the objective of improving educational outcomes (Barrera-Osorio, 2021). Most programmes focus on marginalized or disadvantaged parents or ethnic minority families, for example, the HIPPY ( Home Instruction for Parents of Preschool Youngsters ) programme, implemented in a wide range of countries, provides support to socially disadvantaged families and parents of young children. In Romania, UNICEF and the Ministry of Education are collaborating on a National Parenting Education Platform through which 31,000 parents and caregivers have received parenting classes. UNICEF reports that such classes contribute to higher school participation and improved communication between parents and schools.

Inclusion of parental involvement in teacher training and curricula

Parents can serve as educational allies of teachers by assisting them in developing children’s full academic potential and monitoring the quality of teaching and teaching strategies (Marphatia et al., 2010). The importance for teachers of working with parents to support children’s learning and development is also underscored in curriculum frameworks in many countries (OECD, 2017). For example, the new Kenyan curriculum (2018) emphasizes the role of parents as essential to their children’s education with ‘parental empowerment and engagement’ as one of its guiding principles. In Malta,  the National Curriculum Framework (2012) highlights the fact that educators need to work with parents and the wider community in order to ensure a successful educational process.

Promotion of parents’ associations

The positive impact of parents’ involvement and support is significant, both on school governance and on children’s learning outcomes (Desforges and Abouchaar, 2003; Balarin and Cueto, 2007). While such policies have a particularly notable impact on governance, they also have a learning component. Evidence from Mexico suggests that trust between parents and teachers, and clear rules about parents’ expectations are key factors to any improvement (Barrera-Osorio, 2021). School governance policies can also provide a starting point for parental engagement within schools. However, roles and responsibilities of parents in relation to other stakeholders are not clearly defined in most countries, and the roles of different stakeholders need to be made clear and accepted by all (Marphatia et al., 2010; Bray, 2001). 

Parental support during school closures

Policy decisions on school closures and continuing education remotely need to take into account parents’ capability to help their child learn. Parents can be supported with home learning packages, particularly where there is no IT connectivity or electricity (Brossard et al., 2020). Angrist et al. (2020) found that engaging parents through SMS and phone calls led to increased parental participation in their children’s education and improved parents’ understanding of their child’s learning level. It is important that any strategies developed also take into account parents’ busy lives and the variety of family situations with support targeted to those who need it most (Winthrop, 2020).  

Plans and policies

• Kenya: Guidelines on parental empowerment and engagement (2019)
• South Africa : Practical guidelines: How parents can contribute meaningfully to the success of their children in schools (2016)
• Education Scotland.  Engaging parents and families - A toolkit for practitioners
• Garcia, M.E.; Frunzi, K.; Dean, C. B.; Flores, N.; Miller, K.B. 2016. Toolkit of Resources for Engaging Families and the Community as Partners in Education . Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Education; Institute of Education Sciences; National Center for Education.

Angrist, N.; Bergman, P.; Brewster, C.; Matsheng, M. 2020. Stemming learning loss during the pandemic: A rapid randomized trial of a low-tech intervention in Botswana.    CSAE Working Paper WPS/2020-13. Oxford: Centre for the Study of African Economies (CSAE).

Axford, N.; Berry, V., Lloyd, J.; Moore, D.; Rogers, M.; Hurst, A.; Blockley, K.; Durkin, H.; Minton, J. 2019. How can schools support parents’ engagement in their children’s learning? Evidence from research and practice. London: Education Endowment Foundation.

Balarin, M.; Cueto, S. 2007. The quality of parental participation and student achievement in Peruvian government schools. Working Paper 35. Oxford: Young Lives.

Barrera-Osorio, F.; Gertler, P.; Nozomi Nakajima, N.; Patrinos, H.A. 2021. Promoting parental involvement in schools: Evidence from two randomized experiments.  RISE Working Paper Series. 21/060.

Borgonovi, F.; Montt, G. 2012. Parental involvement in selected PISA countries and economies. OECD Education Working Papers No. 73. Paris: OECD Publishing.

Bray, M. 2001. Community partnerships in education: Dimensions, variations and implications. Education for All: 2000 Assessment. Paris: UNESCO. 

Brossard, M.; Cardoso, M.; Kamei, A.; Mishra, S.; Mizunoya, S.; Reuge, N. 2020. Parental engagement in children’s learning: Insights for remote learning response during COVID-19. Innocenti Research Briefs no. 2020-09, Florence: UNICEF Office of Research – Innocenti.

Cao, Y.; Ramesh, A.; Menendez, A.; Dayaratna, V. 2014. Out-of-school parents and community involvement interventions. Washington, DC: United States Agency for International Development.

Carter, N. 2017.  Engaging parents in their children’s education. K4D Helpdesk Report. Brighton: Institute of Development Studies.

Castro, M.; Expósito-Casas, E.; López-Martín, E.; Lizasoain, L.; Navarro-Asencio, E.; Gaviria, J.L. 2015. Parental involvement on student academic achievement: A meta-analysis .  In: Educational Research Review, 14, 33–46 .

Chowa, G.A.N.; Masa, R.; Tucker, J. 2013. Parental involvement’s effects on academic performance: Evidence from the YouthSave Ghana experiment. St. Louis, MO: Washington University Center for Social Development.

D’Addio, A. 2019.  'Parents and communities need to be engaged in migrant children’s education’. World Education Blog, 3 July 2019.

Desforges, C.; Abouchaar, A. 2003. The impact of parental involvement, parental support and family education on pupil achievements and adjustment: A literature review. Research Report, 443. London: Department for Education and Skills.

Evans, J.L. 2006. Parenting programmes: An important ECD intervention strategy. Background paper for the Education for All Global Monitoring Report 2007. Paris: UNESCO. 

Goodall, J.; Vorhaus, J. 2010. Review of best practice in parental engagement. Research report DFE-RR-156. London: Department for Education.

Kayabwe, S.; Asiimwe, W.; Nkaada, D. 2014. Successful decentralization: The roles and challenges of DEOs in Uganda. Paris: UNESCO-IIEP.

Mahuro, G.M.; Hungi, N. 2016. Parental participation improves student academic achievement: A case of Iganga and Mayuge districts in Uganda. In: Cogent Education, 3(1) .

Marphatia, A.A.; Edge, K.; Legault, E.; Archer, D. 2010. Politics of participation: Parental support for children’s learning and school governance in Burundi, Malawi, Senegal and Uganda. Johannesburg: ActionAid; London: Institute of Education.

OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development). 2017. Starting Strong V: Transitions from early childhood education and care to primary education. Paris: OECD Publishing.

OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development). 2012. Let’s read them a story! The parent factor in education. Paris: OECD Publishing.

Richardson, D.; Dugarova, E.; Higgins, D.; Hirao, K.; Karamperidou, D.; Mokomane, Z.; Robila, M. 2020. Families, family policy and the sustainable development goals.   Innocenti Research Report. Florenc e: UNICEF Office of Research – Innocenti. 

Wilder, S. 2014. Effects of parental involvement on academic achievement: A meta-synthesis.   In: Educational Review, 66(3), 377–97 .

Winthrop, R.; Ershadi, M.; Angrist, N.; Bortsie, E.; Matsheng, M. 2020. A historic shock to parental engagement in education: Parent perspectives in Botswana during COVID-19.   Washington, DC: Brookings Center for Universal Education.  

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Essays on the Role of Parents in Educational Outcomes and Inequality

Chan, Eric Wai Kin

Parents have been shown to be a crucial driver in a child's educational outcomes in both the economics and education literature. However, researchers have yet to understand the roles that educational interventions, information, and policies might have on parental behavior and engagement toward their child's education and, in turn, how to effectively promote parental engagement for the benefits of children. In my dissertation, I examine how educational interventions and policies can impact the behavior and decision-making of parents and in turn affect student achievement. Specifically, I add to the scholarly literature evidence on (a) how being identified as gifted student affect parental levels of engagement and time investments, (b) how timely information about academic progress might change parental behaviors and improve educational outcomes, and (c) how immigrant mothers react to an expansion of pre-K specifically targeted at their children. Chapter one examines the short-term and long-term effects of an elementary school gifted education program in California that clusters 6-8 gifted students in classrooms. While I examine the academic effects of the program, I emphasize the analysis on the role of parent engagement and time investments in the lives of gifted children. While the gifted education literature has studied the causal effects of programs, there is limited evidence on how parent engagement might change as a result of these programs and its potential as a mechanism for achievement effects. Therefore, this study contributes to the economic debate of whether parent engagement is a complement or substitute to education quality. Using a fuzzy regression discontinuity approach, I primarily find small to no evidence on short-term academic effects, but stronger effects on longer-term course-taking and college outcomes. On the parent side, I find that while most parents are not more engaged overall, parents of minority gifted children and low-socioeconomic students are. The implication is that there is heterogeneity in the manner by which parents react behaviorally to students that are identified as gifted. In Chapter two, a joint paper with Peter Bergman, we run a randomized controlled trial in West Virginia examining the effects of a high-frequency academic information intervention on middle and high school student' academic outcomes. In this field experiment, we send out three types of alerts to parents - weekly missing assignments, weekly class absences, and monthly low grade average - during the 2015-16 school year. We find that the intervention reduces course failures by 38%, increases class attendance by 17%, and increases retention. We find no evidence that test scores improve, but find that there are significant improvements on in-class exam scores. The evidence of improvement in test scores show that there are information frictions between parent and child, and thus parents may have inaccurate beliefs about their child's abilities due to a lack of complete information. Chapter three examines the maternal labor supply and pre-K enrollment effects of a bilingual pre-K policy implemented in Illinois during the 2010-11 school year, which came after the implementation of a statewide universal pre-K program in 2007. Research has shown the importance of quality preschool in the development of a child, with minorities particularly sensitive to the prevalence of quality early childhood education. In this study, I exploit variation in a policy mandating that any school with at least twenty identified English Language Learner student of a particular language is required to open up a bilingual classroom for those students. Using multiple control groups and various difference-in-differences specifications, I find that there is little to no change in maternal labor supply among Hispanics and recent immigrants, including the probability of being in the labor force, hours worked per week, and wage and salary income. However, I also find a significant and robust increase of 18-20 percentage points in the enrollment of 3- and 4-year old children into pre-K programs in Illinois. This result shows that, even in a state where there is universal access to pre-K, the design of such policies might not have sufficient reach to high-need parents. Taken together, this dissertation helps deepen our understanding of the various roles parents might affect educational outcomes and inequality. As my results demonstrate, there are various ways which help and incentivize parents to react in a manner that will improve childhood and long-term outcomes. Whether by programs, information, or public policy, the tools are many, yet it is crucial that scholarly work continues to dive deeper into how parents, children, and other stakeholders react.

