Friday, March 2, 2012
Establishing Professional Contacts
This week, I've been communicating with two educators outside of the United States. One of whom is from Europe, and the other who is from Haiti. The European Belorussian Parents and Teachers League was developed for parents and teachers to come together and learn new things concerning education. Parents can stay involved and participate in several events throughout the school term. I find this very beneficial because a big problem here in the United States is the lack of parent involvement. Some parents are too busy working or either just too lazy to come out and support their child's education. The Step by Step program in Haiti conducted by Dominique Hudicourt is also a wise choice. This program monitors children individual movements, etc.
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Melanie,
ReplyDeleteIt's really exciting to see that you are passionate about parent involvement as well. This has been a struggle for me in my teaching as well. In my experience teaching in various early childhood education classrooms, I have interacted with parents from various ends of the spectrum. I have had some parents that push their children too far and seem over involved, which can be damaging to a child. I have also come in contact with parents who see school as a daycare situation with free transportation- they send them on the bus in the morning and get them off of it in the afternoon. The school to home connection is very weak, even when the teachers are very persistent. It takes both the parents and the teachers to work together to do what is best for the child. Sometimes the parent doesn't know what is best, which is why it is so important to build that home-school connection to learn from each other, as teachers can learn an abundance from a child's first and most important teacher- their parents.
I look forward to reading your blog!
Melanie,
ReplyDeleteCongratulations! It sounds like you have had much success in reaching professionals outside your circle.
It's great to find other countries so dedicated to engaging families! Are the events voluntary or mandated? Just wondering if they have the same concerns about families time. I will keep posted to learn more from you on these programs.
Becky
Melanie,
ReplyDeleteI'm so jealous! I wish I had your luck in finding professionals willing to participate in this type of project. None of the three professionals I contacted wrote me back, so I will live vicariously through your blog. I'm looking forward to reading what you have in store! Good luck!
Amanda
Hi Melanie,
ReplyDeleteThank you for your post! You are making the rest of jealous!! We are all looking forward to reading about your communication with your contacts. The Parents and Teachers League sounds like an effective program! Parent involvement is critical for development and yet so difficult to effectively implement.
Nicole