With the COVID-19 pandemic forcing more remote learning, parents have had to take on a more active role in their child’s education. This shift has highlighted the gap between parents’ perceptions of their child’s academic performance and the reality of how far behind their child may be in school.

Parents may notice their child struggling with a particular subject or falling behind in assignments, but they may not realize the magnitude of this academic gap. Teachers design curriculums to build on previous knowledge gained in earlier grades and to prepare students for their next level of education. It is not enough for a student to just pass a class; they must have acquired the necessary skills and knowledge to move on to the next level.

Unfortunately, many children have missed significant amounts of education time due to the pandemic. Even with online classes, children have faced distractions, technical difficulties, and the inability to ask for help on the spot. As a result, children are falling behind in their studies, and parents may not fully comprehend the depth of this problem. For instance, a child who misses two months of school may not understand the fundamental concepts that are vital in their education, putting them behind other children their age.

Additionally, teachers often observe and evaluate each child’s level of proficiency. If a child does not meet the standards set for their grade level, teachers usually implement interventions to close the gap. However, with remote learning, teachers cannot closely monitor each student’s performance. This lack of in-person contact often means that significant gaps in learning can go unnoticed.

In conclusion, it is vital for parents to understand the full scope of their child’s education progress. They must realize that catching up their child’s missed education time is essential to their academic future and attempt to provide support. Being aware of the curriculum, standards, and academic expectations set for their child’s grade level can help parents track their child’s progress accurately. Parents must recognize the existing academic gap to ensure their child receives the best chance for future academic success.     

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One type of parent that teachers secretly hate is the authoritarian parent. These parents often do not allow their children to have any type of expression other than those sanctioned by them. The authoritarian parent often sets the standard for what is acceptable and unacceptable in education, and their children often reflect this in their behavior and thoughts.

The second type of parent that teachers secretly hate is the demanding parent. These parents are always asking for more from their children than they are willing to give. They often expect their children to do more than they are willing to do themselves. This can lead to tension and conflict between the parents and their children, which can negatively affect the education of their children.

The third type of parent that teachers secretly hate is the judgmental parent. These parents are always critical of their children and their behavior. They often look down on them and their choices, and they often do not enjoy having their children around. This can lead to tension and conflict between parents and their children, which can negatively affect the education of their children.

All parents have some type of negative effect on the education of their children. The type of parent that teachers secretly hate is the authoritarian parent. The demanding parent and the judgmental parent can also negatively affect the education of their children.

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1. Talk to someone about your situation. Talking to someone can help you to get some understanding and support.

2. Take steps to protect your children. Make sure that you’re taking steps to protect your children from harm.

3. Seek help. There are many resources available to you if you need them.

4. Don’t put yourself in a position to harm yourself. If you’re thinking of suicide, don’t do anything that could put you in a position to harm yourself or your children.

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PTA’s history can be traced back to 1897, when Phoebe Apperson Hearst and Alice McLellan Birney established the National Congress of Parents and Teachers. Its goal was to improve students’ lives in terms of academics, health, and safety. Later, in 1926, the National Congress of Colored Parents and Teachers was set up by Selena Sloan Butler to advocate for African American students in segregated communities. On June 22, 1970, the two associations unified to make up what’s known today as the National PTA.

PTA’s mission is to make each student’s potential a reality by getting their families and communities involved and empowered to advocate for all children. PTA’s key values are:

·         Commitment: It’s dedicated to students’ academic success, health, and well-being via strong engagement of their families and communities while remaining accountable to the principles that serve as the foundation of the association.

·         Collaboration: It will work in partnership with different organizations and individuals to widen and enhance its ability to serve and support all students and their families.

·         Diversity: The association acknowledges the potential of everyone, irrespective of their educational background, culture, age, financial status, gender, ethnicity, legal status, geographic location, marital status, national origin, mental ability, organizational position, physical ability, parental status, political philosophy, religion, race, work experience, and sexual orientation.

·         Respect: It values the individual contributions of employees, members, partners, and volunteers as it functions collaboratively to accomplish the association’s goals.

·         Accountability: All PTA employees, members, partners, and volunteers have a shared responsibility to line up their efforts to accomplish the association’s strategic plans.

Studies have shown that students’ performance gets a significant boost when their parents are engaged in their learning. Thus, it becomes important for parents to join a local PTA and get involved in their children’s school, their learning process, and the education of everyone in their community.

