Parent me

Responsibility for our children’s education and future begins in our homes and communities. What are some of the most effective ways you're taking responsibility at a personal and local level for your child’s education?

I may have taken the assignment too literally, but when asked by the White House to respond to the above prompt, I couldn't help but emphasize that education really does begin at home. Here's what I submitted:

My son is two years old, but I am already planning for his future--as a good student and a happy, healthy man. From personal experience and research, I find all of the following to be effective towards these ends. Learning is the child's “job”, and parents and teachers provide management, leadership, and supervision. My husband and I will be involved with our son's school from day one as we monitor work, volunteer for activities, and communicate with and support his teachers. We're already involved in his schooling; we've enrolled him in a series of parent-child classes since he was six months old, exposing him to music, exercise, water safety, social skills, and developing neural connections all the while. We expect he will continue his education beyond high school, and at home we speak of "when" he goes to college, not "if." We began setting aside funds for our son's college education at birth. Friends worry that our local educational system is suffering under budget cuts, large classes, and test-related strictures in the curriculum. I share their concerns and vote with them in mind, but I also know that school is not the only place where learning occurs. Our home is a place of discovery and fun, and a place where self discipline is practiced and expected (lots of books and reading, limited television, age-appropriate materials in a space set aside for just being a kid, and conscious modeling by both parents). I would love for my son to do well in school, by every measure; but I am most concerned that he be engaged with his learning and encouraged to use what he learns for good. My husband and I work on being honest, attentive, and reflective on our role as parents. We provide unconditional love; we enforce limits but give lots of leeway within them; and we work at being healthy--physically, emotionally, financially--so that we can continue to provide a supportive environment for our child. Like my parents before me, I am involved in my community, and I look forward to involving my son in causes that support vibrant, healthy communities. We get to know our neighbors, and enjoy having friends over to our home. All of these spheres—home, school, community—contribute to a child's education and development as a person. As parents we have the power to influence and strengthen them all, and in so doing increase the chances that our child will be a happy, healthy, productive citizen of tomorrow. That's a great responsibility, and one I take willingly.

It's not that I think schools are so unimportant. I went into the field of education because I view schools as vital parts of society. But I get frustrated by the attention directed at teachers, administrators, and the public school system because it paints a woefully incomplete picture of the education of our children.

No one is going to appoint me Education Czar with unlimited powers over curriculum, staffing, and policies in public education; my powers to affect these things through available means--voting, attending local meetings, running for school board, working as a teacher, etc--provide incremental and indirect change (which is not to be discounted). Yet there is one area where I have rather direct and immediate influence: at home with my own child. And if you're a parent, so do you.

I really do believe that if we, each of us, worked on our own issues a bit more, all of our children would be a lot better off, and then by extension so would the schools. Start with adequate sleep, eat breakfast and get 20 minutes of exercise each day, practice patience and stress management techniques when dealing with family/coworkers/tailgaters, and spend less than earned (which includes knowing how much we spend and earn). If everyone did just those things, schools would already be better off, because it would mean better health and less stress in children's lives. Imagine the possibilities.

Now go work on your issues, and I'll go work on mine. Let's call it our contribution to 21st century education.