Parental involvement makes a difference
Presence of mom or dad at school drives students to perform better and instils in them a sense of community
For Ruth Ley, it was catching her daughter’s smiling eyes through a classroom door while voluntarily leading a tour at her school. For Mekhul Verma, it was delivering chocolate-dipped strawberries she and her daughter had prepared to her junior kindergarten classroom, which the youngster proudly shared with fellow classmates. For Beth Currie Watt, it was working alongside her teenage son at his school’s massive annual garage sale.
These are a few of many moments, say these parents of students attending Toronto’s private schools, that solidified the importance of their being active participants in the scholastic environments of their chil- dren and proved the positive effect that being involved in their academic community would have both on their own lives and on the lives of their growing learners.
“First and foremost I think that when our children see us in the halls, they just feel a real sense of support,” says Ley, a co-chair of the Havergal College Parent Association, whose daughter has attended the school for the past seven years. “Volunteering within the school creates an opportunity both to spend more quality time with your child, but also I know that when my daughter sees me so interested in her day-to-day life, she becomes motivated to work even harder herself.”
Maggie Houston-White, executive director of enrolment management at Havergal College, adds that while the parents of private school students are undoubtedly leading busy lives, their setting aside even a few hours to volunteer for an event or at a school board meeting can be a monumental plus for their child’s development.
“There have been plenty of studies that have actually shown that the more time parents spend on campus the more the student will thrive academically,” she says. “Parents play an enormous role not only in supporting their child’s school with their time but also with their talent.”
Houston-White recalls the example of a parent whose personal accounts, provided during a school seminar entitled “Narratives of the North,” inspired a Havergal student to travel to the Arctic, while another parent, a neurologist with a particular expertise in concussions, helped to strengthen and shape the school’s concussion protocol going forward.
For Currie Watt, president of Crescent School’s parent association and mother to Grade 11 student Greydon, the parent-campus partnership in positive action is most prominent when it comes to Crescent’s on-campus store The Den, a boutique stocked with school uniforms and spirit wear by parent volunteers.
“Being a part of something like The Den is an awesome way for the parents to get to know one another and become truly ingrained in the school community,” says Currie Watt, who lists the school’s annual garage sale as another poignant showcase of parent-campus teamwork with its yearly draw of more than 250 volunteers.
“It’s because of these events and opportunities that I see my son now recognizing the value of leadership and the benefit of giving back and doing it for the sheer joy of it without an expectation,” she says. “He’s learning organically through what we do.”
Jill Cannon, director of advancement at Crescent School, agrees that in observing a parent giving back by way of committee membership, board participation or by simply showing their face at year-round events, a child’s understanding of a working community is bound to become stronger. That appreciation for support and teamwork, she adds, will undoubtedly be carried forward into the institutions the learners will join later in life.
“As cliché as it sounds we genuinely look at ourselves as a family unit,” says Cannon of Crescent School. “Families chip in and help each other out and we see it in the same way with our school community.”
“The truth is that our Crescent family doesn’t really work well unless everyone is able to participate to the best of their abilities,” she adds. “Our community is stronger and works as best as possible when we have as many people giving of their time and talents.”
And while it may be students who reap the most obvious benefits of parental involvement, Verma, co-chair of Havergal College Parent Association and mother to Grade 7 student Meena, says the perks of participation are just as plentiful for the grownups.
“Some of my best friends are people I’ve met here at Havergal,” says Verma, speaking of friendships forged at the school’s many social events, including its Mom’s Night Out gatherings on Thursdays.
“Those are the relationships that you build over the years because these are the parents of your children’s friends. I think those bonds speak to the community we have and the one we continue to build by being active parents.
“Just as our children are building friendships for life, so are we.”