• Education and state
• School management and organization
• Educational equalization
• Education--Parent participation

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MSU Extension Child & Family Development

The importance of parent education.

Tracy Trautner, Michigan State University Extension - October 03, 2019

Love is instinctual, skills are not.

Parenting, for many, is the most important and challenging job to ever have and a role that gets little recognition. Parents and other primary caregivers of all types (foster parents, grandparents, adoptive parents, etc.) can all use an opportunity to learn tips and new strategies to relate with our children and enjoy being with them. It also allows an opportunity to engage with other parents that may be having similar issues and struggles.

Today, there are new parenting challenges to overcome. Skills, routines and values were passed from generation to generation and parents could rely on networks of support to help them parent. Compared to past generations, many parents and families have become isolated and are raising children in silos. These parents are trying to figure it out alone. The skills a child needs to be successful have changed as well.

Over the years, each generation sees a change in what society considers parenting issues. Currently, families struggle with behavior management issues including lack of expectations, child supervision and excessively severe and inconsistent punishment on behalf of the parent. According to John Geldhoff , an Oregon University assistant professor of behavioral and health science, all parents—high income, low income, mandated and non–mandated—can benefit from evidence-based parenting education. Parents who have attended classes and learned effective discipline and parenting techniques report having children with higher grades, fewer behavior problems, less substance abuse issues, better mental health and greater social competence.

Parenting education programs offer support and education that can address issues and make parenting easier, more enjoyable and can strengthen a child’s ability to thrive. Building Early Emotional Skills in Young Children is one of many parenting programs offered by Michigan State University Extension. Many other reliable sources of information for parents are available to meet their needs. Resources are readily available online through YouTube videos, research-based websites, in person, podcasts, blogs and books that are readily accessible. Before you engage with a parenting resource, check the source of the information to be certain it is research based and reputable.

Your child’s childcare center or school, community center, local library and local county MSU Extension may offer in-person trainings. In-person parent education allows parents the options to ask pertinent questions to their situation and potentially meet other parents to share stories with. A frequent issue that is brought up is relatable to everyone in the class, quality discussions begins, and ideas are shared. Online classes may also offer valuable opportunities to explore materials at your own pace and connect virtually with other parents.

Parenting education can be seen as something negative, like it is a reflection on your ability to parent. Parenting education is not just for parents who are struggling or having severe problems with their children’s behavior—it can be an opportunity for parents to feel more confident as a parent, prevent future problems, enjoy being with their children and help their family get along.

We may invest time and money to take our new puppy to obedience class, take golf lessons or practice our swing, or take our family out to eat or on vacation as a way to invest in ourselves and our families. Similarly, parenting classes are an investment in our personal growth and our children’s future ability to build healthy relationships, make and retain friends, get a job and keep it, and become great parents themselves.

To find more valuable, research-based information about parenting, check out the following resources:

• National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC)
• Michigan Association for the Education of Young Children (MiAEYC)
• Zero to Three
• Center on the Developing Child , Harvard University
• MSU Extension's Family

This article was published by Michigan State University Extension . For more information, visit https://extension.msu.edu . To have a digest of information delivered straight to your email inbox, visit https://extension.msu.edu/newsletters . To contact an expert in your area, visit https://extension.msu.edu/experts , or call 888-MSUE4MI (888-678-3464).

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Supporting parents and caregivers in ensuring young children learn to grow, thrive and contribute in a complex and changing world.

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Essay on Role of Parents in Children’s Life

Students are often asked to write an essay on Role of Parents in Children’s Life in their schools and colleges. And if you’re also looking for the same, we have created 100-word, 250-word, and 500-word essays on the topic.

Let’s take a look…

100 Words Essay on Role of Parents in Children’s Life

The importance of parents.

Parents play a crucial role in shaping their children’s lives. They are the first teachers and role models. Their love, care, and guidance greatly influence a child’s development.

Nurturing Values

Parents instill values and ethics in their children. They teach respect, kindness, honesty, and responsibility, shaping the child’s character and worldview.

Providing Support

Parents provide emotional, financial, and educational support. They help children navigate challenges, fostering resilience and independence.

Encouraging Dreams

Parents encourage their children’s dreams and ambitions. They provide motivation and inspiration, helping children achieve their goals.

In conclusion, parents play an irreplaceable role in children’s lives.

250 Words Essay on Role of Parents in Children’s Life

The pivotal role of parents.

Parents play a crucial role in shaping the lives of their children, serving as the primary influence and guiding light. They are the architects of a child’s early environment, nurturing and molding them into responsible adults.

Emotional and Social Development

Parents are instrumental in a child’s emotional and social development. Through their interactions, they teach children how to express emotions, communicate effectively, and form relationships. They provide the emotional security a child needs for a healthy psychological development.

Educational Guidance

Parents are the first educators. They instill the value of education, encourage curiosity, and foster a love for learning. Their involvement in a child’s academic life significantly impacts the child’s attitude towards education and their academic success.

Moral and Ethical Development

Parents play a critical role in imparting moral and ethical values. They set the standards for behavior, teaching children about honesty, respect, kindness, and responsibility. These lessons form the foundation of a child’s character.

Setting Life Goals

Parents guide their children in setting and achieving life goals. They provide advice, share experiences, and offer support, helping children navigate life’s challenges.

In conclusion, parents are the cornerstone of a child’s life. Their influence shapes a child’s personality, beliefs, and values, laying the groundwork for their future success. However, it’s important to remember that effective parenting involves a balance of guidance and allowing children to make their own decisions, fostering independence and resilience.

500 Words Essay on Role of Parents in Children’s Life

The pivotal role of parents in children’s life.

Parents play a crucial role in every stage of a child’s development, shaping their world view and preparing them for the challenges of life. Their influence extends beyond providing basic physical necessities and extends to the psychological and emotional development of the child.

Parents as First Teachers

The first education that children receive is from their parents. They learn basic skills such as talking, walking, and social interaction by observing and imitating their parents. Even before formal education begins, parents lay the foundation for cognitive development and curiosity. They introduce children to books, nature, and the world around them, fostering a love for learning.

Parents as Emotional Anchors

Parents are the primary source of emotional support for children. They help children understand and manage their emotions, fostering emotional intelligence. Through their interactions, parents teach children how to express their feelings appropriately and handle stressful situations. They also provide a safe and loving environment where children can express their feelings without fear of judgement.

Parents as Moral Guides

Parents are the first moral guides for children. They teach them the difference between right and wrong, instilling values and ethics that shape their character. Parents model behavior and attitudes that children often adopt. The values parents instill in their children, such as honesty, kindness, and respect, significantly influence their future behavior and relationships.

Parents as Role Models

Parents serve as role models, exhibiting behaviors that children tend to emulate. The way parents handle their responsibilities, treat others, and react to life’s ups and downs sets an example for children. Their actions, more than their words, have a lasting impact on a child’s behavior and attitudes.

Parents as Navigators of Socialization

Parents also play a critical role in the socialization of children. They introduce children to societal norms, expectations, and rules. Through parents, children learn how to interact with others, understand social cues, and behave in different social situations. Parents also help children develop empathy and compassion, essential for forming healthy relationships.

The role of parents in a child’s life is multifaceted and profound. They are the first teachers, emotional anchors, moral guides, role models, and navigators of socialization. The influence of parents shapes the child’s personality, behavior, and outlook towards life. As such, it is incumbent upon parents to provide a nurturing environment that promotes the overall development of the child. The importance of parents in a child’s life cannot be understated as they lay the foundation for the future of the child.

That’s it! I hope the essay helped you.

