Parents fulfil vital role in education

AS parents, we spend time, effort and money to support our children as they go through 16 years of pre-school, primary, high school and tertiary education. We do it because we care and because we know education is one of the best equalisers and most effective integrators.

As parents, we often think about what we want for our children and their education, and make many important decisions based on our hopes for them.

But how many of us get involved in our children’s education on a daily basis? How many of us take time to tell our children why we think education is important? Or do we just outsource their education to the government and teachers?

Education is the cornerstone of our country. Throughout our history each generation has provided the support necessary so that the next generation of learners can receive an education that allows its members to take a place as both economic contributors and active citizens.

Teachers see themselves as the responsible professionals, with specialised training, knowledge of subjects and curriculum improvement to prepare future employees, employers and leaders. So what is our role as parents? For some, parental involvement means showing up on parents’ night to hear teachers talk about goals and tests and behaviours, but without reference to particular children. Seldom does it mean our own involvement in our children’s education every day.

As parents, we are the ones who need to transform interest in our children’s well-being into behaviour that helps make them successful learners.

As parents, we are the greatest allies of teachers in creating and reinforcing love of learning. Parental involvement is key to an integrated education. So what are our responsibilities as parents?

Having ongoing contact with the school; Helping with homework; Monitoring our children’s progress on an ongoing basis;

Taking a comprehensive interest in our children’s progress;

Being involved in school events; and

Being involved through the school governing bodies.

Children who want to learn – who value learning, who delight in discovery and who believe they are almost infinitely capable of acquiring new knowledge – are a delight to teach and as parents, grandparents and guardians, we play a powerful role in developing their education.

By being involved every day we convey to our children that school and education matters. Our children are more likely to work hard at school if they have support at home.

We also need to stay current with technology. I know technology can be intimidating, however, we have to take that leadership role and show we are not afraid of technology.

You may be asking if I am passing the buck. Are there problems in our current education system? Absolutely! That is why the Eastern Cape government has identified education as an apex priority and a societal matter. Indeed, this is why our department of education continues to receive the lion’s share of the provincial budget, with R31-billion allocated to it for the 2016/17 financial year.

The budget focuses on a number of outputs, which prioritise improving the quality of teaching and learning. These are:

Developing of functional schools; Curriculum supervision; Enhancing the performance of primary schools;

Expanding platforms of technical and vocational services; Schools of skills; Maritime schools; E-Learning to improve teaching and learning;

Promoting mathematics and science,

Promoting early childhood development, and

School infrastructure. Of course, our schools owe a share of the solutions to our education woes and must change in many ways through these listed priorities. However, some education challenges are beyond the government’s ability to affect change and require a wider community, particularly parental effort.

As the year begins, let us all challenge ourselves and take an active interest in our children’s education. As long as we continue to outsource our responsibilities to the government and teachers, we will miss the point that investment in education must be made in time and effort by us, the parents.

Let us all face the harsh fact that education begins in the home and start holding ourselves to account.