Today, schools face challenges like the lack of educational equity and shrinking budgets. This makes the PTA role’s more crucial than ever. This association provides programs on fortifying family-school partnerships. Additionally, it makes available free resources for members on subjects and areas like STEM, health and safety, etc. By joining the PTA, parents can become part of a powerful association that can advocate for educators and students at the national, state and local levels.

The post The Parent-Teacher Association (PTA): Everything You Need to Know appeared first on The Edvocate.

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Online credit recovery was introduced over a decade ago, and it has since become a trend in education and a cash cow for education companies. School districts have experienced soaring graduation rates, leaving companies competing to sell virtual courses to districts across the nation.

The problem is that credit recovery courses lack quality control. Typically the content is not rigorous, and, according to critics, these courses serve as a poor substitute for in-class instruction. In a rush to raise graduation rates, schools put the learners who most need educator intervention the most in front of a computer screen, leaving them to their devices.

In some cases, learners are being “pushed through the system” and earning educational credit for having passed mediocre substitutes for the real thing. Also, a credit-recovery program may or may not be well aligned with the course’s learning expectations or assignments that a learner has failed.

Some credit-recovery options may be customized to address the distinct learning needs of a specific learner, some may consist of intensive oversight and support from an educator, and some may be hybrids—learners may work part of the time with an educator or specialist.

Also, online programs usually provide highly detailed info that teachers would not obtain in a traditional educational setting. For instance, software applications may track precisely how long learners worked through a problem or how many attempts it took a learner to complete a learning activity—data that teachers may use to identify specific learner-learning needs or deficits.

There is more good news; competency-based credit recovery programs, in which learners must show mastery of a subject to enroll, are beneficial. These programs, based on mastery instead of completion, show a positive direction for online credit recovery.

 What did we miss

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Accommodations Defined

Accommodations are alterations that remove obstacles and provide your kid with equal access to learning. Accommodations don’t change what your kid is learning. Rather, they change how your kid is learning.

Here’s a classic example. Let’s say your kid is taking an American history class, but they struggle with reading. As an accommodation, the educator lets them listen to an audiobook version of the textbook.

By utilizing an audiobook, they can learn history without their reading issues getting in the way. This has removed a barrier to their learning.

Accommodations don’t change what your kid is expected to know or learn. They don’t lower expectations. Your kid may utilize an audiobook in American history, but they’d still be expected to learn about events like the Civil War. And they still must finish all assignments and take exams just like their peers. The accommodation simply helps them work around their challenges.

This is what makes accommodations distinct from modifications. A modification changes what your kid is expected to know or learn. For instance, in American history, a modification may be that a kid only needs to learn half of the textbook’s content.

Forms of Accommodations

Accommodations work at an optimal level when they target a key barrier or challenge. For instance, for the kid who can’t sit still to do the math, an accommodation may be frequent breaks. For the kid who struggles to write out answers on tests, an accommodation may be to give answers verbally. The accommodation matches the need.

Here are four categories of accommodations for distinct needs.

• Presentation: An alteration in the way information is presented. Example: Letting a kid listen to audiobooks instead of reading printed text.
• Response: An alteration in the way a kid finishes assignments or tests. Example: Providing a keyboard to a kid who struggles with handwriting when they write an essay.
• Setting: A. alteration in the environment where a kid learns. Example: Allowing a kid with ADHD to take a test in a separate room with fewer distractions.
• Timing and scheduling: An alteration to the time a kid has for a task. Example: Providing extra time on homework assignments for a kid who has a slow processing speed.

Requesting Accommodations for Your Child

If you think accommodations may help your kid, talk to their educator. Often, the educator may agree to informal supports. These simple changes don’t mandate paperwork. For example, it is easy for the educator to move your kid’s seat away from a noisy class door that’s distracting.

If your kid needs bigger changes, however, you may want to seek formal accommodations. Under federal law, kids with disorders have the right to equal access to learning. This means accommodations for their disorders, which can include cognitive challenges. To exercise this right, you must request that the school assess your kid.

The evaluation results can mean an IEP or a 504 plan for your kid. You and the school decide what accommodations to write into the plan. Legally this must also cover any accommodations on state tests.

However, just because an IEP or a 504 plan lists accommodations doesn’t mean they’re always followed in the class. It’s still essential to check in with the educator. And it’s essential to talk with your kid about how the accommodations are working.

Schools are open to providing accommodations. The larger challenge is choosing the right accommodations and keeping track of which ones are most helpful.