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The Parents Role in Their Child’s Education

By: Author Dr. Patrick Capriola

Posted on Published: February 23, 2019

The parent’s role in their child’s education is more complex than ever. Standardization has placed increasing pressure on students and the advent of social media and online learning platforms have created a vastly different educational experience for today’s kids than prior generations. It is important for parents to be involved in their child’s education so they can help them navigate this increasingly complex landscape.

What is the role of the parent in their child’s education? The parent’s role is to ensure the child’s basic needs are met every day and to help them develop the academic, social, and emotional skills necessary to succeed. Parents should nurture their ability to take on responsibility, engage with peers, work towards goals and pursue their interests.

The parent is the most influential person in the child’s life and has an unmatched power to direct and motivate. Parents who seek to support their child’s academic success should focus on whole child strategies that are considerate of where the child is in every area of their development. You and your child will benefit greatly if you have a vision for fulfilling your role in your child’s education that examines the supports that need to be in place to ensure they get the most out of their formal and informal educational experiences.

Make Sure the Basics are Covered

From the beginning, the parent’s primary role is to make sure the child’s basic needs are met. As they grow older these things are still your job, but how you go about making sure they get done should change. For example, until a child is 7 or 8 you may need to be in the bathroom with them when they brush their teeth. If they won’t do it, you will have to get in there and do it for them. It may be a hassle (I know my 3-year-old gives me a battle every night), but the benefits far outweigh the costs. You don’t want to look at your teenager suffering 10 years from now with their mouth full of cavities. You also don’t want to pay the bills to get them fixed.

21st-century life has presented parents with this decision more than ever before – pay the price now or pay a higher price later. Each time you are presented with this choice you have the power to teach your child good habits. The lessons they learn from you about responsibility, attentiveness, and care will carry over into other areas of their lives – including education.

Each day parents must have age appropriate expectations for what the child needs to do for themselves. Parents should also have a plan in place for how they will monitor whether those responsibilities are met and to the degree of quality with which it is carried out. Each morning the parent needs to ensure the child has:

• Done their Homework the Night Before
• Had a full night’s sleep
• Had a healthy breakfast
• Cared for Themselves and Maintained their Environment
• Arrived at School on Time

It’s a lot to get done every day, but the payoff is worth it in the end. The skills your child will learn as they practice doing their homework, taking a shower, getting to bed on time, making their bed in the morning, brushing their teeth, and grooming themselves in a neat and presentable manner will stay with them for life.

As a young adult, they will undoubtedly have a few days where they don’t make their bed, eat well, or care for themselves. They will intuitively know that it’s wrong because it won’t feel like the right thing to do. Something will be out of place. They will sense this because you made sure they knew how to care for themselves properly.

Remember, what you teac them today will stay with them forever. There is no place where this is more apparent than self-care, which is the first step on the path to personal responsibility.

Make the Home a Great Place to Learn

The child’s home shapes their perception of what a safe and relaxing environment should be and it is where they learn habits that they carry with them for the rest of their lives. As the parent, you decide how they will experience their home. When I think about how my kids experience our home, I break it down into two parts; physically and psychologically.

The home should be neat and clean. If your child experiences organization as they grow up it will help them appreciate its importance later in life. Everything should have a place, and that includes opportunities for learning.

Do they have a space they can call their own? If you can, make sure they do. Are their toys in the playroom educational or purely for entertainment? Make sure there is a balance of both. Do they have access to a lot of screens? Screen time should be limited and the child should not view them as a part of their daily lives.

Do they have a desk anywhere? Is it in a place where they feel comfortable learning and is free of distractions? Can they go there to just chill out and play? Make sure they have some kind of work station that they can go to do homework or play constructively.

Psychologically

The way the child feels about the home will be a big factor in determining how comfortable they are learning while there. The home should be a place where the child is expected to learn, and they should intuitively understand the importance of this expectation.

You won’t be able to instill a belief in education in them through words alone. It must come through action. Establish a routine where they sit down in a quiet area and study, read or work on an intellectual hobby at least 3 times a week. Make it a priority.

As you are getting your child established in their new routine make sure you are considerate of how they feel about the experience. Although you don’t want to place all of your emphasis on whether they like working and studying all the time (they won’t), you do want to try to make sure they are comfortable enough to get into their zone so they can work productively. That is the feeling that you will work to build on.

When your child is able to consistently tune in to what they are working on they will experience more success over time. Give them the opportunity to experience that success by making sure they understand what their goals are for the day. If they are working on a huge Lego set they should not be attempting to finish it each day. Help them set a smaller goal that they can work toward, so they can see how success builds upon itself. With that, confidence will follow.

Understand Your Child’s Learning Style

If you are able to understand your child strengths you will be much more likely to help them as they work through the struggles that come along with discovering themselves. There is currently no way to put everything about their learning style into a category that will help you know exactly what to do and when, but there are some helpful frameworks and ideas based on research that should assist you in developing a better understanding of how your child learns.

The most discussed framework is known as learning modalities, and there are four:

• Kinesthetic

Visual Learners

• Benefit from demonstrations
• Have well-developed imaginations
• Easily distracted by movement or action
• Use lists to stay organized
• Easily learn through descriptions
• Remember faces but forget names

Auditory Learners

• Enjoy discussion and plays
• Solve problems by talking them out
• Can be distracted by noise
• Prefer verbal instructions from the teacher
• Remember names but forget faces

Kinesthetic Learners

• Thrive when they are active
• Learn while moving and doing (manipulatives help)
• Prefer action over watching or listening
• Struggle sitting down and concentrating
• High energy

Tactile Learners

• Enjoy hands-on activities like projects or labs
• Learn while taking notes
• Likes to draw to remember

You will probably find that your child does not fit firmly into any one of these categories, but instead favors one over the other. Almost all kids learn through each of the learning modalities, and this framework is used to determine which they favor more. Take some time to observe how your child learns now that you’ve read these over. Think about how you can modify learning at home so your child can engage in activities that are more responsive to their preferences and needs.

There is more to understanding a child’s learning style than just their modality. Learning d ispositions provide another helpful framework that can be an important indicator of what they will respond to. These are the habits of mind that are built up over time. If you understand where your child is in the learning disposition framework, you can better understand how they respond to the learning process. There are five learning dispositions to consider:

Persistence

Agility and Flexibility

• Motivation and drive to learn

Metacognition

Problem-Solving and Questioning

Persistent learners are willing to stick with a task and see it through completion. They won’t easily give up and will work to analyze a problem and develop a strategy to solve it. Children who learn persistence develop resilience over time through their frequent contact with intellectual adversity.

Learners who are agile and flexible are able to change their minds when they receive new information. They don’t get stuck in the trap of assuming things need to be the way they were originally presented. They understand how new variables being introduced to a situation can completely reshape that scenario.

Motivation and Drive to Learn

Learners who are motivated and driven are enthusiastic about and engaged in the learning process. They seek out learning experiences and are driven by both extrinsic and intrinsic factors.

Children who think about their own thinking are able to plan a strategy for producing the information that they need, are aware of their own learning process and can reflect on and evaluate the productiveness of their thinking. Metacognition is important for the motivated learner to guide themselves as they plot new courses for their own learning.

Problem solvers are adept at asking questions so they can fill in the gaps between what they know and what they need to know. They are also able to analyze scenarios from different points of view to see other perspectives that may have an impact on the outcome of the situation.

Model Active Learning

You are your child’s most significant role model. Growing up, they will look to you first to learn the skills and traits that will make them successful in life. In few areas will this be more important than learning. Through hard work, dedication, and daily modeling you have the opportunity to instill in them a passion for learning and a willingness to put the work in necessary to be successful.

Over the years your kids will hear you tell them about the importance of learning. The degree to which they take those words seriously will be determined in large part by the action they see you taking as a learner yourself. Make reading a priority, and ensure they see it is a priority.

If your children are younger read with them every single day for at least 15 minutes (if they are really little) to a ½ hour. If they are older, try starting your own family book club so you can read stories together and share the meaning of those stories with each other.

Another great way to demonstrate to your kids that you are a lifelong learner is through the work that you do around the house. Running a household comes with a lot of responsibility, and nobody knows it all. You undoubtedly have had to look things up to figure them out at some point. Involve your kids in this process.

Perhaps the drain under your sink was clogged and you realized that it’s not that difficult to release the plug and remove the debris manually. Or, maybe have a draft coming in from the windows and want to use some silicone to seal it up. Both are great opportunities to engage them in learning and application of knowledge.

Make sure they participate in the entire process with you. If you learn and apply the information together they will understand the process behind learning information then acting on it, which is something they don’t always get in school. It’s a great way to make learning real and relevant while creating a bonding experience for the family.

This will require more patience from you and your project may not get completed the right way the first time, but if you prioritize the opportunity to connect with your child you will see the lasting benefits of reusing this strategy for years to come.

Support the Child in their Learning

Children who have parents who support their learning are more likely to succeed in school. You can help your child by modeling the interest and excitement about learning necessary to create a passion in them for learning that will stay with them for life.

Help Them Learn to be Responsible for their Own Learning

Children need to be responsible for their own learning at an early age (in an age-appropriate manner). In a lot of ways, it’s easier when they are little because they are more eager to learn and to please their parents. Use that energy wisely. Make sure they are exposed to engaging learning experiences that make them want to come back for more.

