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Parents bring out the best in children

READ TOGETHER: When parents get involved their children improve at school.
READ TOGETHER: When parents get involved their children improve at school.

When parents are involved in their children's education, both children and parents are likely to benefit.

When parents are involved in their children's education, both children and parents are likely to benefit.

Researchers report that parent participation in their children's schooling frequently:

lEnhances children's self-esteem;

lImproves children's academic achievement;

lImproves parent-child relationships;

lHelps parents develop positive attitudes towards school;

lCreates a better understanding of the schooling process.

Despite these advantages it is not always easy for parents to find time and energy to become involved in school events. Some parents see a visit to school as an uncomfortable experience, perhaps a hangover from their own school days.

Others might have their hands full with a job and other children. The availability and cost of baby-sitters are other factors. Teachers and school staff make special efforts to increase communication with parents and encourage involvement in children's learning experiences.

One kind of parental involvement is school-based and includes participating in parent-teacher meetings and functions and receiving and responding to written communications from the teacher.

Parents can also serve as school volunteers for the library or lunchroom or as classroom aides. Teachers said talking to parents, either in person, by phone or on open-school nights, or sending notices home, along with requests for parents to review and sign homework, are methods that are frequently used to involve parents.

Parents can also take part in their children's schools by joining school governing bodies (SGB) and getting involved in decision-making about the education their children receive.

Almost all schools have SGBs, but unfortunately often only a small number of parents are active in them.

Another kind of involvement is home-based participation, which focuses on activities that parents can do with their children at home.

Unfortunately few teachers involve parents through homebased activities, partly because of the time involved in developing activities or visiting and partly because of the difficulty of coordinating parents and teachers' schedules. - Kids Source

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