The school year starts Monday for the vast majority of students who attend Utah public schools. While parents may be tempted to breathe a sigh of relief as they see their children off to school, their role in their child's academic success doesn't stop when the first school bell sounds.
Rather, as children go back to school, parents must recommit to their supporting role in their child's education. Beyond the physical needs of an adequate amount of sleep, proper nutrition and providing a child with needed school supplies, parents should have an active interest in their child's school day every day. Provide a quiet, well-lit area for your child to study and stock it with reading books and reference materials. Read to your children and provide pre-literacy experiences. Parents must not underestimate the role they play in language development.
Ask your child about his or her day and don't settle for pat responses. Ask them what they like or dislike about school and offer your help to address their concerns. Make time to go to parent-teacher conferences and school activities. Juggling school schedules with work schedules can be a headache but these things matter greatly to a child.
Parents owe to their children and to themselves to be familiar with the workings of their children's school and to acquaint themselves with teachers and administrators. Positive interactions can help take the edge off those occasions when parents are summoned to school to help deal with a problem involving their child.
School is not just an academic exercise, it also strives to shape students into good citizens who fulfill their responsibilities and are otherwise people of character. That doesn't happen by accident. Often it requires the encouragement (and goading) of parents and teachers alike.
To help in this regard, students need to make sure the homework assignments come home with them, that they remember to bring home their textbooks and plan ahead for long-range assignments. School may seem like a lot to juggle after a relatively carefree summer but the tiniest bit of organization and planning will give students more time to be involved in the social aspects of school.
Hopefully, students will avail themselves to challenging class work. But they must also recognize the benefits of school activities. Playing a team sport, playing a part in the school musical or joining a club gives students a sense of belonging and teaches them team work. Beyond that, clubs, sports and other student organizations help young people develop leadership skills and teach them to manage their spare time while engaged in positive activities.
The other player in the education team, is, of course, the classroom teacher. Educators must strive to make their classes engaging and relevant. Often, a fresh approach to teaching math or reading not only piques student interest, it invigorates the educator.
Teachers need to spell out their expectations both to students and parents so that there are few surprises or middle-of-the-night trips to the grocery store to buy craft supplies to build a scale model of the Utah Capitol, which by the way, is due tomorrow. Most teachers are conscientious about communicating their plans, but some assignments, for various reasons, slip through the cracks.
Success in school is a team effort. As the school year begins, may parents, students and educators recommit to their role in the educational process and support the other players in their endeavors.