Parenting
Parent Speaker Evening
We held a very informative parent speaker session this week–over 160 current and prospective parents attended the two sessions. We tried something different this time. Rather than just having one speaker, we offered parents a choice of sessions. The first session featured Jennifer Kolari, the author of Connnected Parenting and the second session was hosted by Eric Roher and Dr. Ron Clavier.
Jennifer spoke to parents about the importance of listening intently to your children, mirroring their feelings, and the importance of acting as responsible parents. In doing so, she used her engaging presentation style to offer plenty of instructive tips and strategies. Eric Roher provided parents with some valuable information about their legal responsibilities regarding the hosting of parties for their children. Parents were somewhat shocked to hear that there were two cases before the courts involving parents who had allowed their children to have a party in their absence. Both cases involved underage drinking and tragic consequences. Dr. Ron Clavier offered parents some practical advice as to why they should not encourage or support underage drinking. Ron emphasized that both parents and educators need to do a better job in illustrating for teenagers the true cost of illegal use of alcohol and drugs.
Independent School Loyalty
An article in this week’s National Post caught the attention of a number of our staff. The article described how despite current recessionary times, enrolment in CIS schools appears to be consistent with previous years. The experts cited in the article attribute this somewhat surprising result to two factors. Parents of children in private schools regard tuition as an investment rather than an expense. Secondly, continuity and a sense of community are among the strongest desires parents have when it comes to making decisions about their child’s education. Research suggests that parents are most interested in schools that meet the overall well-being of their child, rather than simply their record of academic achievement.
It is wonderful to see that we have more than held our own with this year’s enrolment. Enrolment for next year has increased by almost 10 per cent. Perhaps our strong emphasis on small school values and community, as the expert in the article suggest, has influenced this figure. In any event, it is extremely encouraging to see the great loyalty current and prospective parents place in our program.
More on Parenting
Independent School magazine is one of the periodicals I enjoy reading. A copy is included with our membership in the National Association of Independent Schools (NAIS). It is a useful quarterly in that it contains articles aimed specifically at schools like Greenwood. Michael Thompson, author, consulting psychologist at Belmont Hills School, and frequent commentator on the independent school PD circuit is often featured in Independent School magazine. In the most recent issue, Thompson argues that in an effort to reassure themselves they are doing a good job, independent school parents seek too much information about their child’s journey through school. He claims that “living in the Information Age has deluded us into thinking we can know everything, see everything, and ultimately control everything.”
His advice to parents is succinct. Thompson believes three things define a successful school experience: connection, recognition and mastery. Without knowing every last detail, all parents are capable of learning what they can about these three areas. Is your child connected to some friends and teachers? Does your child head to school in a “reasonably optimistic mood?” Is your child recognized for some talent or ability? Do they feel a growing sense of power or mastery in some subject or area of school?
Not only are these good questions for parents to ask, but they are also important to those of us who lead schools. Ultimately, connection, recognition and mastery are at the heart of the student experience here at Greenwood.
Parenting: Comes without a manual!
As anyone has held down the role will admit, parenting is a tough job. Tougher still when you are parenting teenagers. I say this as both a parent and an educator who has interacted with parents for a number of years. Like many parents, I have read my share of how-to manuals on this topic. Though my sons are now in their early 20’s (apparently, there is no manual on parenting this age group), I still enjoy reading advice columns on parenting teenagers. It certainly informs the work we do here at Greenwood.
I enjoy reading Anthony E. Wolf, who is a regular contributor in the Globe and Mail. He offers good practical advice to parents. A good example of this was his recent column on Internet use. Because Greenwood is a laptop school, I have been asked on a number of occasions about the overuse by teenagers of the Internet and related tools such as ISM and Facebook. Wolf looks at the issue from both sides (which I encourage parents to do). On the upside, teenagers are “learning how to communicate with others in the language of the world they will inhabit.” As other technology experts have noted, the digital divide forms roughly at the age of 25, and as parents on the other side of the divide, we need to appreciate the world we grew up in is a very different world than our children will live and work in.
However, as Wolf notes, this fact doesn’t mean that teenagers should be plugged in endlessly to the Internet. He advises as parents we establish times when they are off the Internet: during family dinnertime, before going to bed, and times where you feel the family needs to be together. As he notes “they will hate it, but those are your rules.”
Parent Involvement
One of the key indicators of a successful school is the level of parent engagement in the school. We are so lucky here at Greenwood to have a parent body that is fully engaged in supporting the school. Last night’s Red and Green Sale was a great example of the kind of parent volunteerism that is such a big part of the school. A number of parents had been in the school throughout the week decorating the Lodge and setting up for the various sales that took place during the evening. Despite the general busyness of the season, attendance was terrific.
Earlier in the week, the school hosted winter camp meetings for parents of students in Grades 10 and 11. Afterwards, around 25 parents stayed behind to participate in a needs and priorities session with me. This type of consultation is important for several reasons. First of all, it is a terrific insight into how parents view our progress. More importantly, it reminds me how passionate our parents are about the school’s mission. Finally, it was also encouraging to have a number of parents come by to see during our recent parent-teacher conferences. I enjoy hearing their candid feedback about how we are doing. After all, as a wise educator once noted, feedback is the breakfast of champions! So, please keep it coming!