There are many places on the web that already do a great job listing out ideas and activities that you can use with your child to keep them engaged in the learning process. Here’s the one I like best.

Engage with the School You Chose

Parents who view their school of choice as partners in their child’s learning are typically more engaged in the educational process. They know that it’s the parent who is most responsible for the child’s education, not the school.

As such, they choose their child’s school carefully and closely monitor what is going on at the school to ensure the school is living up to their expectations of what should be provided to their child. If the school messes things up, they are not afraid to make a move to a new school.

Of course, that’s not the first option anyone wants to take. Once you have chosen a school that you think is a great fit for your child you want to engage them intentionally and frequently to ensure that lines of communication are open and high expectations are being met for your child.

Make sure that you receive information from your child’s teacher about their behavior and academic performance as frequently as you think will keep you well informed. Get involved with the parent-teacher association so you can be more aware of what is going on at the school.

Get to know and be friendly with the principal’s secretary (they typically know what’s going on at the school). Build relationships in the school community that get you beyond the messaging of the district and administration and to the core of what is really happening at the school.

Understand Your Child’s Intellectual Interests (Beyond School)

Schooling itself is not a goal. It is a vehicle to develop students into stronger critical thinkers so they can contribute to society meaningfully later in life. You can help them each step of the way by paying attention to what they are really interested in and give them the time to pursue those interests.

The liberal education that is provided to students in western countries is great for creating well-rounded thinkers that are versed in the arts and sciences. However, the general curriculum does not typically allow for too much deviation from prescribed standards.

So, if a child has other interests they want to pursue they don’t always have the options to do so. That’s a great opportunity for you to shape your child’s free time with hobbies instead of downtime (or screen time).

Give your child the chance to develop their interests by ensuring they have the time and resources needed to learn about their topic. Let’ say they are interested in engineering. Help them learn more by joining a local rocket club.

When they join the club they will be introduced to the concept of rocketry in a thoughtful way. Engage with them as much as you can and become part of the learning process if it is something you want to share together.

Make connections with other parents so it will be easier for your child to meet up with other kids who share their interest in rocketry. Watch them as they practice. Make sure quality learning is taking place. When it comes time to buy them their own rocket, you will be more comfortable knowing they have been taught the proper way to use it because they were taught by trained adults and practiced with proficient peers.

No matter what their interest turns out to be, it will be important for you to support with the time, resources, and encouragement they need to progress through the learning process. Your involvement can be a great addition to ensuring they succeed.

They don’t have to be the next great engineer, they just have to stick with it long enough to figure out if it really is something they want to pursue. Once they have given it the time it deserves, they can choose to stick with it or move on to something else.

Turn Off Devices

I write frequently about this topic . Avoid devices as much as possible. In my home, they are not permitted (including T.V.) during the week and we try to avoid them as much as possible on the weekends. When we do allow the T.V. to be on, we try to ensure the kids are watching something that has a legitimate storyline and plot.

Tablets and phones are avoided as much as possible as well. Devices create a distraction for kids with little to show for their time. They are one of those things that you probably want to put off for as long as possible and then minimize time exposed when you finally have to give in and purchase your child one of their own.

Final Thoughts

It’s important to remember that the parent is the primary driver behind the child’s education, not the school. If a child has a strong parent who is engaged throughout the learning process they will rely less on other role models for learning.

That’s important in a day and age where U.S. schools are still performing below international standards. It’s up to you to ensure they get what they can from the education system and they get the rest of what they need from somewhere else. Where that is will be up to you.

It will probably be a combination of strategies that will help you find success. Remember that this is a marathon. Make your connection with your child the priority above everything thing else that goes into parenting and you will have a solid foundation for success.

Related Questions

Why is it important for parents to be involved in their child’s education.

Parents who are involved in their child’s education are more likely to have kids who develop socially, academically, and behaviorally in a healthy way. Children with involved parents benefit from lower drop-out rates, higher grades, better social skills and greater engagement in all that schools have to offer. As a result, they are more likely to enroll in and complete college, setting them up for their career of choice.

How Do I Help My Child Find Their Passion?

Make sure you are frequently introducing them to new things. When something sticks, write it down. Continue this process, noting their interests along the way. As you compile a list of their interests you can work with your child to decide which ones they will pursue. Give them the freedom and support they need to explore each one. For the most part it should be driven by the child’s desire, but remember every kid needs a nudge once in a while.

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Role Played by Parents in Education

Introduction, home advantage, the education stakeholder have discovered the importance of.

Parenting and education are two aspects of a student’s school life that cannot be separated. Going by the fact that school children come from family backyards, the role of the parent in the entire child’s school life is clearly cut out. Moreover, research findings point out that the role of the parents in the children’s academic lives is so crucial that if not played fully and effectively, the results and children’s success (academically) are likely to be negative. Parents look for schools for their children, prepares and take them to schools, meets all the children education costs, provides other parental care to the children, makes follow-ups to ensure that the children are comfortable in the learning institutions, ensures the children safety (both in school and at home), follows up the progress of their children in learning among others.

Ideally, it can be concluded that the role of the parents in the children’s education is unmatched. While some parents believe that the academic life of the child should be solely entrusted to the teachers, others believe they have a central role to play in the success of their children. This paper, therefore, looks at the way parents are involved in education and gives a lengthy argument on the contribution of the latter to the overall educational success.

The respondent (parent) identified as a 33-year-old female in Taiwan who lived with her husband and who had a straight sexual orientation. In addition, the respondent’s race was typically Chinese. She also spoke Chinese, which she claimed was her native language. Asked about the number of children she had, the parent hinted that she had two male children, both of whom were of school-going age and attended an elementary school in the neighborhood. On her value of her children’s education, the parent indicated that there was nothing that mattered in her life than to see through her two boys to the highest level of education possible, revealing that she and her husband (both of whom had post-graduate qualifications), had presented a good role model, a thing that continued to inspire the boys to achieve even higher levels of education. In addition, the respondent hinted at their commitment to the course through close parental mentoring and support to the boys throughout their school life. The respondent believed that the success of the boys in education greatly depended on this support, a factor that she admitted that they were willing to provide.

Apart from payment of school fees, the respondent hinted that they had organized for private transport for the boys to and from school irrespective of the latter being within the vicinity of their dwelling unit. She also pointed out that it was the role of parents to ensure that their children got the best schooling environment if at all they were to attain the best results. Commenting on the importance of parental involvement in education matters, the respondent said that children’s education responsibility could not only be bestowed on the teachers and the students. Instead, she felt that the parents had a more central and crucial role to play in an effort to see through their children’s education success dream. She also indicated that the results of education could be more favorable in a circumstance where the school’s management, teachers, and the parents could unite through healthy partnership encouraged by a quest to achieve a common objective (children’s educational success).

She however suggested the need for more parental involvement in the school’s decision making and planning, which she noted was in the initial stages of development not only in the school the boys schooled but also in many other schools in the region. This, she said was an achievement in enhancing children’s education excellence in the region a move that she expressed optimism of holding more potential. As a chairperson of the Parent Teachers Association (PTA) in the school which the boys attended, the respondent said that it was irresponsible for the parents to entrust their children fully to the school administration and teachers. Instead, she suggested that there was a dire need for increased parental involvement in the children’s schooling life. Going by the take of the respondent, parents have a role in ensuring that all was well for their children both socially and academically. She suggested that the parents could also enhance children’s academic excellence through post-school hour’s tuition, assistance in homework completion as well as close monitoring of the child’s performance both in the academic and social circles. These views of the respondent concur to a large extent with the views of the author (Annette) in her book, Home Advantage.

Ideally, she felt that the parents were central to the success of the children’s education saying that they were closer to and spent more time with the children than the teachers. As a result, she pointed out that parents ought to be in a better position to aid children in the achievement of their goals. Asked about the challenges that children’s education posed to the parents, the respondent hinted that seeing children through academic success and giving them the attention that they deserved was one of the most challenging bits of parenting. However, she said that children’s education was one of the most important parental obligations, so important to warrant relentless effort from the parent just to make sure that the children succeeded academically. In fact, she admitted that the success of education at whatever level largely depended on the parents’ realization that they have a central role to play thus actively involving themselves in all aspects that support children’s success in school.

According to Annette (2000: 8), the involvement and role of parents in their children’s education is much more than their participation in the parent’s teacher’s organizations. Parents are fully in charge of the child’s school life and success. In fact, the author argues that in a normal school day, a child spends only a third of the day in school and a whole two-third with the parents. However, a responsible parent will still be concerned and ensure that his child is fine whether in his vicinity or not (in school or at home). If parents are ineffective in their role and participation in the education system, failure in children’s education becomes imminent (Annette, 2000:11).

For example, from the results of the interview, it is evident that the respondent, as a parent of two, clearly understands the importance of active involvement of parents in their children’s education matters. According to her, parents must understand that they have an important role to play in their children’s academic success. Both the interviewee and her husband believe that the responsibility of ensuring children succeeds in school belonged to the parents: a fact that supports the argument of Annette (2000: 16).

