THE SENTINEL: Parental Involvement: Key to the Education of Youth

"Do not train children to learning by force and harshness, but direct them to it by what amuses their minds, so that you may be better able to discover with accuracy the peculiar bent of the genius of each." — Plato

Parents, as the primary educators of their children, are critical to the proper formation of our youth. In today's society where the family is challenged by so many distractions, making parental involvement a priority in whatever way possible has proven advantages.

A unity of effort among parent, child and teacher is essential for the comprehensive development of students into happy, healthy and productive citizens. The National Educational Association website emphasizes the findings of research into parental involvement in their children's education:

When parents are involved in their children's education at home, they do better in school. And when parents are involved in school, children go farther in school—and the schools they go to are better.
The family makes critical contributions to student achievement from preschool through high school. A home environment that encourages learning is more important to student achievement than income, education level or cultural background.
Reading achievement is more dependent on learning activities in the home than is math or science. Reading aloud to children is the most important activity that parents can do to increase their child's chance of reading success. Talking to children about books and stories read to them also supports reading achievement.
When children and parents talk regularly about school, children perform better academically.
Three kinds of parental involvement at home are consistently associated with higher student achievement: actively organizing and monitoring a child's time, helping with homework and discussing school matters.
The earlier that parent involvement begins in a child's educational process, the more powerful the effects.
Positive results of parental involvement include improved student achievement, reduced absenteeism, improved behavior, and restored confidence among parents in their children's schooling.

SIMPLE HOMEWORK TIPS FROM EXPERT VILLAGE

Space (0:58)

Time (1:01)

Supervision (1:34)

Assignments (1:28)

Groups (1:15)

Search Engines (1:02)

Independence (2:03)

Reference (1:20)

Distractions (1:29)

Test Prep (1:13)