If accommodation is in place, but your kid isn’t utilizing it, find out why. If your kid gets accommodations on state tests, it’s essential to utilize them regularly in class. This helps them get familiar with the accommodations.

Accommodations Away From the Classroom

Cognitive challenges don’t just create challenges in school. They also affect life outside of school. That’s why accommodations also exist outside the class. Instead of allowing an equal opportunity to learn, they provide an equal opportunity to be involved.

Accommodations can apply to many activities and events. You may see them implemented in driver’s tests, the workplace, summer camps, sports clubs, and even Six Flags.

Some of these accommodations are given informally. During and away from the school, kids with disorders have a legal right to reasonable accommodations.

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Business owners, who’re thinking about complying with COPPA, first need to figure out whether or not the law applies to them. If children under 13 aren’t a business’s primary audience, but its website still meets some of the criteria established by the FTC, the business needs to determine individual users’ age if it’s going to collect personalized data from them.

If a website is subject to COPPA’s regulations, it needs to do the following:

·         Post a comprehensive and clear online privacy policy mentioning its information practices for personal information (PI) collected online from under-13-year-olds

·         Make reasonable efforts to provide parents with direct notice of its practices concerning the collection, use, and/or disclosure of PI from children under 13, including notice to any material alteration to practices to which the parents have previously provided their consent

·         Get verifiable parental consent, with limited exceptions, before any collection, use, and/or disclosure of personal information from children under 13

·         Offer a reasonable means for parents to review the personal information collected from their children, and for them to refuse to allow its further use

·         Establish and maintain reasonable processes to protect the security, confidentiality, and integrity of the personal information collected from children under 13, including by following reasonable steps to release and disclose such personal information only to parties able to maintain its security and confidentiality

·         Retain personal information collected online from under-13-year-olds for only as long as it’s required to fulfill the objective for which it was collected and delete the data using reasonable measures to safeguard against its unauthorized use or access

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This is very important because if you have bought a home in a subpar area with a sub-par school district, your child’s education will most likely be substandard and so will the environment they grow up in. That’s why most people think about these things before they start having kids and purchasing a house.

If you are wondering what school district your home is currently located in, here are some sites that can help. In most instances, you must input your address and receive the name of the school district you are zone for and the individual elementary, middle, and high school.

1. Great Schools

https://www.greatschools.org/school-district-boundaries-map/

2. Niche

https://www.niche.com/k12/schools-near-you/?center=-79.98065150000002,40.431337657622095

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1.      Involvement in parent/teacher conferences.

2.      The presence at either a PTA meeting, sports event, or any other such meeting.

3.      Choosing to voluntarily participate in class events, field trips, school committees, or other school events.

Countless studies have examined the important role of parental involvement in a kid’s education. Some of the conclusions include the following:

·         The more intensively parents get involved, the greater the positive effect on their kids’ academic achievement.

·         Not only parental involvement helps to improve academic performance, but it also positively impacts students’ attitudes and behavior. A parent’s encouragement and interest in a kid’s education can impact the kid’s classroom conduct, attitude toward school, self-esteem, and motivation.

·         Parental involvement can make a significant difference at all age levels. It tends to be the maximum with young kids and tends to taper off as kids get older. However, studies have shown that parental involvement for middle and high school students is equally important. For instance, in high school, a parent’s encouragement can impact whether a student stays in school or drops out. Similarly, a student may consider attending college more seriously when parents demonstrate an interest in the child’s academic achievements and discuss the advantages of college education with the child.

·         Parents, who belong to low-income or minority groups, are less likely to get involved in their kids’ education. If they receive proper encouragement and training, these parents can be just as effective as other parents in contributing to their kids’ academic success.

·         Parental involvement is most likely to increase when schools actively seek out options to get parents involved and provide training programs to teach parents ways to get involved in their kids’ education.

·         Parental involvement benefits schools and teachers because involved parents better appreciate the challenges teachers face in the classrooms. Communication between school and home helps a teacher to understand a student better, which helps the teacher teach the student more effectively.

While parental involvement offers a multitude of benefits, it may also have negative implications. There’re several instances where parents became too much involved, continuously calling the teachers to check their kids’ progress, which consumes a lot of the teacher’s time. There’s also concern on the teachers’ part about the extent to which parents should get involved. curriculum development, book selection, teacher recruitment, etc., are areas where teachers believe that parents shouldn’t be included.

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