The role of the parent (according to the respondent) ranges from basic children care to assist them in actual classwork. The respondent is the head of an association that enhances the close relationship between the tutors and the parents (PTA). Consequently, she recognizes the key role played by the parent in children’s education hence takes a front row in popularizing the association to enhance increased parental involvement in children’s education. Although the respondent admits that it is sometimes challenging on the part of the parent to actively involve herself in the education matter (perhaps due to the life commitment such as work), she points out that children’s educational success should always be accorded first priority. Indeed, she concurs with Annette (2000: 23) that child academic success is so important that it is worth sacrificing for. In fact, the respondent hailed the famous three hours in nine months approach. However, she said that this was so little time that parents should involve themselves more in children’s academic matters.

While admitting that parental involvement in children’s education was limited especially among the working class (who believed that there was a clear demarcation between the schools and homes about the education of their children), she pointed out that the trend was rapidly changing as parents continued to realize the importance of their active involvement in education. However, she credited this achievement to the important role of PTA, especially via aggressive sensitization campaigns to educate parents as to why they should concern themselves so much with their children’s education life. However, the critics of increased parental involvement in education argue that this could lead to role conflicts among the parties involved, especially if the parents were to be actively involved in actual school management and planning.

According to the evidence presented by Annette (2000: 24), parents are depicted as individuals who closely follow their children’s performance in class, closely monitor the work of their teachers and act fast to counter any threat that may compromise the children’s schooling. All these are thus indicated as characteristics of a good parent. It indicates that it is the responsibility of good parenting to take appropriate and haste action in a situation where the child’s school life and performance are at stake. According to Annette (2000: 12) majority of the working class, however, feel that the responsibility of the child’s academic well-being solely falls on the hands of the teachers; the latter of whom submits to the teachers’ professional authority.

According to Annette (2000:13), among this category of parents, the homes and schools are two distinct places with the individual in each sector having well cut out roles and responsibilities to play. As a result, such parents would have limited involvement in school affairs. Recent researches on families and schools as presented in Annette (2000) showed that parental involvement in school matters was on the increase mainly among middle-class parents. Although parental involvement in academics has been directed to social work (with the middle class being hailed for fostering learning opportunities for their children and the working class parents being hailed for resisting rules of oppressive schools management), involvement of parents in schools has been greatly advocated for.

Through PTA however, the parents get directly involved in children’s education during the child’s schooling hours and offer a channel through which parents are directly involved in making decisions in the schools which have a direct impact on the well-being of the children. In addition programs such as the three hours in nine months (under which the parents are only required to avail themselves in school for just three hours within a period of nine months) is easy and irresistible getting parents to voluntarily participate in schools’ decision making and programs designing.

partnerships among the various parties that are involved in the education process in making the dream of the students and the system, to produce successful students, a reality. These partnerships have more so been encouraged, particularly between the teachers and the parents since the two are the parties with the greatest students’ contacts. Fostering relationships among these individuals has been proven a strategy whose results in enhancing greater parental participation in school activities have been vehemently positive. In this case, the parents are greatly credited for effectively playing the role of tutors’ advisers’ that can only thrive in circumstances where healthy and close relationships exist between the teachers and the parents (Annette, 2000:7).

Good parenting calls for concern from the parents about the education well being of the children, diagnose problems that the children might have, and devise appropriate solutions to solve the problem. For example, consider a family of Emily a fifth-grader student with a chronic reading problem that caused the parents sleepless nights since they had to discuss it all night for one year while trying to come up with a strategy that could help Emily come out of the problem. The moral support provided by such a move, coupled with encouragement accorded to her might initiate a turnaround for the poor student (Annette, 2000:7).

In conclusion, all facts indicate that the parents play a very central role in the success of children’s academics. The nature of education today requires that all the stakeholders in the education system work together for the children’s academic success. As a result, active involvement and commitment of parents, teachers, school management, the government, and the students at large are necessitated. Although parents’ involvement and role in education have been previously downplayed, all indication points out that it is imperative for children academics. Parents are the closest to the children, spend most of the time with them, and play a major role in mentoring and bringing them up in a socially acceptable manner. The manner in which these roles are played could mean the success or failure of the child in education. In the wake of the realization of this fact, evidence shows increased involvement of parents in educational matters. For instance, parents are increasingly getting involved in schools planning and decision making, providing financial support through fundraising & paying school fees for their children.

Annette, L., (2000). Home Advantage: Social Class and Parental Intervention in Elementary Education . Lowman and Littlefield Publisher, United States Of America.

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I taught college for almost a decade, and I want parents to stop forcing their kids into college. There are other options.

• Many of my college students told me they were in school because their parents forced them.
• Parents should know that not every kid needs to go to college.
• They can volunteer, take a gap year, go into trade work, or earn a certificate.

During my nine years of teaching college composition classes, I experienced a familiar student-teacher conversation on repeat. Students would confess to me — usually when we had a one-on-one about their plummeting grade — what was really going on. The overwhelming and overriding culprit of my students' college failures was their parents.

To be frank, many students were miserable. They had attempted to express to their parents that they didn't want to go to college, whether in the years leading up to high-school graduation or after starting college life . Their reasons were diverse. Students were unprepared, disinterested, or inadequately supported — be it financially, emotionally, academically, socially, or physically.

No matter the reason, I chose to listen to and believe my students, which is something their parents decided, for their own reasons, not to do.

Many didn't want to disappoint their parents. They were terrified of letting their parents know that money had been "wasted" or that they didn't fulfill their parents' own college dreams for their kids.

I wish I could have said to each of these parents that their child had other options.

Take a gap year

Yes, a gap year sounds incredibly privileged, but hear me out. Instead of parents hemorrhaging money or students going into debt for an education that won't end up in a degree and a job, a gap year could come with stipulations.

Those parameters could include the following: They must be employed part or full time , saving money, and working alongside a well-informed mentor to explore the next steps.

Nothing about a well-planned gap year is wasteful. Honestly, I rarely met a freshman who knew what they wanted to do for the rest of their lives. Parents, give your kid some time and wiggle room to mature and consider their future.

Consider a trade

When someone has a plumbing emergency in their home, they summon the first available plumber and (usually) pay whatever the repair cost is — no matter the sum. Desperate times call for desperate measures. That proves there's money in trade work .

The trades are a way for kids who prefer a more hands-on career to become something that brings in a great income — be it a welder, electrician, cosmetologist, dental assistant, or culinary artist.

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Plus, they can usually start working earlier than their college-attending peers and accumulate less debt .

Look into community college

So many students told me their parents turned their noses up at the idea of their child attending a community college , and my question is: Why?

I attended a community college and eventually became a college teacher. Community college is cheaper, sometimes more conveniently located, and offers a less abrupt and extreme step between high school and a university.

Community colleges also can offer more of a community feel than a large university, meaning perhaps more comfortable social engagements for kids who tend to be more introverted or struggle with social anxiety disorder .

Volunteer work is also a great option

Volunteering allows young adults to try different fields without the pressure of knowing how to do the job.

The kid interested in veterinary medicine can volunteer at an animal shelter. The kid interested in becoming a librarian can volunteer to gather books, stock shelves, or staff author events at a local library.

Volunteering can have a lot of value, including showing the applicant's spirit on a résumé or school application .

Earn a certificate

A certificate is earned by someone who puts in hours to get an overview or a deep dive into a particular topic or skill set. Certificate programs can take as little as a few weeks, while others can take closer to a year or more.

Students can earn certificates or engage in short programs to become nursing assistants, massage therapists , court reporters, or web designers.

Some programs have minimum age requirements. This again gives the late teen a way to learn more about a certain topic or field to determine how interested they are in pursuing that as a degree and then a career.

These aren't the only post- high-school-graduation or post-GED options. The important thing is for parents to listen to their kids, understand their needs, and take a team approach, especially at this stage in their almost grown-up child's life.

Watch: Student loans are canceled for former students of Corinthian Colleges

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Parenting Education Programs: Pros and Cons Essay

Raising a child is a big responsibility, and it requires multiple skills and proper knowledge that most people, especially first-time parents, simply do not have. The readiness of pregnant couples to become parents and make educated decisions while raising a child affects the mental and physical health of their future kids. There are specially designed programs that are aimed to provide education and support for parents. Classes can be taken during pregnancy and early childhood. There are different ways to provide training for parents, including courses that people need to attend personally, online resources, and home visiting programs. To ensure that new pregnant couples are prepared to handle the responsibilities associated with raising kids and with helping alleviate stress and support families, it is essential that parents take parenting education programs.

Parenting education programs provide new parents with proper guidance that is based on the latest research; they help develop the necessary skills and acquire knowledge about raising kids. Expecting parents are given an opportunity to get professional advice regarding the health of their child and a variety of other topics, like proper nutrition and hygiene (Ponzetti 54-65). Such classes teach basic techniques to raise newborns, avoiding common mistakes and pitfalls.

Educational programs also teach parents to understand child development. The curriculum is specially designed to cover all significant aspects of parenting and ensure that couples are given the best professional advice that is based on the latest studies in the field. Variety of relevant to parents topics that are discussed in classes and the opportunity to learn from medical personnel make attending parenting classes recommended for all expecting parents.

