Parents and Their Child's Education: Are you an involved or un-involved parent?

From observing many parents and their children, I can say that, generally speaking, the type of parent that you are affects your child's education. There are two types of parents where children's education is concerned: the involved parent and the uninvolved parent. Obviously, involved parents are the ones that spend their time helping and teaching their children at home. They actively participate in their children's education. These are the parents of children who do better at learning.

In contrast, the un-involved parent does not actively participate in their child's learning. They often rely totally on the teacher and the school to provide the education. That is not to say that un-involved parents are uncaring or unconcerned. They just don't have the time or the resources to help their children. I have seen this many times with parents who enroll their children into tuition with me. They care and they do want their children to do better but they don't have the knowledge or resources to help their children or they are busy making a living to provide for their children.

There's also the exception to the rule. Some un-involved parents have children who succeed at learning. These children are inherently brilliant. They are like sponges and will pick up what is being taught easily. Most will have a thirst for knowledge and will go and find it themselves.

The opposite is also true. There are some parents who are totally involved but their child is not learning. These parents push and push but to no avail. In this case, my advice is for the parent to understand that the child is not ready for that learning. He needs to cover the basics first. He needs to learn to walk before he can run. There are some parents of children in my prekindergarten classes who are like this. I will only teach reading to the children who I know are ready for it. These children will start to read early. The problem comes when other parents see these children reading and wonder why their child is not taught and so they push me to teach their child even against my advice that their child is not ready. No surprises when their child does not learn.

The main thing that I want parents to take from this post is:

1. If you are a parent who have the time, knowledge and resources then you must involve yourself with your child's education. Be there to help with homework or assignments if help is needed. Where does your child need improvement? Take her teacher's advice if it was given. If not then go and talk to the teacher and find out where your child needs help. Even brilliant children need to improve on something. No one is perfect after all. Maybe they need help socially or emotionally. Find out and become an involved parent.

2. If you are a parent who is totally committed to your child's education but your child is not learning then you need to slow down. Each child develops at a different rate unique to them. Find out what he needs to learn and do first. Take the teacher's advice if it was given. If not then go and talk to the teacher and find out where your child needs help.