The importance of parental involvement in children’s education was last Thursday emphasized when the Ministry of Education (MoE) held a townhall meeting at the Bartica Secondary School in Region Seven, Cuyuni-Mazaruni.
The parents of the town dubbed the gateway to the interior, came in numbers and attentively absorb as National Parents Teachers Association Coordinator Ms Nadia Hollingsworth implored them to play a more active role in their children’s education. The Coordinator said she was not at all suggesting that it is all parents who are ‘not stepping up adequately to the plate’. But rather the former Queens College Deputy Headmistress said some parents can do much more.

She said it is for those observations that through her department the MoE has come to the region to lend support and guidance to foster greater collaboration between the parents, the school and the MoE. “We at the Ministry recognize that no one group can do this alone”. Further Ms. Hollingsworth quipped that she is certain that if the three parties (MoE, the school and parents) in the process (Education) work collaboratively more can be achieved.

“We are all in this together, it is not we and them, it is us; without parents there would have been no children to teach”. The former teacher said the school is as strong as the parental support it receives and, in this regard, she reminded those gathered to understand their responsibilities and be receptive to sharing them.

The coordinator noted that she was not ‘having a go at parents’, however it is important that all concerned be candid about the current state of affairs. “Do not allow your children to be the victims of your circumstances, not because you are not familiar with a particular subject matter the child presents to you means you cannot assist”.

Ms Hollingsworth encouraged parent to approach the schools for assistance so that they can in turn assist the child at home. It is in this context that she advised teachers to facilitate this process and implore them to foster good relationship with parents.

Source:DPI