Classes for pregnant couples help parents to gain confidence and reduce the level of stress. It is widespread for future parents to be anxious about having a child. Stress during pregnancy affects the development of the child and interferes with the woman’s ability to make decisions. Specially designed programs help mothers to handle this problem. Taking such classes benefits the psychological state of women and is associated with lower levels of depression and stress (Lindsay and Totsika 35). In addition to that, parenting classes support and encourage parents and provide them with an opportunity to socialize and meet with other people who have similar problems and experiences. Thus, parenting courses have an essential function to support and encourage people who are about to have a child.

Parenting programs provide social service to the disadvantaged and thus play a significant social role in promoting equality. Parenting education plays an important role in developing a proper attitude towards children among people from vulnerable families. Such people often just do not know how to approach their kids because they have not had the experience of healthy relationships with their parents during childhood. Taking parenting classes helps such individuals better realize their role and learn to engage with their kids. People who have taken courses are less prone to negligence and violence against children.

Government finances some classes for caretakers, which makes them inexpensive and sometimes even free of charge. It makes such courses equally available for all people regardless of their socio-economic status (“Free Parenting Education Classes” 00:00:30 – 00:02:00). It is important because children from low-income families are especially vulnerable, and their parents might need extra support and guidance to overcome the disadvantages of their position in society.

Parenting educational programs can be ineffective and might overwhelm parents. The critics of parenting education point out that many of the existing programs are not very effective despite the cost and involvement of highly professional medical personnel and instructors. It often happens because the course is too ambitious and does not take into account the fact that parents are already busy with many responsibilities. Difficulties associated with taking excessively detailed programs are likely to discourage people from participating. It has a negative impact on the stress level of mothers and affects motivation.

As a result, parents drop out of such problems and become disappointed in the social support system in general (Salvy et al. 160). The problem is serious, but it does not outweigh multiple benefits of parenting education, and it can be fixed by optimization of curricula and proper implementation of education programs. It is justified to focus only on the most important aspects of parenting and to keep courses reasonably simple to apprehend. It is also essential to consider the emotional state of parents and provide them with appropriate psychological support.

Parenting programs are aimed to help future parents to improve their ability to raise healthy children. Such programs have an important implication in fighting child abuse and educating pregnant couples about the health of their children. These programs have been shown to have a positive effect, and the flaws that have been found in their implementation can be fixed by further improving methods and techniques they employ to provide parents with the best advice and guidance.

All pregnant couples, especially first-time parents, are recommended to enroll in a parenting class to receive evidence-based support and education during pregnancy and while raising a child. Further research on parenting education programs is needed to develop more effective approaches to the subject and to use such classes to their full potential.

Works Cited

“Free Parenting Education Classes,” YouTube, uploaded by Fairfax County Government. 2018. Web.

Lindsay, Geoff, and Vasiliki Totsika. “The Effectiveness of Universal Parenting Programmes: The CANparent Trial.” BMC Psychology, vol. 5, no. 1, 2017, p. 35.

Ponzetti Jr, James J., editor. Evidence-Based Parenting Education: A Global Perspective. Routledge, 2015.

Salvy, Sarah J., et al. “Home Visitation Programs: An Untapped Opportunity for the Delivery of Early Childhood Obesity Prevention.” Obesity Reviews, vol. 18, no. 2, 2016, pp. 149-163.

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'It takes a village': Why parents are joining their kids on the stage at graduation

As Yanelit Madriz Zarate crossed the stage at a University of California, Berkeley commencement ceremony this month, she reflected on the fits and starts in her educational journey: the mental and physical challenges that forced her to drop out after her first higher education stint in the California State system, the lessons she learned advocating for herself when she resumed at a community college and the empowerment she felt when she transferred to Cal.

The 25-year-old also thought about the role her parents, immigrants from Mexico with just a middle school education, played in helping her get to graduation. So, it felt extra special – and extra fitting – that her parents got to join her on stage.

Crossing the stage with her loved ones, a decades-old tradition embraced in the university's Chicanx Latinx graduation, was something she looked forward to since she heard about the option years earlier. Madriz Zarate also made the moment her own: As her name was called out, she and her parents danced a zapateado, a traditional Mexican step.

“It was for the three of us,” said Madriz Zarate, a sociology major who grew up in San Pablo, California, and works part time in disability rights advocacy. “It feels like we’re finally being seen.”

Like Madriz Zarate, hundreds of thousands of graduates are the first in their families to attend college. The number of first-generation applicants is growing at more than twice the rate of students whose parents have a degree, according to Common App data.

However, many institutions of higher education have been slow to catch up. Surveys suggest mental health struggles are widespread among first-gen students, who often report they wish their campuses offered better support and academic and financial aid advising tailored to their circumstances. 

While symbolic, the budding tradition of walking the stage with loved ones marks a shift in how colleges are engaging with students from nontraditional backgrounds and elevates the often-unspoken contributions of family members. It’s part of a larger trend of making graduation ceremonies more culturally relevant, in events such as Umoja graduations for Black students, Lavender events for LGBTQ+ graduates and blanketing ceremonies for Native students. 

These special honors also stand as a reminder of what’s at stake when programs supporting such opportunities are restricted. Students at the University of Texas at Austin – whose funding for cultural graduation ceremonies was cut after last year’s diversity, equity and inclusion ban – had to raise private money this spring to hold the yearly Latinx event many had anticipated.

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Graduation traditions evolve through DEI efforts

Cultural graduation ceremonies have grown in popularity, with events cropping up from Massachusetts to Hawaii . It’s all about “creating that sense of belonging and place on campus,” said Carolyn Barber-Pierre, the assistant vice president for student affairs and multicultural affairs at Tulane University in New Orleans. “So many students come with visible or invisible identities, and the fact that several of those identities can be celebrated means the world to them.”

Tulane hosts various affinity-group graduation ceremonies, and in some – like the Umoja event, attended by nearly half of the university’s Black graduates – family members can help place the stole on students. The stole is a cloth worn over the shoulders to represent campus achievements and cultural pride. Loved ones also have the opportunity to share reflections on the stage.

“This is the culmination of all the blood, sweat and tears for all the faculty, staff, parents and family members who’ve been there and helped each and every student succeed,” Barber-Pierre said. 

“It takes a village, and the village was there.”

Gerald Thrush, the vice dean of academic affairs at Western University of Health Sciences in Pomona, California, said family members’ involvement is often the highlight of graduates’ commencement. Since the medical school’s early days more than four decades ago, it’s allowed students to bring two family members on stage to bestow their academic hood. The hood is similar to the stole but instead drapes down the graduate's back.

When students shake the president’s and dean’s hands during the first part of the stage procession, they’re often visibly nervous, Thrush said. But as soon as they see their loved ones nearby, their eyes light up.

“Just seeing the pure joy and the excitement of the family … it’s such a heartwarming, touching moment,” said Thrush, who serves as the commencement marshall and has witnessed the exchange countless times over the years. “You can see it – you can see that support there.”

Lezlye Ramos, who recently graduated with a doctorate in occupational therapy from the University of St. Augustine for Health Sciences, in California, brought her dad on stage to walk with her and place the hood on her shoulders. Wearing a tejana hat and boots, her dad, who works in construction, was worried about how he'd come off. But he ended up stealing the show, said Ramos, 26. After she posted the video on social media, she was flooded with comments from fellow Latinx students who shared how inspiring it was to see the interaction. 

“Being able to see someone who looks like you, to see the diversity within higher ed … it struck me that this is something bigger because of what it represented,” she said. “Although my name is the one on the diploma, we all graduated that day.”

'An inversion of the graduation'

UC Berkeley started the stage-walking tradition with its Chicanx Latinx graduation several decades ago, according to Pablo Gonzalez, a Chicano scholar at the school who has emceed the event. “Even though graduations are often viewed as individual achievements, in this particular case, the collective achievement is celebrated,” he said. “It’s about acknowledging more than yourself.”

Gonzalez isn’t aware of many other colleges offering this opportunity. 

Gonzalez recalled being in the crowd as his uncle, the first in their family to attend college, walked across the Berkeley commencement stage with Gonzalez's grandparents. He remembers witnessing his brother also participating in the family rite. Both experiences helped him envision his own higher education future. Gonzalez himself participated in the tradition as a Berkeley graduate in the late 1990s.

He described the stage-walking tradition – and other aspects of the Chicanx Latinx event – as “an inversion of the graduation.” Traditional commencements focus on the graduate while this one “focuses on the people who are crucial and central to their success."

"That kind of inversion is such a powerful marker of community that’s so necessary right now,” he said.

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For Kayanna Harris, another Berkeley Class of 2024 grad, the inverted approach to celebrating her accomplishments was “humbling.”

Harris, now 32, moved to the U.S. from Jamaica after finishing high school. She opted not to attend nursing school where she grew up, leaving her parents behind. She spent a few years in New York, where some of her siblings live, but consistently felt a pull toward California – and specifically Berkeley. At 25, she finally settled in the area, enrolling in a community college. A few years later, she transferred to UC Berkeley – the college of her dreams, as an aspiring chemical engineer.

Harris is undocumented and has faced a host of challenges beyond those of being a first-generation student. Financial aid options were limited. She struggled to get internships because of her immigration status and couldn’t study abroad. Nor could she return to her homeland to visit her dad, a former farmer whose leg was amputated a few years ago, and mom, who worked at home, caring for Harris and her eight siblings. 

Harris felt the smaller graduation ceremonies – including one for undocumented students and one for Black students – were the most important, largely because the family participation was baked into them. In the UndocuGrad event, she walked with her mom and sister as other relatives and friends cheered them on. (Her dad couldn’t make the trip because of his mobility issues.)

“It was really a sense of gratitude to know that, even though they were all the way in Jamaica, they’re always there. They’re always behind you. These people are the ones motivating you to move forward,” she said. “That big smile on (my mom’s) face is really what I wanted to see. I wish that moment was a moment that lasted forever.”

Madriz Zarate will always cherish her moment, too. Part of her self-advocacy journey involved reconnecting with her culture through dance. That’s why it was so important for her and her parents to zapatear – a dance style where the feet rhythmically strike the floor – as they crossed the stage.

“It felt like we were creating a safe space not just for ourselves but for other folks to dance – it’s a very liberating and healing part of our culture, “ she said. As they stomped across the stage, surrounded by families with similar lived experiences, Madriz Zarate felt validated. 

“It was like creating magic.”

A Guide to Special Education Terms

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The number of students in special education has increased steadily in the last four decades , with parents more readily seeking additional support and more students being diagnosed with conditions, like attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and autism spectrum disorder.

In the wake of the pandemic, though, districts struggle to hire and—more importantly—keep their special education teachers, who are often beleaguered by stressful working conditions and a lack of resources.

Even as the field shifts to address workforce shortages, with some states considering extra pay for special education and others eyeing how artificial intelligence could lessen the burden of increased workloads, students with disabilities make up roughly 13 percent of the school population, said Natasha Strassfeld, an assistant professor in the department of special education at the University of Texas at Austin.

These are key terms educators should know.

The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act , or IDEA , is a federal law that establishes the rights of students with disabilities and their families.

First passed in 1975 and most recently reauthorized in 2004, the act provides grant funding to states that agree to the federal government’s vision for educating students with disabilities, said Strassfeld.

Students must be identified, evaluated, and deemed as IDEA eligible for the state to use federal money to educate that child. There are 13 categories under which a student could be eligible, including physical and intellectual disabilities.

There are about seven million students served under IDEA, said Strassfeld.

An Individualized Education Program , or IEP , is a legally binding contract between a school district and a family with a child with a disability. Under IDEA, students are afforded an IEP, said Dia Jackson, senior researcher for special education, equity, and tiered systems of support at the American Institutes of Research.

IEPs spell out what area a student has a disability in, how it impacts learning, and what the school will do to address those needs, such as providing speech or occupational therapy, more intensive instructional supports, and accommodations, including for standardized tests and other learning goals.

The number of IEPs is increasing in schools as conditions, like autism spectrum disorder, or ADHD, are being diagnosed more readily.

All students with disabilities are protected under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, which requires schools to make “reasonable accommodation” for students with disabilities.

Educators don’t have to make specially designed instruction plans under a 504, but students can get certain accommodations, like elevator passes if a student is in a wheelchair, Jackson said.

“It’s a slightly different focus, but both play out in schools,” Jackson said.

Individualized family services plans , or IFSPs, are developed for children up to age 3 who need help with communication, social-emotional skills, and physical needs, Strassfeld said.

Like an IEP, the plan is made in collaboration with a parent or guardian, along with professionals such as a child care provider, religious leaders, or doctors. The document outlines a plan for families to help seek services—such as speech and language therapy, occupational therapy, medical services, and more—but is focused more on the family’s goals rather than strictly educational goals, Strassfeld said.

“While they’re focusing on pre-education goals, primarily at that age, we’re thinking about that child as being a part of a component of a family,” she said.

The right to a Free Appropriate Public Education , or FAPE , means that for every IDEA-eligible student, services must be provided at no cost to the student or their family, must be appropriate for the needs of the child, and have to be education oriented, Strassfeld said.

With FAPE, there is also the concept of least restrictive environment, or LRE, Jackson said. Students should be included to the fullest extent possible in mainstream classrooms and be challenged but appropriately supported, alongside their general education peers.

That’s not without its challenges, however, Strassfeld said.

“IDEA essentially is premised on the philosophical notion that it is that easy. It’s a real challenge for school districts,” she said, adding that as parents and advocates examine special education through disability justice and disability studies lenses, there are more critiques of the model.

Jackson said that she’s heard criticism along these lines: When students with disabilities aren’t prepared for a general education environment, or when general education teachers don’t have training on special education.

Response to intervention , or RTI , came as an amendment to IDEA in 2004 to help earlier identify students who are struggling before they begin failing, Jackson said, and begin giving them additional support through a tiered process. Generally, all students receive “tier I” instruction on grade-level standards. Then, students who need additional help get more intensive supports. That could look like a teacher working one-on-one, or in small groups, helping target specific areas to improve learning.

Intervention is an evidence-based program meant to address a specific learning or social-emotional need. It can be done in a general education classroom, and looks like regular teaching, Jackson said, but it uses particular materials and involves collecting data on progress.

The term RTI has evolved into multitiered system of supports , or MTSS , which is also a preventative framework, but goes beyond academics to consider the infrastructure districts need to implement MTSS, Jackson said.

“The shift to MTSS is meant to be more inclusive of the infrastructure as well as inclusive of social-emotional learning as well as academics,” she said.

A functional behavior assessment , or FBA , is a way for educators to collect data on student behavior, and what is triggering certain unwanted behavior, Jackson said.

For instance, she said, if a teacher has a student who has autism and, when they get upset, they throw a chair, an FBA could be conducted.

Once that analysis is collected, a behavior intervention plan , or BIP , is developed, describing what the behavior is, how often it happens, and what will be done to address it.

FBAs and BIPs are not without concerns, however, as students with disabilities—especially students of color—are more likely to face exclusionary discipline, such as suspension and expulsion.

“A lot of times, it is a subjective judgment call if a student is exhibiting ‘appropriate behavior’ or not,” Jackson said. “There’s a lot of potential bias that goes into discipline of students and behavior management.”

It’s one example of disproportionality , where an ethnic or racial group is over- or under-represented in certain areas. For instance, Jackson said, students of color with disabilities are over-represented in discipline, on being identified as having a disability, and being placed in more restrictive environments.

Restraint and seclusion are practices used in public schools as a response to student behavior that limits their movement and aims to deescalate them, by either physically limiting their movement (restraint) or isolating them from others (seclusion), according to previous EdWeek reporting .

The practice of physically restraining students with disabilities or placing them in isolation has been heavily scrutinized, but is still used in some states.

It should only be used in extreme cases when a student is at risk to harm themselves or others, Jackson said, but never as a behavior management technique, or as punishment. Students have been harmed, or even killed, as a result of restraints , Jackson said. Students of color are over-represented in the population who are restrained and isolated, Jackson added.

Even still, there are educators who don’t want to see the practices completely banned, Jackson said.

“Teachers have been hurt by students or they’ve been hurt in the midst of a restraint so they still want to have the option available,” she said. “It’s an issue of not having training in another alternative, so they feel like: ‘This is the only way I can handle this particular student, or type of student, because I don’t know anything else.’”

Strassfeld said that there’s been more focus on the practice alongside excessive force in law enforcement.

“There’s been discussion that disability advocates have had about criminalization of behaviors that a person has no control over, and this type of force seems to deny the humanity of people who perhaps are exhibiting behaviors they are not able to control,” she said.

Education Issues, Explained

Vanessa Solis, Associate Design Director contributed to this article.

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Guest Essay

Higher Education Needs More Socrates and Plato

By Ezekiel J. Emanuel and Harun Küçük

Dr. Emanuel and Dr. Küçük are on the faculty of the University of Pennsylvania, where Dr. Emanuel is a professor and the vice provost for global initiatives and Dr. Küçük is an associate professor of the history and sociology of science.

The right attacks colleges and universities as leftist and woke. Progressives castigate them as perpetuating patriarchy and white privilege. The burdens of these culture war assaults are compounded by parents worried that the exorbitant costs of higher education aren’t worth it.

No wonder Americans’ faith in universities is at a low. Only 36 percent of Americans have confidence in higher education, according to a survey by Gallup last year, a significant drop from eight years ago. And this was before colleges and universities across the country were swept up in a wave of protests and counter-protests over the war in Gaza.

But the problems facing American higher education are not just the protests and culture war attacks on diversity, course content, speech and speakers. The problem is that higher education is fundamentally misunderstood. In response, colleges and universities must reassert the liberal arts ideals that have made them great but that have been slipping away.

By liberal arts, we mean a broad-based education that aspires to send out into society an educated citizenry prepared to make its way responsibly in an ever-more complex and divided world. We worry that at many schools, students can fulfill all or most of their general education requirements and take any number of electives without having had a single meaningful discussion that is relevant to one’s political life as a citizen.

Over the past century, what made American higher education the best in the world is not its superiority in career training, but educating students for democratic citizenship, cultivating critical thinking and contributing to the personal growth of its students through self-creation. To revive American higher education, we need to reinvigorate these roots.

In Europe and many countries elsewhere, colleges and universities have undergraduates specialize from Day 1, focusing on developing area-specific skills and knowledge. College students are trained to become doctors, lawyers or experts in international relations, English literature or computer science.

In the United States, European-style specialization for medical, legal, business or public policy careers is the purpose of post-collegiate professional schools. Traditionally, the American college has been about imparting a liberal arts education, emphasizing reasoning and problem solving. Those enduring skills are the critical ingredients for flourishing companies and countries.

Historically, students arriving on American college campuses spent a majority of their first two years taking classes outside their projected majors. This exposed them to a common curriculum that had them engage with thoughtful writings of the past to develop the skills and capacity to form sound, independent judgments.

Over the past half century, American colleges and universities have moved away from this ideal , becoming less confident in their ability to educate students for democratic citizenship. This has led to a decline in their commitment to the liberal arts, a trend underscored in the results last year of a survey of chief academic officers at American colleges and universities by Inside Higher Ed. Nearly two-thirds agreed that liberal arts education was in decline, and well over half felt that politicians, college presidents and university boards were increasingly unsympathetic to the liberal arts.

Today, there is almost no emphasis on shared courses among majors that explore and debate big questions about the meaning of equality, justice, patriotism, personal obligations, civic responsibility and the purpose of a human life. Majors that once required only eight or 10 courses now require 14 or more, and students are increasingly double majoring — all of which crowds out a liberal arts education. Ambitious students eager to land a prestigious consulting, finance or tech job will find it too easy to brush aside courses in the arts, humanities and social and natural sciences — the core of a liberal education.

The devaluing of the first two years of a shared liberal arts education has shortchanged our students and our nation. Educating young adults to be citizens is why the first two years of college still matter.

To that end, the so-called Great Books have long been the preferred way to foster citizenship. This approach is not, contrary to critics on the left and right, about sanctifying specific texts for veneration or a mechanism for heritage transmission.

Books by Plato, Aristotle, Hobbes, Locke, Kant, Emerson, Thoreau, Whitman as well as Wollstonecraft, Austen, Woolf, Baldwin, Hurston and Orwell are worthy of introductory collegiate courses for students of all majors. These writers address the fundamental questions of human life. They explore the ideas of self-determination, friendship, virtue, equality, democracy and religious toleration and race that we have all been shaped by.

As students address those big questions, the Great Books authors provide a road map as they challenge and criticize one another and the conventional wisdom of the past. The Socrates of Plato’s dialogues is the exemplar — asking about beliefs and then subjecting them to respectful but critical analysis and skepticism.

These books are best studied in small seminar discussions, which model and inculcate in students democratic behavior. This discourse is an antidote to the grandstanding in today’s media and social media.

The teacher is less an expert in specific writers and more a role model for intellectual curiosity, asking probing questions, offering critical analyses and seeking deeper understanding. In an idealized Socratic fashion, these discussions require listening at length and speaking briefly and, most important, being willing to go where the argument leads.

Parents who are paying for college might question the value of spending $80,000 a year so that their son or daughter can read Plato, Hobbes and Thoreau instead of studying molecular biology or machine learning. But discussing life’s big value questions in seminars gives students personal engagement with professors that can never be reproduced in large lecture halls. Discussions among students on their deepest thoughts cultivates curiosity and empathy, and forges bonds of friendship important for citizenship and fulfilling lives.

Although we like to set ourselves apart from the past by appeals to modernity, the fundamental questions that we find ourselves asking are not always modern, and the latest answer is not always right. But how would you know how to think beyond the readily presented check boxes if you haven’t done the work of laying things out and putting them back together for yourself?

War was no less a concern for Thucydides, Tacitus and Thoreau than it is today. Discussing Great Books allows students to gain distance from the daily noise and allows their reason to roam free among principles and foundations rather than becoming absorbed in contemporary events. Our biggest problems are often best addressed not by leaning in but by stepping away to reflect on enduring perspectives.

Liberal arts education is not value neutral. That is why it is indispensable today. Freedom of thought, critical reasoning, empathy for others and respectful disagreement are paramount for a flourishing democratic society. Without them, we get the unreasoned condemnations so pervasive in today’s malignant public discourse. With them, we have a hope of furthering the shared governance that is vital to America’s pluralistic society.

Ezekiel Emanuel and Harun Küçük are on the faculty of the University of Pennsylvania, where Dr. Emanuel is a professor and the vice provost for global initiatives and Dr. Küçük is an associate professor of the history and sociology of science.

The Times is committed to publishing a diversity of letters to the editor. We’d like to hear what you think about this or any of our articles. Here are some tips . And here’s our email: [email protected] .

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Blog The Education Hub

https://educationhub.blog.gov.uk/2024/05/16/new-rshe-guidance-what-it-means-for-sex-education-lessons-in-schools/

New RSHE guidance: What it means for sex education lessons in schools

R elationships, Sex and Health Education (RSHE) is a subject taught at both primary and secondary school.  

In 2020, Relationships and Sex Education was made compulsory for all secondary school pupils in England and Health Education compulsory for all pupils in state-funded schools.  

Last year, the Prime Minister and Education Secretary brought forward the first review of the curriculum following reports of pupils being taught inappropriate content in RSHE in some schools.  

The review was informed by the advice of an independent panel of experts. The results of the review and updated guidance for consultation has now been published.   

We are now asking for views from parents, schools and others before the guidance is finalised. You can find the consultation here .   

What is new in the updated curriculum?  

Following the panel’s advice, w e’re introducing age limits, to ensure children aren’t being taught about sensitive and complex subjects before they are ready to fully understand them.    

We are also making clear that the concept of gender identity – the sense a person may have of their own gender, whether male, female or a number of other categories   – is highly contested and should not be taught. This is in line with the cautious approach taken in our gu idance on gender questioning children.  

Along with other factors, teaching this theory in the classroom could prompt some children to start to question their gender when they may not have done so otherwise, and is a complex theory for children to understand.   

The facts about biological sex and gender reassignment will still be taught.  

The guidance for schools also contains a new section on transparency with parents, making it absolutely clear that parents have a legal right to know what their children are being taught in RSHE and can request to see teaching materials.   

In addition, we’re seeking views on adding several new subjects to the curriculum, and more detail on others. These include:   

• Suicide prevention  
• Sexual harassment and sexual violence  
• L oneliness  
• The prevalence of 'deepfakes’  
• Healthy behaviours during pregnancy, as well as miscarriage  
• Illegal online behaviours including drug and knife supply  
• The dangers of vaping   
• Menstrual and gynaecological health including endometriosis, polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) and heavy menstrual bleeding.  

What are the age limits?   

In primary school, we’ve set out that subjects such as the risks about online gaming, social media and scams should not be taught before year 3.   

Puberty shouldn’t be taught before year 4, whilst sex education shouldn’t be taught before year 5, in line with what pupils learn about conception and birth as part of the national curriculum for science.  

In secondary school, issues regarding sexual harassment shouldn’t be taught before year 7, direct references to suicide before year 8 and any explicit discussion of sexual activity before year 9.  

Do schools have to follow the guidance?  

Following the consultation, the guidance will be statutory, which means schools must follow it unless there are exceptional circumstances.   

There is some flexibility w ithin the age ratings, as schools will sometimes need to respond to questions from pupils about age-restricted content, if they come up earlier within their school community.   

In these circumstances, schools are instructed to make sure that teaching is limited to the essential facts without going into unnecessary details, and parents should be informed.  

When will schools start teaching this?  

School s will be able to use the guidance as soon as we publish the final version later this year.   

However, schools will need time to make changes to their curriculum, so we will allow an implementation period before the guidance comes into force.     

What can parents do with these resources once they have been shared?

This guidance has openness with parents at its heart. Parents are not able to veto curriculum content, but they should be able to see what their children are being taught, which gives them the opportunity to raise issues or concerns through the school’s own processes, if they want to.

Parents can also share copyrighted materials they have received from their school more widely under certain circumstances.

If they are not able to understand materials without assistance, parents can share the materials with translators to help them understand the content, on the basis that the material is not shared further.

Copyrighted material can also be shared under the law for so-called ‘fair dealing’ - for the purposes of quotation, criticism or review, which could include sharing for the purpose of making a complaint about the material.

This could consist of sharing with friends, families, faith leaders, lawyers, school organisations, governing bodies and trustees, local authorities, Ofsted and the media.  In each case, the sharing of the material must be proportionate and accompanied by an acknowledgment of the author and its ownership.

Under the same principle, parents can also share relevant extracts of materials with the general public, but except in cases where the material is very small, it is unlikely that it would be lawful to share the entirety of the material.

These principles would apply to any material which is being made available for teaching in schools, even if that material was provided subject to confidentiality restrictions.

Do all children have to learn RSHE?  

Parents still have the right to withdraw their child from sex education, but not from the essential content covered in relationships educatio n.  

You may also be interested in:

• Education Secretary's letter to parents: You have the right to see RSHE lesson material
• Sex education: What is RSHE and can parents access curriculum materials?
• What do children and young people learn in relationship, sex and health education

Tags: age ratings , Gender , Relationships and Sex Education , RSHE , sex ed , Sex education

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